Career Overlap Occupation record
RecordJob

Where a train preparer can go next

4 destinations recorded, ranked by how much of the target role a train preparer already meets. The closer to the top of Table 1, the less there is to learn.

Train preparers are responsible for checking and testing of equipment and systems on rail vehicles before vehicles are moved. They ensure that a train is in a fit condition to enter service, that the train equipment is correctly deployed and the formation of the train matches the train’s designated pathway. Depending on the individual work organisation of the operator they also perform technical inspections carried out prior to the train entering service.

Also known as switch tender, railway track technician, rail signal maintainer, signalman, railway track maintainer, track worker, rail setter, railway grinder, railroad signal maintainer, railway bender, railway brake technician, track foreman.

Plant and machine operators and assemblers 23 skills on file 4 career moves 0 above 60% overlap Closest: rolling stock inspector, 31%

Fig. 2 · Career map 4 nearest · ESCO v1.2.1
rolling stock inspector 31% covered rail operations manager 20% covered railway station manager 20% covered diesel engine mechanic 17% covered train preparer You are here
  • 70% and above · short step
  • 50 to 70% · real move
  • Below 50% · substantial retraining
The 4 nearest destinations from train preparer, each one a link to that move’s record. Distance from the centre is how much retraining the move takes; the figure on each is how much of that role a train preparer already covers. All 4 are listed in the tables below.
Table 1

Table 1 · A bigger jump

Possible, but expect real retraining rather than a sideways step. Only 4 moves are listed. Few other occupations share enough of this job's skills for a fair comparison, and jobs that share almost all of them are left out as the same work under another name.

Table 2

Table 2 · What the job itself asks for

A train preparer needs 18 required skills and areas of knowledge. These 10 are the ones fewest other jobs share, so they say the most about the work.

Required skill Area
  • ensure correct signalling during rail maintenance assisting and caring
  • standards of track geometry natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
  • ensure rail tracks remain clear handling and moving
  • maintain inventory of rail track parts information skills
  • characteristics of wheel rail interface services
  • comply with railway safety standards assisting and caring
  • detect rail track malfunctions constructing
  • operate hydraulic jack lift working with machinery and specialised equipment
  • perform rail track inspections constructing
  • write rail defect records information skills
Table 3

Table 3 · Jobs that lead here

The reverse view: occupations whose skills already cover much of what a train preparer does. The figure is how much of this job each one brings.

Index

Look up another occupation

Train preparer is filed under Plant and machine operators and assemblers, ISCO major group 8. The full index lists all ten groups.

Note

How these figures were compiled

Overlap is how much of the target role is already part of a train preparer’s work. It is directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. Every entry above opens the full comparison for that move: what carries over, what is missing, and where to start. The full method.