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Governance Analyst

Governance and compliance, an entry-level role

What does Governance Analyst do?

Where most careers in AI governance start. The analyst keeps the inventory, runs first-pass assessments, drafts and maintains documents, tracks the rules, supports vendor reviews and gathers the evidence the program runs on.

What it decides: Whether a new use case is complete enough to enter review, and how it is triaged.

The competencies employers name

  • AI inventory and use-case intakecore, working knowledge

    Finds every AI system in use, records owner, purpose, data and risk tier, and keeps the record alive as tools change.

    13 graded topics teach this

  • AI risk and impact assessmentcore, working knowledge

    Reviews purpose, data, affected people, accuracy, bias, security, oversight, vendors and law for a use case, scores likelihood and impact, and documents residual risk.

    14 graded topics teach this

  • Evidence collection and audit-ready documentationcore, working knowledge

    Collects, labels and preserves the evidence that a control operated, a decision was made, and a claim can be defended to an auditor or regulator.

    20 graded topics teach this

  • AI policy and standards writingrequired, working knowledge

    Writes policies with scope, responsibilities, requirements, exceptions and evidence, so people can follow them and auditors can test them.

    10 graded topics teach this

  • Regulatory change managementrequired, working knowledge

    Spots a regulatory change, decides applicability, assigns actions, updates controls and keeps the implementation evidence.

    7 graded topics teach this

  • AI vendor due diligence and third-party riskrequired, working knowledge

    Tiers vendors by use and impact, requests evidence instead of promises, tests in the customer's context, and plans monitoring and exit.

    5 graded topics teach this

  • Working AI fluencyrequired, working knowledge

    Uses generative AI tools daily, knows what a model can and cannot do, and can say where an output should not be trusted.

    21 graded topics teach this

  • NIST AI RMF in practicepreferred, working knowledge

    Runs GOVERN, MAP, MEASURE and MANAGE as a cycle with evidence, builds current and target profiles, and applies the generative AI profile.

    3 graded topics teach this

  • EU AI Act obligations and timelinespreferred, working knowledge

    Classifies a system by role and risk tier, knows which obligations bind on which date after the Digital Omnibus, and what evidence conformity needs.

    24 graded topics teach this

  • ISO/IEC 42001 management systemspreferred, working knowledge

    Builds and audits an AI management system: context, leadership, planning, support, operation, performance evaluation, improvement and the Annex A controls.

    3 graded topics teach this

  • Cross-functional facilitation and influencerequired, working knowledge

    Interviews, facilitates, challenges and secures action across legal, security, product and business teams without owning every decision.

    20 graded topics teach this

Where it is taught

Counted from the graded topics that teach this role's competencies. Your own path is shorter: it skips what you already cover.

Check your readiness for this role

Add what you already have (optional)
Signed in? Every topic you have passed already counts as proof.

Roles that feed into it

  • Recent graduate in law, policy or data
  • Privacy coordinator
  • Compliance coordinator
  • Audit associate
  • Career changer from an adjacent field

Where it leads

Backgrounds that reach it fastest

What postings tend to name

Frameworks: EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001.

Credentials often listed: AIGP, CIPP, CISA, CRISC, GRCP. GAGE does not issue these and does not prepare for their exams; the record you earn here is your own graded evidence, which stands beside them.

Questions

Is a Governance Analyst an entry-level AI governance job?
Yes. It is the most common way into the field, and no single background is required. Careful research, clear writing and organization matter more than a particular degree.
Do I need a certification to get a first governance role?
No. Fluency in the EU AI Act, the NIST AI RMF and ISO/IEC 42001 matters more than any certificate at the start; a credential can help a resume stand out later.
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