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spelling

🔻 Declining ESCO reuse: cross-sector

The rules concerning the way words are spelled.

spelling — the rules concerning the way words are spelled. McKinsey's Skill Change Index places it in the declining band (SCI 53.09/100) — a skill likely to fall in demand as AI and automation cover more of its ground by 2030. ESCO classifies it as a cross-sector (useful across many industries) skill within knowledge. It is currently listed by 29 occupations in our catalogue, including blogger, business journalist, columnist, and court reporter.

Category: knowledge › literature and linguistics SCI: 53.09/100 Also known as: orthography, spellings

Occupations that require spelling

Showing top 20 of 29 occupations · ranked by India employment volume, then AI-durability.

blogger · 🤖 5.0/10
business journalist · 🤖 5.0/10
columnist · 🤖 5.0/10
court reporter · 🤖 5.0/10
crime journalist · 🤖 5.0/10
entertainment journalist · 🤖 5.0/10
foreign correspondent · 🤖 5.0/10
foreign language correspondence clerk · 🤖 5.0/10
lexicographer · 🤖 5.0/10
linguist · 🤖 5.0/10
linguistics lecturer · 🤖 5.0/10
literary scholar · 🤖 5.0/10
localiser · 🤖 5.0/10
medical writer · 🤖 5.0/10
news anchor · 🤖 5.0/10
photojournalist · 🤖 5.0/10
political journalist · 🤖 5.0/10
presenter · 🤖 5.0/10
scopist · 🤖 5.0/10
speechwriter · 🤖 5.0/10

Frequently asked questions

What is spelling?

The rules concerning the way words are spelled.

What category of skill is spelling?

ESCO classifies spelling under the knowledge category, specifically in the literature and linguistics subcategory.

Is spelling an AI-durable skill?

McKinsey's Skill Change Index places it in the declining band (SCI 53.09/100) — a skill likely to fall in demand as AI and automation cover more of its ground by 2030. Prioritise this skill only when it directly enables paid work today — plan for AI to absorb more of it every year.

Which jobs require spelling?

In our catalogue, 29 occupations list spelling as a required or important skill. The top occupations by employment volume include blogger, business journalist, columnist, court reporter, crime journalist, entertainment journalist.

How transferable is spelling between industries?

ESCO tags spelling as a cross-sector (useful across many industries) skill — a signal of how portable it is when you change field.

Is spelling the same as orthography?

Yes — spelling is also known as orthography, or spellings. They refer to the same underlying capability in the ESCO taxonomy.

How can I learn spelling?

The most reliable path is to pick a job or project that demands spelling and learn through delivery. Complement that with role-specific roadmaps and short courses. Explore the occupations below to see where this skill is used in practice.

Data: ESCO v1.2.1 (CC-BY-4.0). Durability framework informed by McKinsey Global Institute (Nov 2025). See our methodology.