Table 1Transition record

energy engineertosolar energy engineer

A energy engineer already meets 58% of what the solar energy engineer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.

From energy engineer

58%

Overlap1

To solar energy engineer

34 Skills carried over

10 Required, not held

55.1 Difficulty2

Career overlap Partial match

58%

Learning distance Substantial retraining

55.1/ 100

Easy adjacentmoderatesubstantialcareer change Hard

1 Share of the solar energy engineer role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the energy engineer profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.

Why

Why this move works

A solar energy engineer role treats 23 of its required skills as things a energy engineer already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

adjust engineering designs
alternative energy
approve engineering design
conduct engineering site audits
design a solar heating system
design solar energy systems

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

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 34 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A solar energy engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a energy engineer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area

already held design solar energy systems communication, collaboration and creativity
already held maintain solar energy systems working with machinery and specialised equipment
already held use thermal analysis working with computers
already held calculate solar panel orientation information skills
already held types of photovoltaic panels engineering, manufacturing and construction
already held design thermal equipment communication, collaboration and creativity

All 34 carried skills, including the 23 the solar energy engineer role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 38 missing skills fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.

Skill to acquire Tier

01 engineering, manufacturing and construction 4 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held photovoltaic systems required
required, not held electrical engineering required
required, not held power engineering required
required, not held solar products required

optional, not held battery design optional

02 working with machinery and specialised equipment 2 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held maintain concentrated solar power systems required
required, not held adjust voltage required

optional, not held maintain photovoltaic systems optional

03 information skills 1 required, 6 supplementary

required, not held perform scientific research required

optional, not held inspect facility sites optional
optional, not held perform a feasibility study on solar absorption cooling optional
optional, not held analyse big data optional
optional, not held analyse test data optional
optional, not held assess financial viability optional
optional, not held run simulations optional

04 working with computers 1 required, 5 supplementary

required, not held create CAD drawings required

optional, not held use specific data analysis software optional
optional, not held perform data mining optional
optional, not held utilise decision support system optional
optional, not held utilise machine learning optional
optional, not held use CAD software optional

05 assisting and caring 1 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held provide information on solar panels required

optional, not held wear appropriate protective gear optional

06 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 1 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held thermodynamics required

optional, not held statistical analysis system software optional

5 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a solar energy 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 34 skills that carry over

Skill Type

already held adjust engineering designs skill
already held alternative energy knowledge
already held approve engineering design skill
already held conduct engineering site audits skill
already held design a solar heating system skill
already held design solar energy systems skill
already held energy knowledge
already held energy market knowledge
already held energy micro-generation technologies knowledge
already held engineering principles knowledge
already held engineering processes knowledge
already held examine engineering principles skill
already held maintain solar energy systems skill
already held manage engineering project skill
already held operate solar thermal energy systems for hot water and heating skill
already held perform feasibility study on solar heating skill
already held promote sustainable energy skill
already held solar energy knowledge
already held sustainable technologies knowledge
already held technical drawings knowledge
already held types of photovoltaic panels knowledge
already held use technical drawing software skill
already held use thermal analysis skill
already held calculate solar panel orientation skill
already held design a solar absorption cooling system skill
already held design thermal equipment skill
already held fluid mechanics knowledge
already held industrial heating systems knowledge
already held perform project management skill
already held quality standards knowledge
already held read engineering drawings skill
already held renewable energy knowledge
already held smart grids systems knowledge
already held state estimation knowledge

The 5 learning areas not shown above

Skill to acquire Tier

07 information and communication technologies (icts) 7 supplementary

optional, not held cloud technologies optional
optional, not held data mining optional
optional, not held data storage optional
optional, not held information extraction optional
optional, not held information structure optional
optional, not held unstructured data optional
optional, not held data analytics optional

08 business, administration and law 2 supplementary

optional, not held business intelligence optional
optional, not held electricity market optional

