Optical engineer to microelectronics engineer
An optical engineer already meets 67% of what the microelectronics engineer role asks for. The move turns on 16 required skills not yet in the profile.
50.1/ 100
1 How much of what a microelectronics engineer is expected to do is already part of an optical engineer’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 microelectronics engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A microelectronics engineer role treats 29 of its required skills as things an optical engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust engineering designs
- analyse test data
- approve engineering design
- conduct literature research
- conduct quality control analysis
- demonstrate disciplinary expertise
What stands in the way is 16 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 74 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A microelectronics engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an optical engineer background worth leading with.
- already held develop electronic test procedures management skills
- already held MOEM engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held microelectromechanical systems engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held microsensors engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held microoptics natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held microprocessors information and communication technologies (icts)
All 74 carried skills, including the 29 the microelectronics engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 32 missing skills fall into 10 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 electricity required
- still to learn electricity principles required
- still to learn electronic test procedures required
- still to learn integrated circuits required
- optional, not held battery management systems optional
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held integrated circuit types optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
- still to learn design microelectronics required
- still to learn design prototypes required
- optional, not held design firmware optional
- optional, not held design integrated circuits optional
- still to learn environmental threats required
- still to learn microassembly required
- optional, not held quantum technology optional
- optional, not held nanoelectronics optional
- still to learn abide by regulations on banned materials required
- still to learn process customer requests based on the REACh Regulation 1907 2006 required
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- optional, not held assemble hardware components optional
- optional, not held install software optional
- optional, not held program firmware optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
- still to learn test microelectronics required
- optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
- optional, not held solder electronics optional
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a microelectronics engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 abide by regulations on banned materials practise this
- 02 ensure material compliance practise this
- 03 environmental threats study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 74 skills that carry over
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held analyse test data skill
- already held approve engineering design skill
- already held conduct literature research skill
- already held conduct quality control analysis skill
- already held demonstrate disciplinary expertise skill
- already held design drawings knowledge
- already held develop electronic test procedures skill
- already held electronic equipment standards knowledge
- already held electronics knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held interact professionally in research and professional environments skill
- already held manage personal professional development skill
- already held manage research data skill
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held microelectronics knowledge
- already held microprocessors knowledge
- already held operate open source software skill
- already held operate scientific measuring equipment skill
- already held perform data analysis skill
- already held perform project management skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held physics knowledge
- already held prepare production prototypes skill
- already held read engineering drawings skill
- already held record test data skill
- already held report analysis results skill
- already held synthesise information skill
- already held think abstractly skill
- already held CAE software knowledge
- already held MOEM knowledge
- already held apply blended learning skill
- already held apply for research funding skill
- already held apply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activities skill
- already held apply technical communication skills skill
- already held build business relationships skill
- already held communicate with a non-scientific audience skill
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held conduct research across disciplines skill
- already held coordinate engineering teams skill
- already held create technical plans skill
- already held define manufacturing quality criteria skill
- already held develop product design skill
- already held develop professional network with researchers and scientists skill
- already held disseminate results to the scientific community skill
- already held draft bill of materials skill
- already held draft scientific or academic papers and technical documentation skill
- already held evaluate research activities skill
- already held increase the impact of science on policy and society skill
- already held integrate gender dimension in research skill
- already held maintain safe engineering watches skill
- already held manage findable accessible interoperable and reusable data skill
- already held manage intellectual property rights skill
- already held manage open publications skill
- already held mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held mentor individuals skill
- already held microelectromechanical systems knowledge
- already held microoptics knowledge
- already held microsensors knowledge
- already held operate precision machinery skill
- already held perform resource planning skill
- already held perform test run skill
- already held prepare assembly drawings skill
- already held promote open innovation in research skill
- already held promote the participation of citizens in scientific and research activities skill
- already held promote the transfer of knowledge skill
- already held publish academic research skill
- already held semiconductors knowledge
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held teach in academic or vocational contexts skill
- already held train employees skill
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use precision tools skill
- already held write scientific publications skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn computer simulation required
- optional, not held firmware optional
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- still to learn model microelectronics required
- still to learn ensure material compliance required
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held battery management systems optional
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held integrated circuit types optional
- optional, not held quantum technology optional
- optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
- optional, not held assemble hardware components optional
- optional, not held design firmware optional
- optional, not held design integrated circuits optional
- optional, not held firmware optional
- optional, not held install software optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held nanoelectronics optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
- optional, not held program firmware optional
- optional, not held solder electronics optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
44 held skills the microelectronics engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role acoustics knowledge
- not needed by the target role cavity optomechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role computer engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role control engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role design optical prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role design optical systems skill
- not needed by the target role develop optical test procedures skill
- not needed by the target role digital camera sensors knowledge
- not needed by the target role electromagnetic spectrum knowledge
- not needed by the target role electrooptic devices knowledge
- not needed by the target role electrooptics knowledge
- not needed by the target role fibre optics knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret circuit diagrams skill
- not needed by the target role lasers knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain optical equipment skill
- not needed by the target role medical imaging technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role microwave principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role model optical systems skill
- not needed by the target role mount optical components on frames skill
- not needed by the target role operate optical assembly equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate precision measuring equipment skill
- not needed by the target role optical components knowledge
- not needed by the target role optical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role optical equipment standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role optical glass characteristics knowledge
- not needed by the target role optical instruments knowledge
- not needed by the target role optical manufacturing process knowledge
- not needed by the target role optics knowledge
- not needed by the target role optoelectronic devices knowledge
- not needed by the target role optoelectronics knowledge
- not needed by the target role optomechanical components knowledge
- not needed by the target role optomechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role photonics knowledge
- not needed by the target role precision mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role quality standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role quantum optics knowledge
- not needed by the target role radars knowledge
- not needed by the target role refractive power knowledge
- not needed by the target role resolve equipment malfunctions skill
- not needed by the target role sell optical products skill
4 further entries not listed here
16 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 environmental threats required
- still to learn computer simulation required
- still to learn electricity required
- still to learn electricity principles required
- still to learn electronic test procedures required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- still to learn integrated circuits required
- still to learn microassembly required
- optional, not held battery management systems optional
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held integrated circuit types optional
- optional, not held quantum technology optional
- optional, not held firmware optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held nanoelectronics optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
Common questions about this move
Can an optical engineer become a microelectronics engineer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An optical engineer already covers 67% of what a microelectronics engineer is expected to do: 74 skills carry over, 29 of which the microelectronics engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an optical engineer need to become a microelectronics engineer?
16 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is abide by regulations on banned materials.
How hard is the move from optical engineer to microelectronics engineer?
Its learning distance is 50.1 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.