Infantry soldier to armed forces officer
An infantry soldier already meets 54% of what the armed forces officer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
49.5/ 100
1 How much of what an armed forces officer is expected to do is already part of an infantry soldier’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 armed forces officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An armed forces officer role treats 13 of its required skills as things an infantry soldier already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- camouflage
- ensure compliance with types of weapons
- ensure public safety and security
- handle surveillance equipment
- identify security threats
- military code
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 · What you already bring
Of the 15 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An armed forces officer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an infantry soldier background worth leading with.
- already held operate armoured fighting vehicles working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held camouflage engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held military drill services
- already held perform military operations assisting and caring
- already held military combat techniques services
- already held military weaponry services
All 15 carried skills, including the 13 the armed forces officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 missing skills fall into 5 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 arrange equipment repairs required
- still to learn manage troop deployment required
- still to learn devise military tactics required
- still to learn lead military troops required
- optional, not held supervise the maintenance of military equipment optional
- optional, not held coordinate patrols optional
- optional, not held coordinate rescue missions optional
- optional, not held ensure equipment availability optional
- still to learn defend human rights required
- still to learn maintain operational communications required
- still to learn train military troops required
- optional, not held conduct military music services optional
- optional, not held instruct in military duties optional
- optional, not held coordinate humanitarian aid missions optional
- optional, not held give battle commands optional
- optional, not held write situation reports optional
- optional, not held assess danger in risk areas optional
- optional, not held identify terrorism threats optional
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an armed forces officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 arrange equipment repairs practise this
- 02 defend human rights practise this
- 03 manage troop deployment 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 15 skills that carry over
- already held camouflage knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with types of weapons skill
- already held ensure public safety and security skill
- already held handle surveillance equipment skill
- already held identify security threats skill
- already held military code knowledge
- already held military combat techniques knowledge
- already held military drill knowledge
- already held military weaponry knowledge
- already held operate radio equipment skill
- already held perform military operations skill
- already held surveillance methods knowledge
- already held use different communication channels skill
- already held operate armoured fighting vehicles skill
- already held use personal protection equipment skill
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held conduct military music services optional
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held instruct in military duties optional
- optional, not held supervise the maintenance of military equipment optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held assess danger in risk areas optional
- optional, not held coordinate humanitarian aid missions optional
- optional, not held coordinate patrols optional
- optional, not held coordinate rescue missions optional
- optional, not held ensure equipment availability optional
- optional, not held give battle commands optional
- optional, not held identify terrorism threats optional
- optional, not held write situation reports optional
17 held skills the armed forces officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assist in ship maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role control crowd skill
- not needed by the target role detain offenders skill
- not needed by the target role execute vehicle maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role execute working instructions skill
- not needed by the target role first aid knowledge
- not needed by the target role law enforcement knowledge
- not needed by the target role legal use-of-force knowledge
- not needed by the target role patrol areas skill
- not needed by the target role perform covert investigations skill
- not needed by the target role practice vigilance skill
- not needed by the target role provide first aid skill
- not needed by the target role provide humanitarian aid skill
- not needed by the target role read maps skill
- not needed by the target role respond to enquiries skill
- not needed by the target role restrain individuals skill
- not needed by the target role undertake inspections 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.
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
Common questions about this move
Can an infantry soldier become an armed forces officer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An infantry soldier already covers 54% of what an armed forces officer is expected to do: 15 skills carry over, 13 of which the armed forces officer role treats as required.
What skills does an infantry soldier need to become an armed forces officer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is arrange equipment repairs.
How hard is the move from infantry soldier to armed forces officer?
Its learning distance is 49.5 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.