Automotive designer to product development engineering drafter
An automotive designer already meets 48% of what the product development engineering drafter role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
51.5/ 100
1 How much of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do is already part of an automotive designer’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 product development engineering drafter role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A product development engineering drafter role treats 9 of its required skills as things an automotive designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- manual draughting techniques
- mathematics
- read engineering drawings
What stands in the way is 7 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 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A product development engineering drafter role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an automotive designer background worth leading with.
- already held use CADD software working with computers
- already held manual draughting techniques arts and humanities
- already held use manual draughting techniques communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held build a product's physical model handling and moving
- already held draw design sketches communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held create a product's virtual model communication, collaboration and creativity
All 14 carried skills, including the 9 the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 missing skills fall into 8 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 circular economy required
- still to learn design drawings required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- still to learn create technical plans required
- still to learn provide technical documentation required
- still to learn define part requirements required
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- optional, not held develop assembly instructions optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held draw blueprints optional
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a product development engineering drafter role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 define part requirements practise this
- 02 circular economy study this
- 03 create technical plans 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 14 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held manual draughting techniques knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held read engineering drawings skill
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use CADD software skill
- already held use manual draughting techniques skill
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held build a product's physical model skill
- already held create a product's virtual model skill
- already held draw design sketches skill
- already held liaise with engineers skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held develop assembly instructions optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held draw blueprints optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
34 held skills the product development engineering drafter role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role 3D printing process knowledge
- not needed by the target role CADD software knowledge
- not needed by the target role CAM software knowledge
- not needed by the target role advanced driver assistant systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role advanced materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role aesthetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse production processes for improvement skill
- not needed by the target role analyse stress resistance of products skill
- not needed by the target role anticipate change in car technology skill
- not needed by the target role assess operating cost skill
- not needed by the target role battery design knowledge
- not needed by the target role computer simulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct performance tests skill
- not needed by the target role defense system knowledge
- not needed by the target role design prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role ergonomics knowledge
- not needed by the target role estimate duration of work skill
- not needed by the target role examine engineering principles skill
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role green automotive technologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage supplies skill
- not needed by the target role material mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics of motor vehicles knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor technology trends skill
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role perform physical stress tests on models skill
- not needed by the target role physics knowledge
- not needed by the target role synthetic natural environment knowledge
- not needed by the target role use CAM software skill
- not needed by the target role use spreadsheets software skill
- not needed by the target role vehicle manufacturing process knowledge
- not needed by the target role vehicle-to-everything technologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role write stress-strain analysis reports skill
13 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 circular economy required
- still to learn design drawings required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
Common questions about this move
Can an automotive designer become a product development engineering drafter?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An automotive designer already covers 48% of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 9 of which the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
What skills does an automotive designer need to become a product development engineering drafter?
7 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is define part requirements.
How hard is the move from automotive designer to product development engineering drafter?
Its learning distance is 51.5 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.