Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Computer hardware engineer to microsystem engineer

A computer hardware engineer already meets 75% of what the microsystem engineer role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From computer hardware engineer
75 % overlap
Strong match
To microsystem engineer
74 You already bring
8 Still to learn
104 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

41.7/ 100

1 How much of what a microsystem engineer is expected to do is already part of a computer hardware 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 microsystem engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A microsystem engineer role treats 31 of its required skills as things a computer hardware engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • abide by regulations on banned materials
  • adjust engineering designs
  • analyse test data
  • approve engineering design
  • conduct literature research
  • conduct quality control analysis

What stands in the way is 8 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 74 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A microsystem engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a computer hardware engineer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held abide by regulations on banned materials assisting and caring
  • already held environmental threats natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
  • already held firmware information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held process customer orders management skills
  • already held conduct literature research information skills
  • already held maintain safe engineering watches assisting and caring

All 74 carried skills, including the 31 the microsystem engineer role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 30 missing skills fall into 10 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 engineering, manufacturing and construction 2 required, 12 supplementary
  • still to learn mechanical engineering required
  • still to learn microelectromechanical systems required
  • optional, not held MOEM optional
  • optional, not held automation technology optional
  • optional, not held control engineering optional
  • optional, not held micromechanics optional
  • optional, not held microsensors optional
  • optional, not held nanotechnology optional
  • optional, not held optoelectronics optional
  • optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
  • optional, not held precision mechanics optional
  • optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
  • optional, not held semiconductors optional
  • optional, not held sensors optional
02 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn microassembly required
  • still to learn physics required
  • optional, not held microoptics optional
03 communication, collaboration and creativity 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn design microelectromechanical systems required
  • optional, not held prepare assembly drawings optional
04 constructing 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn test microelectromechanical systems required
  • optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
05 information and communication technologies (icts) 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn microsystem test procedures required
  • optional, not held automatic control system optional
06 management skills 1 required
  • still to learn develop microelectromechanical system test procedures required

