Forestry equipment operator to tree surgeon
A forestry equipment operator already meets 23% of what the tree surgeon role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
70.7/ 100
1 How much of what a tree surgeon is expected to do is already part of a forestry equipment operator’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 tree surgeon role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A tree surgeon role treats 2 of its required skills as things a forestry equipment operator already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- de-limb trees
- minimize risks in tree operations
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 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A tree surgeon role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a forestry equipment operator background worth leading with.
- already held fell trees handling and moving
- already held identify trees to fell handling and moving
- already held select tree felling methods management skills
- already held minimize risks in tree operations information skills
- already held maintain forestry equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held forest ecology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
All 7 carried skills, including the 2 the tree surgeon role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 19 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 perform tree thinning required
- still to learn climb trees required
- still to learn operate chainsaw required
- optional, not held assist tree identification optional
- optional, not held control tree diseases optional
- optional, not held monitor tree health optional
- optional, not held nurse trees optional
- still to learn execute disease and pest control activities required
- still to learn protect trees required
- still to learn follow safety procedures when working at heights required
- optional, not held conserve forests optional
- still to learn tree preservation and conservation required
- still to learn advise on tree issues required
- still to learn carry out aerial tree rigging required
- optional, not held analyse tree population optional
- optional, not held estimate damage optional
- optional, not held inspect trees optional
- optional, not held measure trees optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a tree surgeon role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 advise on tree issues practise this
- 02 carry out aerial tree rigging practise this
- 03 execute disease and pest control activities 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 7 skills that carry over
- already held de-limb trees skill
- already held minimize risks in tree operations skill
- already held fell trees skill
- already held forest ecology knowledge
- already held identify trees to fell skill
- already held maintain forestry equipment skill
- already held select tree felling methods skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held operate forestry equipment optional
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held analyse tree population optional
- optional, not held assist tree identification optional
- optional, not held conserve forests optional
- optional, not held control tree diseases optional
- optional, not held estimate damage optional
- optional, not held monitor tree health optional
- optional, not held nurse trees optional
- optional, not held operate forestry equipment optional
- optional, not held inspect trees optional
- optional, not held measure trees optional
39 held skills the tree surgeon role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on timber harvest skill
- not needed by the target role advise on timber-based products skill
- not needed by the target role agronomy knowledge
- not needed by the target role assess felled timber quality skill
- not needed by the target role assess felled timber volume skill
- not needed by the target role attach protective attachments to timber piles skill
- not needed by the target role carry out routine maintenance of wood cutting machinery skill
- not needed by the target role comply with timber trade code of conduct skill
- not needed by the target role drive agricultural machines skill
- not needed by the target role drive timber machine skill
- not needed by the target role extract coppice skill
- not needed by the target role forecast timber production skill
- not needed by the target role forecast workload skill
- not needed by the target role forest conservation knowledge
- not needed by the target role harvest timber skill
- not needed by the target role improve timber stands skill
- not needed by the target role inspect timber skill
- not needed by the target role limit load to prevent damage skill
- not needed by the target role load timber onto a skidder skill
- not needed by the target role maintain edged hand tools skill
- not needed by the target role maintain forest inventory skill
- not needed by the target role maintain the security of machinery skill
- not needed by the target role manage logs segregation and stacking skill
- not needed by the target role minimise environmental impact on the surrounding area skill
- not needed by the target role operate GPS systems skill
- not needed by the target role operate forestry machinery skill
- not needed by the target role prepare emergency treework operations skill
- not needed by the target role process arisings from treework operations skill
- not needed by the target role process timber using hand-fed machinery skill
- not needed by the target role provide first aid skill
- not needed by the target role reforestation knowledge
- not needed by the target role report pollution incidents skill
- not needed by the target role report to the team leader skill
- not needed by the target role sharpen edged tools skill
- not needed by the target role spray pesticides skill
- not needed by the target role timber products knowledge
- not needed by the target role use ICT systems skill
- not needed by the target role use hand tools for forestry work skill
- not needed by the target role work independently in forestry services skill
1 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 tree preservation and conservation required
Other moves recorded from forestry equipment operator
Common questions about this move
Can a forestry equipment operator become a tree surgeon?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A forestry equipment operator already covers 23% of what a tree surgeon is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 2 of which the tree surgeon role treats as required.
What skills does a forestry equipment operator need to become a tree surgeon?
9 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by handling and moving. The single most important is advise on tree issues.
How hard is the move from forestry equipment operator to tree surgeon?
Its learning distance is 70.7 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.