Environmental engineer to wastewater engineer
An environmental engineer already meets 42% of what the wastewater engineer role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
59.4/ 100
1 How much of what a wastewater 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 wastewater engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A wastewater engineer role treats 8 of its required skills as things an environmental engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust engineering designs
- approve engineering design
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- ensure compliance with safety legislation
- perform scientific research
What stands in the way is 9 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 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A wastewater 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.
- already held develop environmental remediation strategies management skills
- already held advise on environmental remediation communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held advise on pollution prevention communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held ensure compliance with safety legislation assisting and caring
- already held pollution prevention engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held approve engineering design communication, collaboration and creativity
All 12 carried skills, including the 8 the wastewater engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 7 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 ensure regulatory compliance in pipeline infrastructures required
- still to learn ensure compliance with environmental legislation required
- still to learn mitigate environmental impact of pipeline projects required
- still to learn types of pipelines required
- still to learn hydraulic fluid required
- still to learn hydraulics required
- still to learn create designs for pipeline engineering required
- still to learn develop sewerage networks required
- optional, not held analyse community needs optional
- optional, not held develop water purification methods optional
- still to learn monitor legislation developments required
- optional, not held measure water quality parameters optional
- optional, not held perform pipeline routing studies optional
- optional, not held interpret scientific data to assess water quality optional
- optional, not held prepare timelines for pipeline development projects optional
- optional, not held supervise sewerage systems construction optional
- optional, not held supervise waste disposal optional
- optional, not held supervise waste water treatments optional
- optional, not held detect flaws in pipeline infrastructure optional
- optional, not held inspect pipelines optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a wastewater engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 create designs for pipeline engineering practise this
- 02 develop sewerage networks practise this
- 03 ensure regulatory compliance in pipeline infrastructures 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 12 skills that carry over
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held approve engineering design skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with safety legislation skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held advise on environmental remediation skill
- already held advise on pollution prevention skill
- already held develop environmental remediation strategies skill
- already held pollution prevention knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held ecosystems optional
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held detect flaws in pipeline infrastructure optional
- optional, not held inspect pipelines optional
- optional, not held measure water quality parameters optional
- optional, not held perform pipeline routing studies optional
- optional, not held prepare timelines for pipeline development projects optional
- optional, not held supervise sewerage systems construction optional
- optional, not held supervise waste disposal optional
- optional, not held supervise waste water treatments optional
- optional, not held analyse community needs optional
- optional, not held develop water purification methods optional
- optional, not held ecosystems optional
- optional, not held interpret scientific data to assess water quality optional
71 held skills the wastewater engineer role does not ask for
- 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 mining environmental issues 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 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 collect samples for analysis skill
- 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 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 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
- not needed by the target role environmental policy knowledge
- not needed by the target role ethics knowledge
- not needed by the target role hazardous waste storage knowledge
- not needed by the target role hazardous waste treatment knowledge
31 further entries not listed here
4 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 types of pipelines required
- still to learn hydraulic fluid required
- still to learn hydraulics required
- optional, not held ecosystems optional
Other moves recorded from environmental engineer
- waste treatment engineer 50% covered · substantial
- environmental mining engineer 48% covered · moderate
- geological engineer 47% covered · substantial
- hazardous waste inspector 46% covered · moderate
- environmental programme coordinator 41% covered · substantial
- environmental expert 39% covered · substantial
- manufacturing engineer 39% covered · substantial
- industrial waste inspector 39% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can an environmental engineer become a wastewater engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An environmental engineer already covers 42% of what a wastewater engineer is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 8 of which the wastewater engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an environmental engineer need to become a wastewater engineer?
9 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is create designs for pipeline engineering.
How hard is the move from environmental engineer to wastewater engineer?
Its learning distance is 59.4 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.