Mine manager to mineral processing engineer
A mine manager already meets 63% of what the mineral processing engineer role asks for. The move turns on 4 required skills not yet in the profile.
38.4/ 100
1 How much of what a mineral processing engineer is expected to do is already part of a mine manager’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 mineral processing engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A mineral processing engineer role treats 8 of its required skills as things a mine manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- address problems critically
- chemistry
- ensure compliance with safety legislation
- geology
- monitor mine production
- prepare scientific reports
What stands in the way is 4 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 11 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A mineral processing engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a mine manager background worth leading with.
- already held communicate on the environmental impact of mining communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held monitor mine production information skills
- already held apply transportation management concepts communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held impact of geological factors on mining operations engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held prepare scientific reports communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held geology natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
All 11 carried skills, including the 8 the mineral processing engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 8 missing skills fall into 6 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 manage mineral testing procedures required
- still to learn maintain records of mining operations required
- still to learn organize chemical reagents required
- still to learn manage mineral processing plant required
- optional, not held design plant waste procedures optional
- optional, not held mine dump design optional
- optional, not held develop new installations optional
- optional, not held bioleaching optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a mineral processing engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 manage mineral processing plant practise this
- 02 manage mineral testing procedures practise this
- 03 maintain records of mining operations 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 11 skills that carry over
- already held address problems critically skill
- already held chemistry knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with safety legislation skill
- already held geology knowledge
- already held monitor mine production skill
- already held prepare scientific reports skill
- already held supervise staff skill
- already held troubleshoot skill
- already held apply transportation management concepts skill
- already held communicate on the environmental impact of mining skill
- already held impact of geological factors on mining operations knowledge
4 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held bioleaching optional
- optional, not held design plant waste procedures optional
- optional, not held develop new installations optional
- optional, not held mine dump design optional
27 held skills the mineral processing engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assess operating cost skill
- not needed by the target role communicate on minerals issues skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role deal with pressure from unexpected circumstances skill
- not needed by the target role develop health and safety strategies in mining skill
- not needed by the target role economics knowledge
- not needed by the target role electrical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role electricity knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure mining records are maintained skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate mine development projects skill
- not needed by the target role forecast organisational risks skill
- not needed by the target role health and safety hazards underground knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify process improvements skill
- not needed by the target role interface with anti-mining lobbyists skill
- not needed by the target role investigate mine accidents skill
- not needed by the target role manage commercial risks skill
- not needed by the target role manage emergency procedures skill
- not needed by the target role manage mining plant equipment skill
- not needed by the target role manage staff skill
- not needed by the target role mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role mine safety legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role mining engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role optimise financial performance skill
- not needed by the target role oversee mine planning activities skill
- not needed by the target role present reports skill
- not needed by the target role think proactively skill
- not needed by the target role train mine engineers 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 bioleaching optional
Common questions about this move
Can a mine manager become a mineral processing engineer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A mine manager already covers 63% of what a mineral processing engineer is expected to do: 11 skills carry over, 8 of which the mineral processing engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a mine manager need to become a mineral processing engineer?
4 required skills are missing, plus 4 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is manage mineral processing plant.
How hard is the move from mine manager to mineral processing engineer?
Its learning distance is 38.4 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.