Transferable skills The final set of assessment relates to...
BAJR Skills Passport
This is the start of your career!
Skills Passport: Opening the Door
The BAJR Archaeology Skills passport has been designed to document the main skills you will require to gain employment as a professional archaeologist.
Endorsed by
From its inception in 2008, The Skills Passport has provided a stepping stone towards professional accreditation at the start of a career in archaeology.
It's a convenient way to log continual professional development (CPD) and enables the creation of meaningful Personal Development Plans (PDP).
It provides a means of recognising personal skill gaps;
Enabled a step towards membership of the Chartered Institute for Archaeology (CIfA)
The Passport contains a record of basic competences gained including core, secondary and tertiary skills, and in conjunction with the website, acts as an invaluable guide to career pathways (by highlighting skills required for archaeological occupations).
The passport has also proven invlauable in providing potential employers with a peer reviewed assessment of a job applicant’s skills.
£9.75
£8.50
Archaeology Equipment
Our friends at Past Horizons supply archaeology equipment across the world, to individuals, universities, museums, professional contractors and amateur groups.
Skills Overview
Below are articles outlining the skills that the passport will enable you to log in the passport
Heritage Legislation
Can name the main legislation documents and comment on the salient points of content and how it affects work activities.
Public Outreach
communicate comfortably and/or work with members of the public in events ranging from open days to community events.
Illustration and Graphics
Archaeological Illustration is a form of technical illustration that records material derived from an archaeological context graphically
Report and Article Writing
A broad subject, but you may assist significantly in the creation of a full project report, popular article or news report.
Excavation and Lifting Skeleton
Cleaned, photographed, drawn, recorded and carefully lifted, the skeleton is packed in an appropriate, correctly labelled box
Data Entry/Archiving
Essentially this is the creation of spreadsheets or better still, relational database entries for all the paper records (context, finds, samples etc), with indexed photographs and scanned or digitised plans
GIS & Data Management
The creation of spreadsheets or better still, relational database entries for all the paper records, and digital versions of photographs and plans
Finds Processing
Finds are what helps to date a site and provide an idea of the activities that took place.
Environmental Processing
By studying charcoal, seeds and snails (for example) specialists can reveal how people’s lives were influenced by the environment
Fieldwalking Survey
Fieldwalking can be either gridded or transect, you should be able to assist in an organised survey with collected artefacts suitably located, recorded, sorted and cross referenced.
Landscape Walkover Survey
A walkover survey, looks for new archaeological features relating to the occupation or activities over a large area.
Geophysical survey
Depending on the type of survey undertaken, an ability to understand the specific principles to set-up and process field data.
Total Station Survey
Modern sites use either GPS or commonly the Total Station for site survey, grid location, coordinating artefacts or samples, this skill gives you added value when it comes to employment.
Collection of Samples
Sampling may be carried out by members of the excavation team or by specialists as appropriate – you should know how to take the main types of site samples
Section Drawing
You will be required to draw a fully annotated, dimensionally correct section drawing that accurately represents the section of a trench
Planning
Draw a correctly annotated scale plan of a trench or feature that accurately portrays and locates the required elements
Dumpy Level and Staff
One of the simple but often overlooked aspects of survey and planning is the use of the Dumpy Level
Site Grid and Trench Layout
To be able to set out pegs as a fixed grid and lay out a trench within this coordinate system.
Site Photography
Many of us use Digital Cameras in place of 35mm and are expected to be able to use them on sites, relying on the automatic setting to get the photograph we need.
Stratigraphic Excavation
Stratigraphic excavation, isolating contexts and edges and then attempting to excavate or remove contexts in reverse stratigraphic order
Context Sheet Recording
Excavated contexts are recorded on context sheets which can vary in style depending on the organisation carrying out the excavation but in general they share similar characteristics.
Understanding Site Formation
Site formation is a basic building block of archaeology: it is by analysis of this sequence through excavation that permits interpretation
Handtools ( Large)
Knowing which tool to to use and how to use it is one of the basics of archaeological fieldwork excavation.
Excavation ( Small Tools)
Knowing which tool to to use and how to use it is one of the basics of archaeological fieldwork excavation.
Site Safety
Site safety and personal protection are important aspects of any archaeology work. Be prepared and know the risks
Artefact Recovery, Recording & Storage
Understands the recording, safe excavation and storage of artefacts of various materials and fragility.
Tool Competencies
Learn about the appropriate use and function of each tool, the circumstances of use, the benefits and potential issues in using the tool. From troweling to barrowing and spadework to shovelling.
