Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Environmental engineer to research engineer

An environmental engineer already meets 37% of what the research engineer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From environmental engineer
37 % overlap
Distant match
To research engineer
10 You already bring
7 Still to learn
37 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

61.7/ 100

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

Why

Why this move works

A research engineer role treats 7 of its required skills as things an environmental engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • collect samples for analysis
  • engineering principles
  • engineering processes
  • perform scientific research
  • project management
  • technical 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

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 10 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A research engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an environmental engineer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held perform laboratory tests working with machinery and specialised equipment
  • already held collect samples for analysis handling and moving
  • already held project management business, administration and law
  • already held use technical drawing software working with computers
  • already held technical drawings engineering, manufacturing and construction
  • already held adjust engineering designs communication, collaboration and creativity

All 10 carried skills, including the 7 the research engineer role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 27 missing skills fall into 11 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 information skills 3 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn interpret technical requirements required
  • still to learn execute feasibility study required
  • still to learn gather experimental data required
  • optional, not held conduct experiments on animals optional
  • optional, not held use mathematical tools and equipment optional
02 management skills 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn define technical requirements required
  • still to learn manage engineering project required
  • optional, not held apply advanced manufacturing optional
  • optional, not held develop test procedures optional
03 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn industrial research and development required
  • optional, not held battery design optional
  • optional, not held industrial engineering optional
  • optional, not held materials engineering optional
04 education 1 required
  • still to learn scientific research methodology required
05 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 4 supplementary
  • optional, not held computational mechanics optional
  • optional, not held bioeconomy optional
  • optional, not held laboratory techniques optional
  • optional, not held physics optional
06 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held assist scientific research optional
  • optional, not held write manuals optional

5 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a research 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 10 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held collect samples for analysis skill
  • already held engineering principles knowledge
  • already held engineering processes knowledge
  • already held perform scientific research skill
  • already held project management knowledge
  • already held technical drawings knowledge
  • already held use technical drawing software skill
  • already held adjust engineering designs skill
  • already held perform laboratory tests skill
  • already held perform project management skill
The 5 learning areas not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 information and communication technologies (icts) 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held cognitive computing optional
  • optional, not held CAD software optional
08 working with machinery and specialised equipment 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held use non-destructive testing equipment optional
  • optional, not held run laboratory simulations optional
09 assisting and caring 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held apply safety procedures in laboratory optional
10 generic programmes and qualifications 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held scientific literature optional
11 working with computers 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held use CAD software optional
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held apply safety procedures in laboratory optional
  • optional, not held battery design optional
  • optional, not held cognitive computing optional
  • optional, not held computational mechanics optional
  • optional, not held conduct experiments on animals optional
  • optional, not held use non-destructive testing equipment optional
  • optional, not held CAD software optional
  • optional, not held apply advanced manufacturing optional
  • optional, not held assist scientific research optional
  • optional, not held bioeconomy optional
  • optional, not held develop test procedures optional
  • optional, not held industrial engineering optional
  • optional, not held laboratory techniques optional
  • optional, not held materials engineering optional
  • optional, not held physics optional
  • optional, not held run laboratory simulations optional
  • optional, not held scientific literature optional
  • optional, not held use CAD software optional
  • optional, not held use mathematical tools and equipment optional
  • optional, not held write manuals optional
73 held skills the research engineer role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role Internet of Things knowledge
  • not needed by the target role abide by regulations on banned materials skill
  • not needed by the target role address public health issues skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on environmental remediation skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on mining environmental issues skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on pollution prevention skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on waste management procedures skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse big data skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse energy consumption skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse environmental data skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse information processes skill
  • not needed by the target role approve engineering design skill
  • not needed by the target role assess the life cycle of resources skill
  • not needed by the target role augmented reality knowledge
  • not needed by the target role biology knowledge
  • not needed by the target role business intelligence knowledge
  • not needed by the target role carry out environmental audits skill
  • not needed by the target role chemistry knowledge
  • not needed by the target role circular economy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role civil engineering knowledge
  • not needed by the target role cloud technologies knowledge
  • not needed by the target role coastal management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role conduct environmental surveys skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct field work skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct quality control analysis skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct quantitative research skill
  • not needed by the target role consumer protection knowledge
  • not needed by the target role cyber security knowledge
  • not needed by the target role data storage knowledge
  • not needed by the target role design strategies for nuclear emergencies skill
  • not needed by the target role develop environmental remediation strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role develop hazardous waste management strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role develop non-hazardous waste management strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role ecosystem management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role energy efficiency knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ensure compliance with safety legislation skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure material compliance skill
  • not needed by the target role environmental design knowledge
  • not needed by the target role environmental engineering knowledge
  • not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge

33 further entries not listed here

12 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 industrial research and development required
  • still to learn scientific research methodology required
  • optional, not held battery design optional
  • optional, not held cognitive computing optional
  • optional, not held computational mechanics optional
  • optional, not held CAD software optional
  • optional, not held bioeconomy optional
  • optional, not held industrial engineering optional
  • optional, not held laboratory techniques optional
  • optional, not held materials engineering optional
  • optional, not held physics optional
  • optional, not held scientific literature optional
Index

Other moves recorded from environmental engineer

Full index of moves from environmental engineer

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can an environmental engineer become a research engineer?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. An environmental engineer already covers 37% of what a research engineer is expected to do: 10 skills carry over, 7 of which the research engineer role treats as required.

What skills does an environmental engineer need to become a research engineer?

7 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is interpret technical requirements.

How hard is the move from environmental engineer to research engineer?

Its learning distance is 61.7 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.