4 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a microsystem engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 74 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held abide by regulations on banned materials skill
  • already held adjust engineering designs skill
  • already held analyse test data skill
  • already held approve engineering design skill
  • already held conduct literature research skill
  • already held conduct quality control analysis skill
  • already held demonstrate disciplinary expertise skill
  • already held design drawings knowledge
  • already held design prototypes skill
  • already held electrical engineering knowledge
  • already held electricity knowledge
  • already held electricity principles knowledge
  • already held electronics knowledge
  • already held engineering principles knowledge
  • already held environmental legislation knowledge
  • already held environmental threats knowledge
  • already held interact professionally in research and professional environments skill
  • already held manage personal professional development skill
  • already held manage research data skill
  • already held mathematics knowledge
  • already held operate open source software skill
  • already held operate scientific measuring equipment skill
  • already held perform data analysis skill
  • already held perform project management skill
  • already held prepare production prototypes skill
  • already held read engineering drawings skill
  • already held record test data skill
  • already held report analysis results skill
  • already held synthesise information skill
  • already held think abstractly skill
  • already held use technical drawing software skill
  • already held CAE software knowledge
  • already held apply blended learning skill
  • already held apply for research funding skill
  • already held apply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activities skill
  • already held apply technical communication skills skill
  • already held build business relationships skill
  • already held communicate with a non-scientific audience skill
  • already held communicate with customers skill
  • already held computer engineering knowledge
  • already held conduct research across disciplines skill
  • already held coordinate engineering teams skill
  • already held create technical plans skill
  • already held define manufacturing quality criteria skill
  • already held develop product design skill
  • already held develop professional network with researchers and scientists skill
  • already held disseminate results to the scientific community skill
  • already held draft bill of materials skill
  • already held draft scientific or academic papers and technical documentation skill
  • already held evaluate research activities skill
  • already held firmware knowledge
  • already held increase the impact of science on policy and society skill
  • already held integrate gender dimension in research skill
  • already held maintain safe engineering watches skill
  • already held manage findable accessible interoperable and reusable data skill
  • already held manage intellectual property rights skill
  • already held manage open publications skill
  • already held mentor individuals skill
  • already held microelectronics knowledge
  • already held perform resource planning skill
  • already held perform scientific research skill
  • already held process customer orders skill
  • already held program firmware skill
  • already held promote open innovation in research skill
  • already held promote the participation of citizens in scientific and research activities skill
  • already held promote the transfer of knowledge skill
  • already held publish academic research skill
  • already held quality standards knowledge
  • already held speak different languages skill
  • already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
  • already held train employees skill
  • already held use CAD software skill
  • already held use CAM software skill
  • already held write scientific publications skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 handling and moving 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held assemble microelectromechanical systems optional
  • optional, not held use precision tools optional
08 information skills 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held assess integrated domotics systems optional
  • optional, not held interpret circuit diagrams optional
09 health and welfare 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
10 working with machinery and specialised equipment 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held operate precision machinery optional
22 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held MOEM optional
  • optional, not held assemble microelectromechanical systems optional
  • optional, not held assess integrated domotics systems optional
  • optional, not held interpret circuit diagrams optional
  • optional, not held microoptics optional
  • optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
  • optional, not held automatic control system optional
  • optional, not held automation technology optional
  • optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
  • optional, not held control engineering optional
  • optional, not held micromechanics optional
  • optional, not held microsensors optional
  • optional, not held nanotechnology optional
  • optional, not held operate precision machinery optional
  • optional, not held optoelectronics optional
  • optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
  • optional, not held precision mechanics optional
  • optional, not held prepare assembly drawings optional
  • optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
  • optional, not held semiconductors optional
  • optional, not held sensors optional
  • optional, not held use precision tools optional
58 held skills the microsystem engineer role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role ABAP knowledge
  • not needed by the target role AJAX knowledge
  • not needed by the target role APL knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ASP.NET knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Assembly (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role C# knowledge
  • not needed by the target role C++ knowledge
  • not needed by the target role COBOL knowledge
  • not needed by the target role CoffeeScript knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Common Lisp knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Erlang knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Groovy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Haskell knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Java (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role JavaScript knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Lisp knowledge
  • not needed by the target role MATLAB knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ML (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Microsoft Visual C++ knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Objective-C knowledge
  • not needed by the target role OpenEdge Advanced Business Language knowledge
  • not needed by the target role PHP knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Pascal (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Perl knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Prolog (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Python (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role R knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Ruby (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role SAP R3 knowledge
  • not needed by the target role SAS language knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Scala knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Scratch (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Smalltalk (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Swift (computer programming) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role TypeScript knowledge
  • not needed by the target role VBScript knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Visual Basic knowledge
  • not needed by the target role align software with system architectures skill
  • not needed by the target role assemble hardware components skill
  • not needed by the target role computer programming knowledge

18 further entries not listed here

20 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn mechanical engineering required
  • still to learn microelectromechanical systems required
  • still to learn microsystem test procedures required
  • still to learn microassembly required
  • still to learn physics required
  • optional, not held MOEM optional
  • optional, not held microoptics optional
  • optional, not held automatic control system optional
  • optional, not held automation technology optional
  • optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
  • optional, not held control engineering optional
  • optional, not held micromechanics optional
  • optional, not held microsensors optional
  • optional, not held nanotechnology optional
  • optional, not held optoelectronics optional
  • optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
  • optional, not held precision mechanics optional
  • optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
  • optional, not held semiconductors optional
  • optional, not held sensors optional
Index

Other moves recorded from computer hardware engineer

Full index of moves from computer hardware engineer

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a computer hardware engineer become a microsystem engineer?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A computer hardware engineer already covers 75% of what a microsystem engineer is expected to do: 74 skills carry over, 31 of which the microsystem engineer role treats as required.

What skills does a computer hardware engineer need to become a microsystem engineer?

8 required skills are missing, plus 22 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is develop microelectromechanical system test procedures.

How hard is the move from computer hardware engineer to microsystem engineer?

Its learning distance is 41.7 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.