Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Hydrographic surveying technician to surveying technician

A hydrographic surveying technician already meets 66% of what the surveying technician 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 hydrographic surveying technician
66 % overlap
Strong match
To surveying technician
29 You already bring
7 Still to learn
46 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

40/ 100

1 How much of what a surveying technician is expected to do is already part of a hydrographic surveying technician’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 surveying technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A surveying technician role treats 16 of its required skills as things a hydrographic surveying technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • adjust surveying equipment
  • cartography
  • geodesy
  • geographic information systems
  • geomatics
  • interpret geophysical data

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

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held adjust surveying equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
  • already held conduct research before survey information skills
  • already held geomatics natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
  • already held prepare surveying report information skills
  • already held collect mapping data information skills
  • already held survey techniques natural sciences, mathematics and statistics

All 29 carried skills, including the 16 the surveying technician role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 17 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information skills 3 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn compare survey computations required
  • still to learn conduct land surveys required
  • still to learn perform scientific research required
  • optional, not held compile GIS-data optional
  • optional, not held determine property boundaries optional
  • optional, not held value properties optional
02 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 required, 4 supplementary
  • still to learn technical drawings required
  • optional, not held engineering processes optional
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
  • optional, not held civil engineering optional
  • optional, not held engineering principles optional
03 working with computers 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn use technical drawing software required
  • optional, not held use spreadsheets software optional
04 assisting and caring 1 required
  • still to learn ensure compliance with safety legislation required
05 working with machinery and specialised equipment 1 required
  • still to learn calibrate precision instrument required
06 business, administration and law 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held urban planning law optional

1 further area in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a surveying technician 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 29 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held adjust surveying equipment skill
  • already held cartography knowledge
  • already held geodesy knowledge
  • already held geographic information systems knowledge
  • already held geomatics knowledge
  • already held interpret geophysical data skill
  • already held mathematics knowledge
  • already held operate surveying instruments skill
  • already held perform surveying calculations skill
  • already held prepare surveying report skill
  • already held process collected survey data skill
  • already held record survey data skill
  • already held survey techniques knowledge
  • already held surveying knowledge
  • already held surveying methods knowledge
  • already held topography knowledge
  • already held apply digital mapping skill
  • already held collect data using GPS skill
  • already held collect geological data skill
  • already held collect mapping data skill
  • already held conduct research before survey skill
  • already held create GIS reports skill
  • already held create thematic maps skill
  • already held develop geological databases skill
  • already held geography knowledge
  • already held geology knowledge
  • already held prepare geological map sections skill
  • already held use CAD software skill
  • already held use geographic information systems skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 communication, collaboration and creativity 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held engineering processes optional
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
  • optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
  • optional, not held civil engineering optional
  • optional, not held compile GIS-data optional
  • optional, not held determine property boundaries optional
  • optional, not held engineering principles optional
  • optional, not held urban planning law optional
  • optional, not held use spreadsheets software optional
  • optional, not held value properties optional
16 held skills the surveying technician role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role analyse scientific data skill
  • not needed by the target role apply scientific methods skill
  • not needed by the target role assist hydrographic surveys skill
  • not needed by the target role assist scientific research skill
  • not needed by the target role bathymetry knowledge
  • not needed by the target role conduct underwater surveys skill
  • not needed by the target role document survey operations skill
  • not needed by the target role hydrography knowledge
  • not needed by the target role morphology knowledge
  • not needed by the target role oceanography knowledge
  • not needed by the target role operate marine communication systems skill
  • not needed by the target role operate marine machinery systems skill
  • not needed by the target role provide information on geological characteristics skill
  • not needed by the target role vessel safety equipment knowledge
  • not needed by the target role write technical reports skill
  • not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
6 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 technical drawings required
  • optional, not held engineering processes optional
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
  • optional, not held civil engineering optional
  • optional, not held engineering principles optional
  • optional, not held urban planning law optional
Index
FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a hydrographic surveying technician become a surveying technician?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A hydrographic surveying technician already covers 66% of what a surveying technician is expected to do: 29 skills carry over, 16 of which the surveying technician role treats as required.

What skills does a hydrographic surveying technician need to become a surveying technician?

7 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is compare survey computations.

How hard is the move from hydrographic surveying technician to surveying technician?

Its learning distance is 40 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.