Industrial designer to design engineer
An industrial designer already meets 41% of what the design engineer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
61.5/ 100
1 How much of what a design engineer is expected to do is already part of an industrial designer’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 design engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A design engineer role treats 7 of its required skills as things an industrial designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- design principles
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- mathematics
- present artistic design proposals
What stands in the way is 10 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 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A design engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an industrial designer background worth leading with.
- already held adapt to new design materials information skills
- already held conduct research on trends in design information skills
- already held design management business, administration and law
- already held present artistic design proposals communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held determine suitability of materials communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held build a product's physical model handling and moving
All 20 carried skills, including the 7 the design engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 29 missing skills fall into 9 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 interpret technical requirements required
- still to learn assess financial viability required
- still to learn execute analytical mathematical calculations required
- still to learn execute feasibility study required
- still to learn perform scientific research required
- optional, not held keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of materials optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of products optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- still to learn circular economy required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
- still to learn define technical requirements required
- still to learn manage engineering project required
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held develop test procedures optional
- optional, not held supervise work on design planning optional
- still to learn project management required
- optional, not held product data management optional
- optional, not held design power plant systems optional
- optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a design engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 interpret technical requirements practise this
- 02 project management study this
- 03 assess financial viability 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 20 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held design principles knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held present artistic design proposals skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held adapt to new design materials skill
- already held build a product's physical model skill
- already held conduct research on trends in design skill
- already held create a product's virtual model skill
- already held design management knowledge
- already held design prototypes skill
- already held determine suitability of materials skill
- already held draft design specifications skill
- already held draw design sketches skill
- already held liaise with engineers skill
- already held manufacturing processes knowledge
- already held prepare production prototypes skill
- already held use CAD software skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
19 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held design power plant systems optional
- optional, not held keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes optional
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of materials optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of products optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held develop test procedures optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held supervise work on design planning optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
47 held skills the design engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role 3D modelling knowledge
- not needed by the target role CAM software knowledge
- not needed by the target role adapt existing designs to changed circumstances skill
- not needed by the target role aesthetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse production processes for improvement skill
- not needed by the target role apply 3D imaging techniques skill
- not needed by the target role apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role attend design meetings skill
- not needed by the target role build jewellery models skill
- not needed by the target role calculate design costs skill
- not needed by the target role calculate materials to build equipment skill
- not needed by the target role ceramic ware knowledge
- not needed by the target role collaborate with engineers skill
- not needed by the target role consult with design team skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate manufacturing production activities skill
- not needed by the target role copyright legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role cost management knowledge
- not needed by the target role design package skill
- not needed by the target role determine production feasibility skill
- not needed by the target role develop jewellery designs skill
- not needed by the target role draw blueprints skill
- not needed by the target role ergonomics knowledge
- not needed by the target role follow a brief skill
- not needed by the target role human-robot collaboration knowledge
- not needed by the target role hydraulics knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role industrial design knowledge
- not needed by the target role industrial engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role jewellery processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role meet deadlines skill
- not needed by the target role monitor production developments skill
- not needed by the target role perform ideation activities skill
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role perform physical stress tests on models skill
- not needed by the target role perform project management skill
- not needed by the target role plan event marketing for promotional campaigns skill
- not needed by the target role pneumatics knowledge
- not needed by the target role produce sustainable products skill
- not needed by the target role prospect new customers skill
7 further entries not listed here
9 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 project management required
- still to learn circular economy required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
Other moves recorded from industrial designer
- ergonomist 81% covered · adjacent
- furniture designer 46% covered · substantial
- product development engineering drafter 44% covered · moderate
- engine designer 41% covered · substantial
- automotive designer 38% covered · substantial
- industrial tool design engineer 38% covered · substantial
- container equipment design engineer 36% covered · substantial
- tooling engineer 36% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can an industrial designer become a design engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An industrial designer already covers 41% of what a design engineer is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 7 of which the design engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an industrial designer need to become a design engineer?
10 required skills are missing, plus 19 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is interpret technical requirements.
How hard is the move from industrial designer to design engineer?
Its learning distance is 61.5 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.