Agricultural engineer to agricultural equipment design engineer
An agricultural engineer already meets 48% of what the agricultural equipment design engineer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
57.1/ 100
1 How much of what an agricultural equipment design engineer is expected to do is already part of an agricultural engineer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the agricultural equipment design engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An agricultural equipment design engineer role treats 15 of its required skills as things an agricultural engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust engineering designs
- approve engineering design
- e-agriculture
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- execute feasibility study
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 17 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An agricultural equipment design engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an agricultural engineer background worth leading with.
- already held maintain agricultural machinery working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held legislation in agriculture business, administration and law
- already held sustainable agricultural production principles agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary
- already held e-agriculture agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary
- already held execute feasibility study information skills
- already held design prototypes communication, collaboration and creativity
All 17 carried skills, including the 15 the agricultural equipment design engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 30 missing skills fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn industrial engineering required
- still to learn manufacturing processes required
- still to learn production processes required
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
- still to learn agricultural chemicals required
- still to learn mathematics required
- still to learn read engineering drawings required
- optional, not held determine production capacity optional
- optional, not held determine production feasibility optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held execute analytical mathematical calculations optional
- optional, not held monitor production developments optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held read standard blueprints optional
- still to learn advise on safety improvements required
- optional, not held advise on machinery malfunctions optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- still to learn use computer-aided engineering systems required
- optional, not held set up the controller of a machine optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
- still to learn CAD software required
- optional, not held CAE software optional
5 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an agricultural equipment design engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 agricultural equipment study this
- 02 CAD software study this
- 03 advise on safety improvements practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 17 skills that carry over
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held approve engineering design skill
- already held e-agriculture knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held execute feasibility study skill
- already held legislation in agriculture knowledge
- already held mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held mechanics knowledge
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held sustainable agricultural production principles knowledge
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held troubleshoot skill
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held design prototypes skill
- already held maintain agricultural machinery skill
The 5 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn agricultural equipment required
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held supervise hygiene procedures in agricultural settings optional
- optional, not held maintain rotating equipment optional
- optional, not held operate agricultural machinery optional
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held maintain rotating equipment optional
- optional, not held operate agricultural machinery optional
- optional, not held supervise hygiene procedures in agricultural settings optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held advise on machinery malfunctions optional
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held determine production capacity optional
- optional, not held determine production feasibility optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held execute analytical mathematical calculations optional
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held monitor production developments optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held read standard blueprints optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
- optional, not held set up the controller of a machine optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
27 held skills the agricultural equipment design engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on irrigation projects skill
- not needed by the target role advise on pollution prevention skill
- not needed by the target role analyse test data skill
- not needed by the target role assess environmental impact skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role biology knowledge
- not needed by the target role civil engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role climate smart agriculture knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct performance tests skill
- not needed by the target role control production skill
- not needed by the target role create technical plans skill
- not needed by the target role design an artificial lighting system skill
- not needed by the target role design principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop agricultural policies skill
- not needed by the target role draft design specifications skill
- not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role integrated food-energy systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role irrigation systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role oversee construction project skill
- not needed by the target role perform test run skill
- not needed by the target role pollution legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role pollution prevention knowledge
- not needed by the target role product data management knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide advice to farmers skill
- not needed by the target role record test data skill
- not needed by the target role research improvement of crop yields skill
- not needed by the target role use agronomic modelling skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn agricultural equipment required
- still to learn CAD software required
- still to learn agricultural chemicals required
- still to learn industrial engineering required
- still to learn manufacturing processes required
- still to learn mathematics required
- still to learn production processes required
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
Common questions about this move
Can an agricultural engineer become an agricultural equipment design engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An agricultural engineer already covers 48% of what an agricultural equipment design engineer is expected to do: 17 skills carry over, 15 of which the agricultural equipment design engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an agricultural engineer need to become an agricultural equipment design engineer?
10 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is agricultural equipment.
How hard is the move from agricultural engineer to agricultural equipment design engineer?
Its learning distance is 57.1 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.