Learning mentor to educational psychologist
A learning mentor already meets 51% of what the educational psychologist role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
56.1/ 100
1 How much of what an educational psychologist is expected to do is already part of a learning mentor’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 educational psychologist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An educational psychologist role treats 12 of its required skills as things a learning mentor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- action research
- communicate with youth
- consult student's support system
- counsel students
- developmental psychology
- liaise with educational staff
What stands in the way is 12 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 23 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An educational psychologist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a learning mentor background worth leading with.
- already held school psychology social sciences, journalism and information
- already held counsel students communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held developmental psychology social sciences, journalism and information
- already held communication disorders social sciences, journalism and information
- already held action research education
- already held learning needs analysis education
All 23 carried skills, including the 12 the educational psychologist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 22 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 diagnose psychiatric symptoms required
- still to learn monitor therapeutic progress required
- still to learn test for behavioural patterns required
- still to learn test for emotional patterns required
- optional, not held carry out psychiatric assessment of child optional
- optional, not held keep up-to-date with training subjects optional
- optional, not held conduct psychological research optional
- still to learn apply crisis intervention required
- still to learn use psychoeducation required
- optional, not held communicate about youth's well-being optional
- optional, not held publish academic research optional
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
- still to learn diagnose education problems required
- still to learn interpret psychological tests required
- still to learn adolescent psychological development required
- still to learn psychological counselling methods required
- still to learn crisis intervention required
- optional, not held psychiatric disorders optional
- still to learn perform educational testing required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an educational psychologist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 diagnose education problems practise this
- 02 apply crisis intervention practise this
- 03 diagnose psychiatric symptoms 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 23 skills that carry over
- already held action research knowledge
- already held communicate with youth skill
- already held consult student's support system skill
- already held counsel students skill
- already held developmental psychology knowledge
- already held liaise with educational staff skill
- already held liaise with educational support staff skill
- already held listen actively skill
- already held monitor student's behaviour skill
- already held psychology knowledge
- already held school psychology knowledge
- already held social development knowledge
- already held assist in the organisation of school events skill
- already held behavioural disorders knowledge
- already held communication disorders knowledge
- already held education law knowledge
- already held guarantee students' safety skill
- already held learning difficulties knowledge
- already held learning needs analysis knowledge
- already held oversee extra-curricular activities skill
- already held secondary school procedures knowledge
- already held show consideration for student's situation skill
- already held support children's wellbeing skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held assessment processes optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
- optional, not held consultation optional
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held carry out psychiatric assessment of child optional
- optional, not held keep up-to-date with training subjects optional
- optional, not held assessment processes optional
- optional, not held communicate about youth's well-being optional
- optional, not held conduct psychological research optional
- optional, not held consultation optional
- optional, not held psychiatric disorders optional
- optional, not held publish academic research optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
16 held skills the educational psychologist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt teaching to student's capabilities skill
- not needed by the target role apply person-centred care skill
- not needed by the target role assist students in their learning skill
- not needed by the target role assist students with their enrolment skill
- not needed by the target role construct individual learning plans skill
- not needed by the target role cooperate with education professionals skill
- not needed by the target role counselling methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role encourage students to acknowledge their achievements skill
- not needed by the target role identify education needs skill
- not needed by the target role manage resources for educational purposes skill
- not needed by the target role organise projects to fill education needs skill
- not needed by the target role perform playground surveillance skill
- not needed by the target role primary school procedures knowledge
- not needed by the target role promote the safeguarding of young people skill
- not needed by the target role provide teacher support skill
- not needed by the target role support the positiveness of youths skill
7 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 adolescent psychological development required
- still to learn crisis intervention required
- still to learn psychological counselling methods required
- optional, not held assessment processes optional
- optional, not held consultation optional
- optional, not held psychiatric disorders optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
Common questions about this move
Can a learning mentor become an educational psychologist?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A learning mentor already covers 51% of what an educational psychologist is expected to do: 23 skills carry over, 12 of which the educational psychologist role treats as required.
What skills does a learning mentor need to become an educational psychologist?
12 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is diagnose education problems.
How hard is the move from learning mentor to educational psychologist?
Its learning distance is 56.1 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.