Optical engineer to microsystem engineer
An optical engineer already meets 71% of what the microsystem engineer role asks for. The move turns on 13 required skills not yet in the profile.
45.2/ 100
1 How much of what a microsystem 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 microsystem engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A microsystem engineer role treats 26 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 13 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 77 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A microsystem 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 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 semiconductors engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held optoelectronics engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 77 carried skills, including the 26 the microsystem engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 27 missing skills fall into 12 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 electrical engineering required
- still to learn electricity required
- still to learn electricity principles required
- optional, not held automation technology optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held nanotechnology optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
- optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
- still to learn design microelectromechanical systems required
- still to learn design prototypes required
- still to learn environmental threats required
- still to learn microassembly required
- still to learn microsystem test procedures required
- optional, not held automatic control system optional
- optional, not held firmware optional
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- optional, not held program firmware optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
- still to learn test microelectromechanical systems required
- optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
6 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a microsystem 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 develop microelectromechanical system test procedures 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 77 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 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 mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held microelectromechanical systems 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 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 computer engineering knowledge
- already held conduct research across disciplines skill
- already held control engineering knowledge
- 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 interpret circuit diagrams 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 mentor individuals skill
- already held microelectronics knowledge
- already held microoptics knowledge
- already held microsensors knowledge
- already held operate precision machinery skill
- already held optoelectronics knowledge
- already held perform resource planning skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held precision mechanics knowledge
- 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 quality standards knowledge
- already held semiconductors knowledge
- already held sensors 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 6 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn develop microelectromechanical system test procedures required
- optional, not held process customer orders optional
- still to learn abide by regulations on banned materials required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- optional, not held assemble microelectromechanical systems optional
- optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
- optional, not held assess integrated domotics systems optional
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assemble microelectromechanical systems optional
- optional, not held assess integrated domotics systems optional
- optional, not held apply soldering techniques optional
- optional, not held automatic control system optional
- optional, not held automation technology optional
- optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
- optional, not held firmware optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held nanotechnology optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
- optional, not held process customer orders optional
- optional, not held program firmware optional
- optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
41 held skills the microsystem 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 design optical prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role design optical systems skill
- not needed by the target role develop electronic test procedures 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 electronic equipment standards 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 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 microprocessors 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 optomechanical components knowledge
- not needed by the target role optomechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform test run skill
- not needed by the target role photonics 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
- not needed by the target role telecommunications engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role test optical components skill
1 further entry not listed here
15 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 microsystem test procedures required
- still to learn electrical engineering required
- still to learn electricity required
- still to learn electricity principles required
- still to learn environmental legislation required
- still to learn microassembly required
- optional, not held automatic control system optional
- optional, not held automation technology optional
- optional, not held biomedical engineering optional
- optional, not held firmware optional
- optional, not held micromechanics optional
- optional, not held nanotechnology optional
- optional, not held precision measuring instruments optional
- optional, not held programmable logic controller optional
Common questions about this move
Can an optical engineer become a microsystem engineer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An optical engineer already covers 71% of what a microsystem engineer is expected to do: 77 skills carry over, 26 of which the microsystem engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an optical engineer need to become a microsystem engineer?
13 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 12 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 microsystem engineer?
Its learning distance is 45.2 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.