Polygraph examiner to prosecutor
A polygraph examiner already meets 24% of what the prosecutor role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
70.2/ 100
1 How much of what a prosecutor is expected to do is already part of a polygraph examiner’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 prosecutor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A prosecutor role treats 5 of its required skills as things a polygraph examiner already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- analyse legal evidence
- comply with legal regulations
- criminal law
- observe confidentiality
- present evidence
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 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A prosecutor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a polygraph examiner background worth leading with.
- already held present evidence communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held analyse legal evidence information skills
- already held criminal law business, administration and law
- already held conduct research interview communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held observe confidentiality assisting and caring
- already held comply with legal regulations assisting and caring
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the prosecutor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 27 missing skills fall into 6 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 interpret law required
- still to learn negotiate lawyer's fee required
- still to learn present arguments persuasively required
- still to learn present legal arguments required
- still to learn represent clients in courts required
- optional, not held advise on legal decisions optional
- optional, not held apply knowledge of human behaviour optional
- optional, not held handle case evidence optional
- optional, not held hear witness accounts optional
- optional, not held negotiate in legal cases optional
- optional, not held protect client interests optional
- optional, not held provide legal advice optional
- still to learn court procedures required
- still to learn legal case management required
- still to learn legal research required
- still to learn legal terminology required
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held civil process order optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- still to learn compile legal documents required
- optional, not held document evidence optional
- still to learn government representation required
- optional, not held rhetoric optional
- optional, not held ensure law application optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- optional, not held law enforcement optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a prosecutor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 compile legal documents practise this
- 02 court procedures study this
- 03 government representation 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 6 skills that carry over
- already held analyse legal evidence skill
- already held comply with legal regulations skill
- already held criminal law knowledge
- already held observe confidentiality skill
- already held present evidence skill
- already held conduct research interview skill
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on legal decisions optional
- optional, not held apply knowledge of human behaviour optional
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held civil process order optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- optional, not held document evidence optional
- optional, not held ensure law application optional
- optional, not held handle case evidence optional
- optional, not held hear witness accounts optional
- optional, not held law enforcement optional
- optional, not held negotiate in legal cases optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- optional, not held protect client interests optional
- optional, not held provide legal advice optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- optional, not held rhetoric optional
22 held skills the prosecutor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assess character skill
- not needed by the target role assist police investigations skill
- not needed by the target role create criminal profiles skill
- not needed by the target role criminology knowledge
- not needed by the target role deal with aggressive behaviour skill
- not needed by the target role document interviews skill
- not needed by the target role forensic intelligence knowledge
- not needed by the target role human physiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role interrogate individuals skill
- not needed by the target role interview techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role investigation research methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain professional administration skill
- not needed by the target role manage tests skill
- not needed by the target role observe human behaviour skill
- not needed by the target role profile people skill
- not needed by the target role promote human rights skill
- not needed by the target role provide testimony in court hearings skill
- not needed by the target role psychology knowledge
- not needed by the target role psychophysiology knowledge
- not needed by the target role report analysis results skill
- not needed by the target role use technology for forensics skill
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports 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 court procedures required
- still to learn government representation required
- still to learn legal case management required
- still to learn legal research required
- still to learn legal terminology required
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held civil process order optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- optional, not held law enforcement optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- optional, not held rhetoric optional
Common questions about this move
Can a polygraph examiner become a prosecutor?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A polygraph examiner already covers 24% of what a prosecutor is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 5 of which the prosecutor role treats as required.
What skills does a polygraph examiner need to become a prosecutor?
11 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is compile legal documents.
How hard is the move from polygraph examiner to prosecutor?
Its learning distance is 70.2 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.