Patent engineer to agricultural engineer
A patent engineer already meets 19% of what the agricultural engineer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
77/ 100
1 How much of what an agricultural engineer is expected to do is already part of a patent 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 agricultural engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An agricultural engineer role treats 4 of its required skills as things a patent engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust engineering designs
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- mechanical engineering
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 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An agricultural engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a patent engineer background worth leading with.
- already held civil engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held design principles arts and humanities
- already held mechanical engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held adjust engineering designs communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held engineering processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held engineering principles engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 6 carried skills, including the 4 the agricultural engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 38 missing skills fall into 11 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 assess financial viability required
- still to learn execute feasibility study required
- still to learn perform scientific research required
- optional, not held use agronomic modelling optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held research improvement of crop yields optional
- still to learn approve engineering design required
- still to learn troubleshoot required
- optional, not held advise on irrigation projects optional
- optional, not held design an artificial lighting system optional
- optional, not held provide advice to farmers optional
- optional, not held advise on pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held design prototypes optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- still to learn mechanics required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- still to learn e-agriculture required
- optional, not held climate smart agriculture optional
- optional, not held irrigation systems optional
- optional, not held sustainable agricultural production principles optional
- optional, not held integrated food-energy systems optional
- still to learn legislation in agriculture required
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
5 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an agricultural engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 e-agriculture study this
- 02 approve engineering design practise 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 6 skills that carry over
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held civil engineering knowledge
- already held design principles knowledge
The 5 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held control production optional
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held develop agricultural policies optional
- optional, not held oversee construction project optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held assess environmental impact optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held maintain agricultural machinery optional
28 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on irrigation projects optional
- optional, not held climate smart agriculture optional
- optional, not held design an artificial lighting system optional
- optional, not held irrigation systems optional
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held provide advice to farmers optional
- optional, not held sustainable agricultural production principles optional
- optional, not held use agronomic modelling optional
- optional, not held advise on pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held assess environmental impact optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held control production optional
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held design prototypes optional
- optional, not held develop agricultural policies optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held integrated food-energy systems optional
- optional, not held maintain agricultural machinery optional
- optional, not held oversee construction project optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held research improvement of crop yields optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
28 held skills the agricultural engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on patents skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role apply for patents skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role characteristics of products knowledge
- not needed by the target role collaborate with engineers skill
- not needed by the target role communication knowledge
- not needed by the target role company policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role coordinate engineering teams skill
- not needed by the target role create patent draft skill
- not needed by the target role ensure law application skill
- not needed by the target role financial analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role intellectual property law knowledge
- not needed by the target role legal research knowledge
- not needed by the target role legal terminology knowledge
- not needed by the target role market analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role market research knowledge
- not needed by the target role patents knowledge
- not needed by the target role present arguments persuasively skill
- not needed by the target role present legal arguments skill
- not needed by the target role project management knowledge
- not needed by the target role project management principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide advice on trademarks skill
- not needed by the target role provide legal advice skill
- not needed by the target role provide technical expertise skill
- not needed by the target role represent the company skill
- not needed by the target role scientific literature knowledge
- not needed by the target role trademarks knowledge
13 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 e-agriculture required
- still to learn legislation in agriculture required
- still to learn mechanics required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held climate smart agriculture optional
- optional, not held irrigation systems optional
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held sustainable agricultural production principles optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held integrated food-energy systems optional
- optional, not held pollution prevention optional
- optional, not held product data management optional
Common questions about this move
Can a patent engineer become an agricultural engineer?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A patent engineer already covers 19% of what an agricultural engineer is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 4 of which the agricultural engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a patent engineer need to become an agricultural engineer?
10 required skills are missing, plus 28 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is e-agriculture.
How hard is the move from patent engineer to agricultural engineer?
Its learning distance is 77 out of 100, which is the career change 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.