Survival instructor to outdoor activities instructor
A survival instructor already meets 65% of what the outdoor activities instructor role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
41.6/ 100
1 How much of what an outdoor activities instructor is expected to do is already part of a survival instructor’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 outdoor activities instructor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An outdoor activities instructor role treats 11 of its required skills as things a survival instructor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adapt teaching to student's capabilities
- apply teaching strategies
- assess nature of injury in emergency
- demonstrate when teaching
- encourage students to acknowledge their achievements
- give constructive feedback
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 27 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An outdoor activities instructor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a survival instructor background worth leading with.
- already held compass navigation natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held lead hiking trips assisting and caring
- already held protection from natural elements natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held lip reading arts and humanities
- already held rope lashing engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held inspire enthusiasm for nature communication, collaboration and creativity
All 27 carried skills, including the 11 the outdoor activities instructor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 14 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.
- still to learn instruct in outdoor activities required
- still to learn assist students in their learning required
- optional, not held teach windsurfing optional
- optional, not held maintain customer service optional
- still to learn motivate in sports required
- still to learn organise sporting environment required
- optional, not held manage resources for educational purposes optional
- optional, not held plan sports instruction programme optional
- still to learn outdoor activities required
- optional, not held water skiing optional
- optional, not held belay techniques optional
- optional, not held skateboard optional
- still to learn apply risk management in sports required
- optional, not held team building optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an outdoor activities instructor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 apply risk management in sports practise this
- 02 instruct in outdoor activities practise this
- 03 motivate in sports 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 27 skills that carry over
- already held adapt teaching to student's capabilities skill
- already held apply teaching strategies skill
- already held assess nature of injury in emergency skill
- already held demonstrate when teaching skill
- already held encourage students to acknowledge their achievements skill
- already held give constructive feedback skill
- already held guarantee students' safety skill
- already held protection from natural elements knowledge
- already held provide first aid skill
- already held provide lesson materials skill
- already held use rope access techniques skill
- already held assess students skill
- already held climb trees skill
- already held compass navigation knowledge
- already held facilitate teamwork between students skill
- already held inspire enthusiasm for nature skill
- already held lead hiking trips skill
- already held lip reading knowledge
- already held prepare lesson content skill
- already held read maps skill
- already held represent the organisation skill
- already held rope lashing knowledge
- already held teamwork principles knowledge
- already held use geographic memory skill
- already held use modern electronic navigational aids skill
- already held use rigging tools skill
- already held work with different target groups skill
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held teach windsurfing optional
- optional, not held team building optional
- optional, not held water skiing optional
- optional, not held belay techniques optional
- optional, not held manage resources for educational purposes optional
- optional, not held plan sports instruction programme optional
- optional, not held skateboard optional
- optional, not held maintain customer service optional
17 held skills the outdoor activities instructor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role animal behaviour knowledge
- not needed by the target role animal evolution knowledge
- not needed by the target role assist students with equipment skill
- not needed by the target role build a fire skill
- not needed by the target role celestial navigation knowledge
- not needed by the target role consult students on learning content skill
- not needed by the target role educate people about nature skill
- not needed by the target role maintain camping facilities skill
- not needed by the target role manage groups outdoors skill
- not needed by the target role manage student relationships skill
- not needed by the target role natural food resources knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate fishing equipment skill
- not needed by the target role primitive technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide first aid to animals skill
- not needed by the target role risk management knowledge
- not needed by the target role teach survival skills skill
- not needed by the target role tracking principles knowledge
5 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 outdoor activities required
- optional, not held team building optional
- optional, not held water skiing optional
- optional, not held belay techniques optional
- optional, not held skateboard optional
Common questions about this move
Can a survival instructor become an outdoor activities instructor?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A survival instructor already covers 65% of what an outdoor activities instructor is expected to do: 27 skills carry over, 11 of which the outdoor activities instructor role treats as required.
What skills does a survival instructor need to become an outdoor activities instructor?
6 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is apply risk management in sports.
How hard is the move from survival instructor to outdoor activities instructor?
Its learning distance is 41.6 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.