Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Religion scientific researcher to philosopher

A religion scientific researcher already meets 80% of what the philosopher role asks for. The move turns on 5 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From religion scientific researcher
80 % overlap
Very strong match
To philosopher
42 You already bring
5 Still to learn
60 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

30.3/ 100

1 How much of what a philosopher is expected to do is already part of a religion scientific researcher’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 philosopher role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A philosopher role treats 35 of its required skills as things a religion scientific researcher 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 5 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 42 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A philosopher role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a religion scientific researcher background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held logic arts and humanities
  • already held religious studies arts and humanities
  • already held theology arts and humanities
  • already held philosophy arts and humanities
  • already held ethics arts and humanities
  • already held history arts and humanities

All 42 carried skills, including the 35 the philosopher role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 18 missing skills fall into 5 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 arts and humanities 3 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn history of philosophy required
  • still to learn morality required
  • still to learn philosophical schools of thought required
  • optional, not held phenomenology optional
  • optional, not held cultural history optional
  • optional, not held metaphysics optional
02 communication, collaboration and creativity 1 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn present arguments persuasively required
  • optional, not held perform lectures optional
  • optional, not held teach philosophy optional
03 generic programmes and qualifications 1 required
  • still to learn scientific literature required
04 social sciences, journalism and information 6 supplementary
  • optional, not held journalism optional
  • optional, not held political ideologies optional
  • optional, not held political science optional
  • optional, not held politics optional
  • optional, not held sociology optional
  • optional, not held source criticism optional
05 classical languages 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
  • optional, not held Latin optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a philosopher role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 42 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • 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 ethics knowledge
  • 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 logic knowledge
  • 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 philosophy knowledge
  • 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 rhetoric 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 develop scientific theories skill
  • already held history knowledge
  • already held religious studies knowledge
  • already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
  • already held theology knowledge
  • already held write research proposals skill
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held phenomenology optional
  • optional, not held cultural history optional
  • optional, not held metaphysics optional
  • optional, not held perform lectures optional
  • optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
  • optional, not held Latin optional
  • optional, not held journalism optional
  • optional, not held political ideologies optional
  • optional, not held political science optional
  • optional, not held politics optional
  • optional, not held sociology optional
  • optional, not held source criticism optional
  • optional, not held teach philosophy optional
16 held skills the philosopher role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role apply teaching strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role assist families in crisis situations skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct qualitative research skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct religious missions skill
  • not needed by the target role develop policies on religion-related matters skill
  • not needed by the target role do historical research skill
  • not needed by the target role history of theology knowledge
  • not needed by the target role interpret religious texts skill
  • not needed by the target role pedagogy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role perform religious ceremonies skill
  • not needed by the target role prepare religious services skill
  • not needed by the target role promote religious activities skill
  • not needed by the target role provide spiritual counselling skill
  • not needed by the target role teach religious texts skill
  • not needed by the target role train religious professionals skill
  • not needed by the target role work within communities skill
15 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn history of philosophy required
  • still to learn morality required
  • still to learn philosophical schools of thought required
  • still to learn scientific literature required
  • optional, not held phenomenology optional
  • optional, not held cultural history optional
  • optional, not held metaphysics optional
  • optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
  • optional, not held Latin optional
  • optional, not held journalism optional
  • optional, not held political ideologies optional
  • optional, not held political science optional
  • optional, not held politics optional
  • optional, not held sociology optional
  • optional, not held source criticism optional
Index
FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a religion scientific researcher become a philosopher?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A religion scientific researcher already covers 80% of what a philosopher is expected to do: 42 skills carry over, 35 of which the philosopher role treats as required.

What skills does a religion scientific researcher need to become a philosopher?

5 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by arts and humanities. The single most important is history of philosophy.

How hard is the move from religion scientific researcher to philosopher?

Its learning distance is 30.3 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.