Competencies Approaches to
Building a Robust Geoscience
Workforce
Christopher Keane & Heather Houlton
American Geosciences Institute
September 25, 2015
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Competency Approaches
 What is “Competency”
 How is it currently used
 Current Perceptions
 Examples of existing efforts
 A look at a study of Geology/Geography alignment
through a competency lens
What is a Competency?
A competency is the capability to apply or use a set of
related knowledge, skills, and abilities required to
successfully perform "critical work functions" or tasks in
a defined work setting.
- U.S. Department of Labor
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An Issue of Language?
 Competency is often viewed in the Anglo world as a
finite skill
 Using a screwdriver
 Competency is the francophone world is a
demonstrable knowledge bundle.
 Creating an accurate geologic map
 Scope of a Competency can be widely varied
- EAGE GeoWorkforce 2013
Career
Path
Applied
Skills
Professional
Employment
Licensure and Regulatory
Awareness
Formal Education
Professionalism – Ethics,
Business, etc.
Being Discipline Vertical
Competencies as Career Management
Total’s Experience
Senior Management
Senior Technical
Career Start
Competency or Mastery?
 Competency is a demonstrated fundamental knowledge
and understanding of a concept/capability
 Mastery requires demonstrated application of a
competency in real applications and assessed by a
master.
Examples of new applications
 University of Utah Medical School
 What does an 80% in medical school mean?
 Surgical knot vs. pharmacology
 Northern Arizona University (Selected Programs)
 Transcripts as competencies or courses

Preference by groups like Google, Facebook, etc
 Goal-based vs time-based learning
Competency Approach
Threat or Improvement?
 Academic/Student Perspective – Threat
 Geometric expansion of potential points of failure
 Challenge of a goal-based vs time-based approach
 Concern on how it aligns for graduate school prep
 Employers – Improvement
 Better able to assess new hire background
 Assign people to activities where they will succeed
 Easier to provide feedback to geoscience programs
What is the Potential?
 Empower students to self-manage career from the start
 Develop the concept of life-long learning during formal
education
 Geoscience programs demonstrate their strengths
 Expose the pathways to resilient employment
 Computer programming
 Mathematics
 Manage expectations of students through the cycle
Efforts in the US
 U.S. Department of Labor’s CareerOneStop.org
 Massive investments in GeoSpatial competency model
 Geoscience walked away from the money
 Undergraduate Geoscience Education Summit
But first…how do these competencies
fit in to the larger context?
 Department of Labor Competency Models
 Geospatial Competency Model
“Technical”
“Non-Tech”
Others Pushing Forward for Geoscience
 Geoscientists Canada has built their Competency
Profile for Entry to Practice
 Australian Institute of Geoscientists is looking at the
Canadian model to augment their licensure structure
 Industry influence in the E.U. encouraging competency
framing of degrees
 INTRAW Project making a call of global core
competency model
Geoscience Career Master’s
Preparation Survey
 Joint research study with AGI and AAG
 Funded by the National Science Foundation (GEO 1202707)
 Investigated 3 main topics:
 Departmental experiences in Master’s programs
 Non-technical competencies
 Technical competencies
 Investigated Geology, Geography and joint “Hybrid”
Master’s Programs.
Validated Survey Instruments
 Geology: National Association of State Boards of
Geology (ASBOG) – Task Analysis Survey.
 Fundamentals of Geology and Practicing Geology Exams.
 Geography: AAG’s Enhancing Departments and
Graduate Education
 Geography and Career Planning Survey for faculty and
students.
Competencies – What did we ask?
Faculty: How prepared are your Master's advisees in each of the following skill
areas for post-graduation employment in (geology or geography) related
positions?
Students: How much preparation have you received in the following skill areas
for post-graduation employment in (geology or geography)?
Non-Academic Professionals: How prepared are you in each of these skill
areas for employment in your current position?
Non-Academic Professionals: Please indicate how important each skill area is
for employment in your current position.
Non-Technical
Competencies (Geology)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Prof.
Imp.
Information Management
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Grant Proposals
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Time Management
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Adaptability
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Self Awareness
Prof.
Imp.
Non-Technical
Competencies (Geology)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Prof.
Imp.
Relationship Building Skills
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Intercultural Skills
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Teaching
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Prof.
Imp.
Computer & Technology Skills
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep.
Publishing
Prof.
Imp.
Technical
Technical Competencies
(Geology)
Competencies
(Geology)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Plan and conduct geological
investigati ons considering human
health, safety, the environment,
regulations, and quality
assurance/quality control (QA/QC)
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Collect, compile, and interpret
historic information to plan
geological investigati ons
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Interpret and analyze available Determine scales, distances, and
geological and geophysical data, elevations from imagery, surveys,
maps, sections, and reports
maps, and GIS applications
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Prepare, analyze, and interpret
logs, cross-sections, maps, and
other graphics derived fromfield
investigati ons and GIS applica
t i ons
Technical
Competencies (Geology)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Plan and conduct sedimentologic,
Select and apply appropriate
stratigraphic, or paleontological stratigraphic nomenclature and
investigati ons, including the use of
establish correlations
modeling and geophysics
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Identify and interpret sedimentary Identify and interpret sediment or Identify and interpret fossils and
processes and structures,
rock sequences, positions,and
fossilassemblages for age or
depositional environments, and
ages
paleoenvironmental
sediment provenance
interpretations
Technical
Competencies (Geog.)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Using GIS to acquire, manage, Recording, measuring, and plotting Understanding the underlying
Using interviews, questionnaires, Using quantitati ve methods to
display, and analyze spatial data in electromagnetic radiati on data
theories and methods related to observations, photography, maps,
process spatial data for the
digital form
fromaerial photographs and
acquiring an object without
and other techniques for
purpose of making calculations,
remote sensing systems against
contacting it physically
measuring geographic information models, and inferences about
land features identified in ground
in the fiel
space, spatial patt erns, and spati al
control surveys, generally to
relationship
produce planimetric, topographic,
and contour map
Technical
Competencies (Geog.)
KEY Preparation:
KEY Importance:
Extensively Prepared
Adequately Prepared
Somewhat Prepared
Not Prepared
Not Applicable/ I don't know
Very Important
Important
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Not Applicable/ I don't know
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Knowing and applying geographic Knowing and applying geographic Knowing and applying geographic Knowing and applying geographic
information about political systems information about culture and
information about populati on,
information about relati onships
and processes
cultural processes
demography, and demographic
between nature and society
processes
Faculty Students Prof.
Prep
Prof.
Imp.
Designing paper or digital maps
Full Results and Resources
 Purchase or download the report!
 www.americangeosciences.org/workforce/reports
 Want to evaluate your program?
 Use our survey templates!
 www.americangeosciences.org/workforce/workforce-readiness
Questions and Discussion
Thank you! Contact us with additional questions:
Christopher Keane: keane@americangeosciences.org
Heather Houlton: hrh@americangeosciences.org
AGI Website: www.americangeosciences.org
Workforce: www.americangeosciences.org/workforce