Chromatographer to assayer
A chromatographer already meets 34% of what the assayer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
63.5/ 100
1 How much of what an assayer is expected to do is already part of a chromatographer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the assayer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An assayer role treats 6 of its required skills as things a chromatographer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply safety procedures in laboratory
- chemical processes
- handle chemicals
- laboratory techniques
- perform laboratory tests
- use chemical analysis equipment
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 8 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An assayer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a chromatographer background worth leading with.
- already held handle chemicals handling and moving
- already held use chemical analysis equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held prepare chemical samples handling and moving
- already held manage chemical testing procedures information skills
- already held chemical processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory assisting and caring
All 8 carried skills, including the 6 the assayer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 19 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn analytical chemistry required
- still to learn chemistry required
- still to learn statistics required
- optional, not held geology optional
- optional, not held physics optional
- still to learn metal and metal ore products required
- still to learn good laboratory practice required
- still to learn precious metals required
- still to learn characteristics of precious metals required
- optional, not held jewellery processes optional
- optional, not held manufacturing of jewellery optional
- still to learn test raw minerals required
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held report test findings optional
- still to learn identify customer's needs required
- still to learn separate metals from ores required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an assayer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 identify customer's needs practise this
- 02 metal and metal ore products study this
- 03 separate metals from ores practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 8 skills that carry over
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- already held chemical processes knowledge
- already held handle chemicals skill
- already held laboratory techniques knowledge
- already held perform laboratory tests skill
- already held use chemical analysis equipment skill
- already held manage chemical testing procedures skill
- already held prepare chemical samples skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held heat jewellery metals optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held supervise laboratory operations optional
9 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held heat jewellery metals optional
- optional, not held jewellery processes optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held manufacturing of jewellery optional
- optional, not held geology optional
- optional, not held physics optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held report test findings optional
- optional, not held supervise laboratory operations optional
40 held skills the assayer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply liquid chromatography skill
- not needed by the target role apply organisational techniques skill
- not needed by the target role apply scientific methods skill
- not needed by the target role archive scientific documentation skill
- not needed by the target role assist scientific research skill
- not needed by the target role calibrate laboratory equipment skill
- not needed by the target role chemical products knowledge
- not needed by the target role computational chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role contact scientists skill
- not needed by the target role create project specifications skill
- not needed by the target role develop scientific research protocols skill
- not needed by the target role develop scientific theories skill
- not needed by the target role document analysis results skill
- not needed by the target role follow laboratory manuals skill
- not needed by the target role gel permeation chromatography knowledge
- not needed by the target role handling chemical products for soil and plants skill
- not needed by the target role health and safety regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role high-performance liquid chromatography knowledge
- not needed by the target role improve chemical processes skill
- not needed by the target role keep up to date on product knowledge skill
- not needed by the target role keep up-to-date with regulations skill
- not needed by the target role laboratory-based sciences knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain chromotography machinery skill
- not needed by the target role manage chemical processes inspection skill
- not needed by the target role mass spectrometry knowledge
- not needed by the target role mix chemicals skill
- not needed by the target role monitor chemical process condition skill
- not needed by the target role operate scientific measuring equipment skill
- not needed by the target role oxidation knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform chemical experiments skill
- not needed by the target role project management principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role regulate chemical reaction skill
- not needed by the target role solid phase microextraction knowledge
- not needed by the target role test chemical samples skill
- not needed by the target role train employees skill
- not needed by the target role transfer chemicals skill
- not needed by the target role use chromatography software skill
- not needed by the target role use microsoft office skill
- not needed by the target role work with chemicals skill
- not needed by the target role write scientific publications skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn metal and metal ore products required
- still to learn analytical chemistry required
- still to learn characteristics of precious metals required
- still to learn chemistry required
- still to learn good laboratory practice required
- still to learn precious metals required
- still to learn statistics required
- optional, not held jewellery processes optional
- optional, not held manufacturing of jewellery optional
- optional, not held geology optional
- optional, not held physics optional
Common questions about this move
Can a chromatographer become an assayer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A chromatographer already covers 34% of what an assayer is expected to do: 8 skills carry over, 6 of which the assayer role treats as required.
What skills does a chromatographer need to become an assayer?
10 required skills are missing, plus 9 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by natural sciences, mathematics and statistics. The single most important is identify customer's needs.
How hard is the move from chromatographer to assayer?
Its learning distance is 63.5 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.