Pathways in Spectroscopy: Addressing the Gap in Spectroscopy Education

In the below “Pathways in Spectroscopy” clip, Ellen Miseo, Secretary for the Society for Applied Spectroscopy (SAS) and education coordinator for both SAS and the Coblentz Society, discusses the impetus for starting SpecAcademy, a new e-learning platform designed to address the critical gaps in spectroscopy education. Miseo highlights what these education gaps are and how they need to be addressed.

Our ongoing “Pathways in Spectroscopy” series spotlights the numerous career paths spectroscopists can take, providing actionable and practical advice for young researchers.

However, one key component to having a successful career is building the skills and knowledge required to meet current industry needs. Acquiring this knowledge requires receiving a quality education.

The current issue, though, is that current spectroscopy education is not addressing the what the industry needs from its spectroscopists. As a result of this disconnect, the workers that are retiring or leaving the workforce are taking the essential knowledge with them, and their replacements do not have this knowledge.

A recent panel discussion with five SpecAcademy instructors tackled this topic, exploring why a new e-learning platform called SpecAcademy will address these issues.^1,2

Below is a transcript of the recent “Pathways in Spectroscopy” episode featuring Ellen Miseo.

Ellen Miseo: The impetus for starting this was the fact that many of our senior members see that there is a gap in the education and the knowledge of people who are in the labs operating instruments. But on the other hand, management in especially US companies doesn't want to send people to extensive training courses because of the expense and the time lost, and the societies felt this was necessary.

But quite frankly, neither society has the horsepower to have done this on our own. And this venture with MJH Life Sciences' Spectroscopy Magazine means that the societies get the benefit of providing the instructors who provide good content, and the publishing organization can put the platform together and promote it well beyond where the societies can.

References

1. Wetzel, W. Previewing a SpecAcademy Roundtable Discussion. Spectroscopy Online, 2026. https://www.spectroscopyonline.com/view/previewing-a-specacademy-roundtable-discussion (accessed October 25, 2026).
2. Miseo, E.; Carrabba, M.; Larkin, P. J.; D’Agostino, J.; de Haseth, J.; Wetzel, W. What is SpecAcademy and What Need Does It Fill? Spectroscopy Online, 2026. https://www.spectroscopyonline.com/view/what-is-specacademy-and-what-need-does-it-fill- (accessed October 25, 2026).