Kinesiologist to palaeontologist
A kinesiologist already meets 72% of what the palaeontologist role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
41.8/ 100
1 How much of what a palaeontologist is expected to do is already part of a kinesiologist’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 palaeontologist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A palaeontologist role treats 32 of its required skills as things a kinesiologist 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
- apply scientific methods
- communicate with a non-scientific audience
- conduct research across disciplines
- demonstrate disciplinary expertise
What stands in the way is 6 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 39 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A palaeontologist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a kinesiologist background worth leading with.
- already held scientific modelling information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held gather experimental data information skills
- already held develop scientific theories information skills
- already held write research proposals communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held biology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held perform laboratory tests working with machinery and specialised equipment
All 39 carried skills, including the 32 the palaeontologist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 27 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 geographic information systems required
- still to learn geological time scale required
- still to learn geology required
- still to learn paleontology required
- optional, not held botany optional
- optional, not held habitat restoration optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held geophysics optional
- still to learn scientific literature required
- still to learn use geographic information systems required
- optional, not held conduct geochemical research optional
- optional, not held identify fossils optional
- optional, not held analyse experimental laboratory data optional
- optional, not held examine geochemical samples optional
- optional, not held interpret geophysical data optional
- optional, not held apply statistical analysis techniques optional
- optional, not held conduct field work optional
- optional, not held oversee excavation optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held assemble fossils optional
- optional, not held excavate fossils optional
- optional, not held collect samples for analysis optional
- optional, not held locate fossils optional
- optional, not held operate scientific measuring equipment optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a palaeontologist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 geographic information systems study this
- 02 use geographic information systems practise this
- 03 geological time scale study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 39 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 apply scientific methods skill
- already held communicate with a non-scientific audience skill
- already held conduct research across disciplines skill
- 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 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 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 scientific modelling knowledge
- already held scientific research methodology knowledge
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held synthesise information skill
- already held think abstractly skill
- already held write scientific publications skill
- already held apply blended learning skill
- already held biology knowledge
- already held develop scientific theories skill
- already held gather experimental data skill
- already held perform laboratory tests skill
- already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
- already held write research proposals skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held work ergonomically optional
21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assemble fossils optional
- optional, not held conduct geochemical research optional
- optional, not held excavate fossils optional
- optional, not held identify fossils optional
- optional, not held locate fossils optional
- optional, not held analyse experimental laboratory data optional
- optional, not held botany optional
- optional, not held examine geochemical samples optional
- optional, not held habitat restoration optional
- optional, not held interpret geophysical data optional
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held apply statistical analysis techniques optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held collect samples for analysis optional
- optional, not held conduct field work optional
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held geophysics optional
- optional, not held operate scientific measuring equipment optional
- optional, not held oversee excavation optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held work ergonomically optional
41 held skills the palaeontologist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role acupuncture methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- not needed by the target role archive scientific documentation skill
- not needed by the target role assess physical conditions of clients skill
- not needed by the target role assist in clinical trials skill
- not needed by the target role assist in performing physical exercises skill
- not needed by the target role assist patients with rehabilitation skill
- not needed by the target role attend sports training skill
- not needed by the target role biological chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role biomechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role calibrate laboratory equipment skill
- not needed by the target role contribute to the rehabilitation process skill
- not needed by the target role correct potentially harmful movements skill
- not needed by the target role create a diet plan skill
- not needed by the target role create exercise programmes for health risks skill
- not needed by the target role deal with challenging people skill
- not needed by the target role develop patient treatment strategies skill
- not needed by the target role develop scientific research protocols skill
- not needed by the target role ergonomics knowledge
- not needed by the target role exercise physiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role human anatomy knowledge
- not needed by the target role human physiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role kinanthropometry knowledge
- not needed by the target role kinesiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role kinesitherapy knowledge
- not needed by the target role kinetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain laboratory equipment skill
- not needed by the target role neurology knowledge
- not needed by the target role nutrition knowledge
- not needed by the target role occupational physiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role osteopathy knowledge
- not needed by the target role pathology knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform lectures skill
- not needed by the target role prepare lesson content skill
- not needed by the target role provide individual exercise programmes skill
- not needed by the target role psychology knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychomotor therapy knowledge
- not needed by the target role rehabilitation knowledge
- not needed by the target role research design knowledge
- not needed by the target role sport psychology knowledge
1 further entry not listed here
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 geographic information systems required
- still to learn geological time scale required
- still to learn geology required
- still to learn paleontology required
- still to learn scientific literature required
- optional, not held botany optional
- optional, not held habitat restoration optional
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held geophysics optional
Common questions about this move
Can a kinesiologist become a palaeontologist?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A kinesiologist already covers 72% of what a palaeontologist is expected to do: 39 skills carry over, 32 of which the palaeontologist role treats as required.
What skills does a kinesiologist need to become a palaeontologist?
6 required skills are missing, plus 21 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by natural sciences, mathematics and statistics. The single most important is geographic information systems.
How hard is the move from kinesiologist to palaeontologist?
Its learning distance is 41.8 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.