Engineering assistant to product development engineering drafter
An engineering assistant already meets 24% of what the product development engineering drafter role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
71.3/ 100
1 How much of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do is already part of an engineering assistant’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 5 of its required skills as things an engineering assistant already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- create technical plans
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- mathematics
- technical drawings
What stands in the way is 11 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 6 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 engineering assistant background worth leading with.
- already held create technical plans management skills
- already held liaise with engineers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held technical drawings engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held engineering processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held mathematics natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held engineering principles engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 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.
- still to learn use CAD software required
- still to learn use CADD software required
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- still to learn circular economy required
- still to learn design 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 define part requirements required
- still to learn read engineering drawings required
- still to learn use manual draughting techniques required
- optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held develop assembly instructions optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held draw blueprints optional
- optional, not held draw design sketches optional
- still to learn manual draughting techniques required
- optional, not held design principles optional
- still to learn CAD software required
4 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.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held create technical plans skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held liaise with engineers skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn provide technical documentation required
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
17 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 adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model 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 draw design sketches 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
22 held skills the product development engineering drafter role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply statistical analysis techniques skill
- not needed by the target role assist scientific research skill
- not needed by the target role collaborate with engineers skill
- not needed by the target role conduct performance tests skill
- not needed by the target role consult with industry professionals skill
- not needed by the target role deliver visual presentation of data skill
- not needed by the target role ensure equipment maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role examine engineering principles skill
- not needed by the target role file documents skill
- not needed by the target role fix meetings skill
- not needed by the target role gather experimental data skill
- not needed by the target role handle mail skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with industrial professionals skill
- not needed by the target role perform clerical duties skill
- not needed by the target role perform data analysis skill
- not needed by the target role perform office routine activities skill
- not needed by the target role plan engineering activities skill
- not needed by the target role prepare scientific reports skill
- not needed by the target role project management knowledge
- not needed by the target role proofread text skill
- not needed by the target role recruit employees skill
- not needed by the target role write manuals skill
14 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 CAD software required
- still to learn circular economy required
- still to learn design drawings required
- still to learn manual draughting techniques 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
Other moves recorded from engineering assistant
Common questions about this move
Can an engineering assistant become a product development engineering drafter?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An engineering assistant already covers 24% of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 5 of which the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
What skills does an engineering assistant need to become a product development engineering drafter?
11 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with computers. The single most important is define part requirements.
How hard is the move from engineering assistant to product development engineering drafter?
Its learning distance is 71.3 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.