Sociologist to anthropologist
A sociologist already meets 80% of what the anthropologist role asks for. The move turns on 5 required skills not yet in the profile.
32.8/ 100
1 How much of what an anthropologist is expected to do is already part of a sociologist’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 anthropologist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An anthropologist role treats 37 of its required skills as things a sociologist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- anthropology
- 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
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 · What you already bring
Of the 52 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An anthropologist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a sociologist background worth leading with.
- already held study human societies information skills
- already held economic anthropology social sciences, journalism and information
- already held African studies social sciences, journalism and information
- already held observe human behaviour information skills
- already held religious studies arts and humanities
- already held study cultures information skills
All 52 carried skills, including the 37 the anthropologist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 7 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 pedigree charts required
- still to learn research human behaviour required
- optional, not held conduct participatory research optional
- optional, not held identify archaeological finds optional
- optional, not held consult information sources optional
- optional, not held search historical sources in archives optional
- still to learn interview people required
- optional, not held teach anthropology optional
- still to learn cultural geography required
- optional, not held biology optional
- still to learn participant observation required
- optional, not held forensic anthropology optional
- optional, not held archaeology optional
- optional, not held osteology optional
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held linguistics optional
- optional, not held philosophy optional
- optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
- optional, not held Latin optional
- optional, not held Sanskrit optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an anthropologist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 cultural geography study this
- 02 interview people practise this
- 03 interpret pedigree charts 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 52 skills that carry over
- already held anthropology knowledge
- 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 economic anthropology knowledge
- already held evaluate research activities skill
- already held geography knowledge
- 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 observe human behaviour 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 research design knowledge
- already held scientific research methodology knowledge
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held study cultures skill
- already held synthesise information skill
- already held think abstractly skill
- already held write scientific publications skill
- already held African studies knowledge
- already held advise legislators skill
- already held apply blended learning skill
- already held cultural history knowledge
- already held develop scientific theories skill
- already held history knowledge
- already held interview focus groups skill
- already held interview techniques knowledge
- already held multidisciplinary research knowledge
- already held politics knowledge
- already held religious studies knowledge
- already held sociology knowledge
- already held study human societies skill
- already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
- already held write research proposals skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held work on excavation site optional
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held conduct participatory research optional
- optional, not held archaeology optional
- optional, not held identify archaeological finds optional
- optional, not held osteology optional
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held teach anthropology optional
- optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
- optional, not held Latin optional
- optional, not held Sanskrit optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held consult information sources optional
- optional, not held forensic anthropology optional
- optional, not held linguistics optional
- optional, not held philosophy optional
- optional, not held search historical sources in archives optional
- optional, not held work on excavation site optional
29 held skills the anthropologist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role European integration knowledge
- not needed by the target role action research knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on organisational culture skill
- not needed by the target role advise on personnel management skill
- not needed by the target role advise on public relations skill
- not needed by the target role apply knowledge of human behaviour skill
- not needed by the target role apply statistical analysis techniques skill
- not needed by the target role apply teaching strategies skill
- not needed by the target role communication studies knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct public surveys skill
- not needed by the target role conduct qualitative research skill
- not needed by the target role conduct quantitative research skill
- not needed by the target role content marketing strategy knowledge
- not needed by the target role demography knowledge
- not needed by the target role economics knowledge
- not needed by the target role gather data skill
- not needed by the target role gender studies knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret current data skill
- not needed by the target role legal studies knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage quantitative data skill
- not needed by the target role monitor sociological trends skill
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role perform public relations skill
- not needed by the target role political economy knowledge
- not needed by the target role political science knowledge
- not needed by the target role social network analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role spatial planning knowledge
- not needed by the target role statistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role teach sociology skill
12 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 cultural geography required
- still to learn participant observation required
- optional, not held archaeology optional
- optional, not held osteology optional
- optional, not held paleography optional
- optional, not held Ancient Greek optional
- optional, not held Latin optional
- optional, not held Sanskrit optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held forensic anthropology optional
- optional, not held linguistics optional
- optional, not held philosophy optional
Common questions about this move
Can a sociologist become an anthropologist?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A sociologist already covers 80% of what an anthropologist is expected to do: 52 skills carry over, 37 of which the anthropologist role treats as required.
What skills does a sociologist need to become an anthropologist?
5 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is cultural geography.
How hard is the move from sociologist to anthropologist?
Its learning distance is 32.8 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.