Data scientist to statistician
A data scientist already meets 68% of what the statistician role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
47.8/ 100
1 How much of what a statistician is expected to do is already part of a data scientist’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 statistician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A statistician role treats 39 of its required skills as things a data scientist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply for research funding
- apply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activities
- communicate with a non-scientific audience
- conduct research across disciplines
- data ethics
- data quality assessment
What stands in the way is 11 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 48 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A statistician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a data scientist background worth leading with.
- already held data ethics arts and humanities
- already held statistical modeling techniques natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held healthcare analytics health and welfare
- already held social network analysis social sciences, journalism and information
- already held marketing analytics business, administration and law
- already held data science information and communication technologies (icts)
All 48 carried skills, including the 39 the statistician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 37 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 apply scientific methods required
- still to learn apply statistical analysis techniques required
- still to learn conduct quantitative research required
- still to learn gather data required
- still to learn identify statistical patterns required
- still to learn process data required
- optional, not held build predictive models optional
- optional, not held develop scientific theories optional
- optional, not held plan research process optional
- optional, not held analyse big data optional
- optional, not held carry out statistical forecasts optional
- optional, not held conduct public surveys optional
- optional, not held design questionnaires optional
- optional, not held develop financial statistics reports optional
- optional, not held manage database optional
- optional, not held use mathematical tools and equipment optional
- still to learn mathematics required
- still to learn statistical analysis system software required
- optional, not held set theory optional
- optional, not held biometrics optional
- still to learn digital data processing required
- still to learn perform data analysis required
- optional, not held develop statistical software optional
- optional, not held manage quantitative data optional
- still to learn scientific research methodology required
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held advise on legislative acts optional
- optional, not held assist scientific research optional
- optional, not held prepare lesson content optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held provide lesson materials optional
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
- optional, not held algorithms optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a statistician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 digital data processing practise this
- 02 apply scientific methods practise this
- 03 apply statistical analysis techniques 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 48 skills that carry over
- already held apply for research funding skill
- already held apply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activities skill
- already held communicate with a non-scientific audience skill
- already held conduct research across disciplines skill
- already held data ethics knowledge
- already held data quality assessment knowledge
- already held data science knowledge
- already held demonstrate disciplinary expertise skill
- already held develop professional network with researchers and scientists skill
- already held disseminate results to the scientific community skill
- already held draft scientific or academic papers and technical documentation skill
- already held evaluate research activities skill
- already held execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- already held increase the impact of science on policy and society skill
- already held integrate gender dimension in research skill
- already held interact professionally in research and professional environments skill
- already held manage findable accessible interoperable and reusable data skill
- already held manage intellectual property rights skill
- already held manage open publications skill
- already held manage personal professional development skill
- already held manage research data skill
- already held mathematical modelling knowledge
- already held mentor individuals skill
- already held operate open source software skill
- already held perform project management skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held promote open innovation in research skill
- already held promote the participation of citizens in scientific and research activities skill
- already held promote the transfer of knowledge skill
- already held publish academic research skill
- already held quantitative analysis knowledge
- already held research design knowledge
- already held scientific literature knowledge
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held statistical modeling techniques knowledge
- already held statistics knowledge
- already held synthesise information skill
- already held think abstractly skill
- already held write scientific publications skill
- already held apply blended learning skill
- already held computer simulation knowledge
- already held deliver visual presentation of data skill
- already held healthcare analytics knowledge
- already held marketing analytics knowledge
- already held multidisciplinary research knowledge
- already held social network analysis knowledge
- already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
- already held use spreadsheets software skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held demography optional
- optional, not held opinion poll optional
- optional, not held market research optional
26 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held build predictive models optional
- optional, not held develop scientific theories optional
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
- optional, not held plan research process optional
- optional, not held set theory optional
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held advise on legislative acts optional
- optional, not held algorithms optional
- optional, not held analyse big data optional
- optional, not held assist scientific research optional
- optional, not held biometrics optional
- optional, not held carry out statistical forecasts optional
- optional, not held conduct public surveys optional
- optional, not held demography optional
- optional, not held design questionnaires optional
- optional, not held develop financial statistics reports optional
- optional, not held develop statistical software optional
- optional, not held manage database optional
- optional, not held manage quantitative data optional
- optional, not held market research optional
- optional, not held opinion poll optional
- optional, not held prepare lesson content optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held provide lesson materials optional
- optional, not held use mathematical tools and equipment optional
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
49 held skills the statistician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role Hadoop knowledge
- not needed by the target role LDAP knowledge
- not needed by the target role LINQ knowledge
- not needed by the target role MDX knowledge
- not needed by the target role N1QL knowledge
- not needed by the target role SPARQL knowledge
- not needed by the target role XQuery knowledge
- not needed by the target role build recommender systems skill
- not needed by the target role business analytics knowledge
- not needed by the target role business intelligence knowledge
- not needed by the target role collect ICT data skill
- not needed by the target role computational biology knowledge
- not needed by the target role create data models skill
- not needed by the target role data engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role data mining knowledge
- not needed by the target role data models knowledge
- not needed by the target role data visualisation software knowledge
- not needed by the target role define data quality criteria skill
- not needed by the target role design database in the cloud skill
- not needed by the target role design database scheme skill
- not needed by the target role develop data processing applications skill
- not needed by the target role digital curation knowledge
- not needed by the target role empirical analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role establish data processes skill
- not needed by the target role handle data samples skill
- not needed by the target role image recognition knowledge
- not needed by the target role implement data quality processes skill
- not needed by the target role information categorisation knowledge
- not needed by the target role information extraction knowledge
- not needed by the target role integrate ICT data skill
- not needed by the target role interpret current data skill
- not needed by the target role make data-driven decisions skill
- not needed by the target role manage ICT data architecture skill
- not needed by the target role manage ICT data classification skill
- not needed by the target role manage data skill
- not needed by the target role manage data collection systems skill
- not needed by the target role normalise data skill
- not needed by the target role online analytical processing knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform data cleansing skill
- not needed by the target role perform data mining skill
9 further entries not listed here
10 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 mathematics required
- still to learn scientific research methodology required
- still to learn statistical analysis system software required
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
- optional, not held set theory optional
- optional, not held algorithms optional
- optional, not held biometrics optional
- optional, not held demography optional
- optional, not held market research optional
- optional, not held opinion poll optional
Other moves recorded from data scientist
- data analyst 80% covered · moderate
- demographer 72% covered · moderate
- biometrician 69% covered · moderate
- religion scientific researcher 69% covered · moderate
- astronomer 67% covered · moderate
- data quality specialist 66% covered · moderate
- seismologist 66% covered · moderate
- philosopher 65% covered · moderate
Common questions about this move
Can a data scientist become a statistician?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A data scientist already covers 68% of what a statistician is expected to do: 48 skills carry over, 39 of which the statistician role treats as required.
What skills does a data scientist need to become a statistician?
11 required skills are missing, plus 26 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is digital data processing.
How hard is the move from data scientist to statistician?
Its learning distance is 47.8 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.