09 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 supplementary

optional, not held draw blueprints optional
optional, not held troubleshoot optional

10 arts and humanities 1 supplementary

optional, not held visual presentation techniques optional

11 constructing 1 supplementary

optional, not held test procedures in electricity transmission optional

28 supplementary skills, helpful but not required

Skill to acquire Tier

optional, not held use specific data analysis software optional
optional, not held battery design optional
optional, not held cloud technologies optional
optional, not held data mining optional
optional, not held data storage optional
optional, not held information extraction optional
optional, not held information structure optional
optional, not held inspect facility sites optional
optional, not held maintain photovoltaic systems optional
optional, not held perform a feasibility study on solar absorption cooling optional
optional, not held perform data mining optional
optional, not held unstructured data optional
optional, not held utilise decision support system optional
optional, not held utilise machine learning optional
optional, not held visual presentation techniques optional
optional, not held analyse big data optional
optional, not held analyse test data optional
optional, not held assess financial viability optional
optional, not held business intelligence optional
optional, not held data analytics optional
optional, not held draw blueprints optional
optional, not held electricity market optional
optional, not held run simulations optional
optional, not held statistical analysis system software optional
optional, not held test procedures in electricity transmission optional
optional, not held troubleshoot optional
optional, not held use CAD software optional
optional, not held wear appropriate protective gear optional

74 held skills the solar energy engineer role does not ask for

Skill Type

not needed by the target role alternative fuels knowledge
not needed by the target role analyse energy consumption skill
not needed by the target role analyse energy market trends skill
not needed by the target role assess environmental impact skill
not needed by the target role biogas energy knowledge
not needed by the target role building automation knowledge
not needed by the target role carry out energy management of facilities skill
not needed by the target role combined heat and power generation knowledge
not needed by the target role conduct energy audit skill
not needed by the target role create designs for pipeline engineering skill
not needed by the target role demonstrate disciplinary expertise skill
not needed by the target role design a building management system skill
not needed by the target role design a domotic system in buildings skill
not needed by the target role design biomass installations skill
not needed by the target role design geothermal energy systems skill
not needed by the target role design heat pump installations skill
not needed by the target role design principles knowledge
not needed by the target role design smart grids skill
not needed by the target role design ventilation network skill
not needed by the target role determine appropriate heating and cooling system skill
not needed by the target role develop electricity distribution schedule skill
not needed by the target role develop energy policy skill
not needed by the target role develop energy saving concepts skill
not needed by the target role develop strategies for electricity contingencies skill
not needed by the target role district heating and cooling knowledge
not needed by the target role electric generators knowledge
not needed by the target role electrical power safety regulations knowledge
not needed by the target role electricity consumption knowledge
not needed by the target role energy conservation knowledge
not needed by the target role energy efficiency knowledge
not needed by the target role energy performance of buildings knowledge
not needed by the target role energy transformation knowledge
not needed by the target role ensure compliance with electricity distribution schedule skill
not needed by the target role ensure compliance with environmental legislation skill
not needed by the target role environmental engineering knowledge
not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
not needed by the target role execute feasibility study on hydrogen skill
not needed by the target role fossil fuels knowledge
not needed by the target role fuel gas knowledge
not needed by the target role gas consumption knowledge

34 further entries not listed here

17 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 acquire Tier

required, not held photovoltaic systems required
required, not held electrical engineering required
required, not held power engineering required
required, not held solar products required
required, not held thermodynamics required
optional, not held battery design optional
optional, not held cloud technologies optional
optional, not held data mining optional
optional, not held data storage optional
optional, not held information extraction optional
optional, not held information structure optional
optional, not held unstructured data optional
optional, not held visual presentation techniques optional
optional, not held business intelligence optional
optional, not held data analytics optional
optional, not held electricity market optional
optional, not held statistical analysis system software optional

Index

Other moves recorded from energy engineer

Full index of moves from energy engineer

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.