Physics technician to zoology technician
A physics technician already meets 31% of what the zoology technician role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
70.5/ 100
1 How much of what a zoology technician is expected to do is already part of a physics technician’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 zoology technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A zoology technician role treats 8 of its required skills as things a physics technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- analyse experimental laboratory data
- apply safety procedures in laboratory
- apply scientific methods
- calibrate laboratory equipment
- laboratory techniques
- maintain laboratory equipment
What stands in the way is 11 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 8 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A zoology technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a physics technician background worth leading with.
- already held analyse experimental laboratory data information skills
- already held maintain laboratory equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held calibrate laboratory equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory assisting and caring
- already held laboratory techniques natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held perform laboratory tests working with machinery and specialised equipment
All 8 carried skills, including the 8 the zoology technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 31 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 applied zoology required
- still to learn laboratory equipment required
- still to learn animal biology required
- still to learn biology required
- optional, not held cryopreservation optional
- optional, not held evolutionary biology optional
- optional, not held microbiology-bacteriology optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held life sciences optional
- still to learn assist in the production of laboratory documentation required
- still to learn collect biological data required
- still to learn perform scientific research required
- optional, not held analyse blood samples optional
- optional, not held analyse cell cultures optional
- optional, not held inspect animal welfare management optional
- optional, not held keep task records optional
- still to learn write technical reports required
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
- still to learn animal behaviour required
- still to learn manage inventory required
- still to learn use laboratory equipment required
5 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a zoology technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 animal behaviour study this
- 02 applied zoology study this
- 03 assist in the production of laboratory documentation 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 8 skills that carry over
- already held analyse experimental laboratory data skill
- already held apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- already held apply scientific methods skill
- already held calibrate laboratory equipment skill
- already held laboratory techniques knowledge
- already held maintain laboratory equipment skill
- already held perform laboratory tests skill
- already held scientific research methodology knowledge
The 5 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held animal welfare legislation optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held animal food products optional
- optional, not held watershed development optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held preserve samples optional
- optional, not held maintain freelance database optional
- optional, not held prepare visual data optional
- optional, not held hazardous waste storage optional
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held analyse blood samples optional
- optional, not held analyse cell cultures optional
- optional, not held animal food products optional
- optional, not held cryopreservation optional
- optional, not held evolutionary biology optional
- optional, not held inspect animal welfare management optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held microbiology-bacteriology optional
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held watershed development optional
- optional, not held animal welfare legislation optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held hazardous waste storage optional
- optional, not held keep task records optional
- optional, not held life sciences optional
- optional, not held maintain freelance database optional
- optional, not held prepare visual data optional
- optional, not held preserve samples optional
- optional, not held write research proposals optional
25 held skills the zoology technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role acoustics knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse scientific data skill
- not needed by the target role apply statistical analysis techniques skill
- not needed by the target role assist scientific research skill
- not needed by the target role astronomy knowledge
- not needed by the target role collect samples for analysis skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with external laboratories skill
- not needed by the target role densiometry knowledge
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role gather experimental data skill
- not needed by the target role geology knowledge
- not needed by the target role geophysics knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret geophysical data skill
- not needed by the target role mathematics knowledge
- not needed by the target role observe matter skill
- not needed by the target role operate remote sensing equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate telescopes skill
- not needed by the target role physics knowledge
- not needed by the target role quantum computing knowledge
- not needed by the target role quantum mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role report analysis results skill
- not needed by the target role statistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role thermodynamics knowledge
- not needed by the target role use measurement instruments skill
- not needed by the target role write scientific publications skill
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 animal behaviour required
- still to learn applied zoology required
- still to learn laboratory equipment required
- still to learn animal biology required
- still to learn biology required
- optional, not held animal food products optional
- optional, not held cryopreservation optional
- optional, not held evolutionary biology optional
- optional, not held microbiology-bacteriology optional
- optional, not held pollution legislation optional
- optional, not held watershed development optional
- optional, not held animal welfare legislation optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held environmental legislation optional
- optional, not held hazardous waste storage optional
- optional, not held life sciences optional
Common questions about this move
Can a physics technician become a zoology technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A physics technician already covers 31% of what a zoology technician is expected to do: 8 skills carry over, 8 of which the zoology technician role treats as required.
What skills does a physics technician need to become a zoology technician?
11 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by natural sciences, mathematics and statistics. The single most important is animal behaviour.
How hard is the move from physics technician to zoology technician?
Its learning distance is 70.5 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.