Agricultural technician to soil surveying technician
An agricultural technician already meets 25% of what the soil surveying technician role asks for. The move turns on 13 required skills not yet in the profile.
74.1/ 100
1 How much of what a soil surveying technician is expected to do is already part of an agricultural technician’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 soil surveying technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A soil surveying technician role treats 6 of its required skills as things an agricultural technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply safety procedures in laboratory
- conduct field work
- gather experimental data
- laboratory techniques
- soil science
- write work-related reports
What stands in the way is 13 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 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A soil surveying technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an agricultural technician background worth leading with.
- already held soil science natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held conduct field work information skills
- already held gather experimental data information skills
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory assisting and caring
- already held laboratory techniques natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held biology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
All 7 carried skills, including the 6 the soil surveying technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 30 missing skills fall into 9 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 operate surveying instruments required
- still to learn adjust surveying equipment required
- still to learn perform laboratory tests required
- still to learn conduct soil sample tests required
- still to learn prepare surveying report required
- optional, not held conduct land surveys optional
- optional, not held monitor geotechnical structures optional
- optional, not held record survey data optional
- optional, not held perform scientific research optional
- still to learn ecology required
- still to learn geology required
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held mathematics optional
- still to learn collect samples required
- still to learn collect samples for analysis required
- still to learn soil mechanics required
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held surveying methods optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held civil engineering optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held surveying optional
- still to learn soil structure required
- optional, not held agroforestry optional
- optional, not held agronomy optional
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a soil surveying technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 collect samples practise this
- 02 conduct soil sample tests practise this
- 03 operate surveying instruments 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 7 skills that carry over
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- already held conduct field work skill
- already held gather experimental data skill
- already held laboratory techniques knowledge
- already held soil science knowledge
- already held write work-related reports skill
- already held biology knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn ensure compliance with safety legislation required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- optional, not held advise on nature conservation optional
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on nature conservation optional
- optional, not held agroforestry optional
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held conduct land surveys optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held monitor geotechnical structures optional
- optional, not held record survey data optional
- optional, not held surveying methods optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held agronomy optional
- optional, not held civil engineering optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held mathematics optional
- optional, not held perform scientific research optional
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held surveying optional
36 held skills the soil surveying technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on crop diseases skill
- not needed by the target role advise on fertiliser and herbicide skill
- not needed by the target role aeroponics knowledge
- not needed by the target role agricultural chemicals knowledge
- not needed by the target role agricultural equipment knowledge
- not needed by the target role agricultural raw materials, seeds and animal feed products knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse environmental data skill
- not needed by the target role analyse scientific data skill
- not needed by the target role analyse test data skill
- not needed by the target role aquaculture industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role aquaculture reproduction knowledge
- not needed by the target role assess crop damage skill
- not needed by the target role chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role collect weather-related data skill
- not needed by the target role culture aquaculture hatchery stocks skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate vineyard problems skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate vineyard quality skill
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role horticulture principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role hydroponics knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect agricultural fields skill
- not needed by the target role integrated food-energy systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role irrigate soil skill
- not needed by the target role maintain aquaculture containers skill
- not needed by the target role maintain laboratory equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain tanks for viticulture skill
- not needed by the target role maintain waterbased aquaculture facilities skill
- not needed by the target role manage crop production skill
- not needed by the target role monitor crops skill
- not needed by the target role monitor fisheries skill
- not needed by the target role plant harvest methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role prevent crop disorders skill
- not needed by the target role provide advice to farmers skill
- not needed by the target role research improvement of crop yields skill
- not needed by the target role sustainable agricultural production principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role viticulture knowledge
17 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 soil mechanics required
- still to learn soil structure required
- still to learn ecology required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- still to learn geology required
- optional, not held agroforestry optional
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held surveying methods optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held agronomy optional
- optional, not held civil engineering optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held geography optional
- optional, not held mathematics optional
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held surveying optional
Common questions about this move
Can an agricultural technician become a soil surveying technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An agricultural technician already covers 25% of what a soil surveying technician is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 6 of which the soil surveying technician role treats as required.
What skills does an agricultural technician need to become a soil surveying technician?
13 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with machinery and specialised equipment. The single most important is collect samples.
How hard is the move from agricultural technician to soil surveying technician?
Its learning distance is 74.1 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.