Precision engineer to design engineer
A precision engineer already meets 49% of what the design engineer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
54.1/ 100
1 How much of what a design engineer is expected to do is already part of a precision 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 design engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A design engineer role treats 10 of its required skills as things a precision engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- define technical requirements
- design principles
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- interpret technical requirements
- manage engineering project
What stands in the way is 7 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 21 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A design engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a precision engineer background worth leading with.
- already held analyse stress resistance of products information skills
- already held develop test procedures management skills
- already held interpret technical requirements information skills
- already held product data management business, administration and law
- already held manage engineering project management skills
- already held draft design specifications communication, collaboration and creativity
All 21 carried skills, including the 10 the design engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 missing skills fall into 8 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 analytical mathematical calculations required
- still to learn execute feasibility study required
- optional, not held adapt to new design materials optional
- optional, not held keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of materials optional
- optional, not held conduct research on trends in design optional
- still to learn present artistic design proposals required
- optional, not held design power plant systems optional
- optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held determine suitability of materials optional
- optional, not held draw design sketches optional
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- optional, not held prepare production prototypes optional
- still to learn circular economy required
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
- still to learn CAD software required
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- still to learn mathematics required
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held supervise work on design planning optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a design engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 CAD software study this
- 02 assess financial viability practise this
- 03 circular economy 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 21 skills that carry over
- already held define technical requirements skill
- already held design principles knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held interpret technical requirements skill
- already held manage engineering project skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held project management knowledge
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held analyse stress resistance of products skill
- already held analyse test data skill
- already held conduct performance tests skill
- already held design prototypes skill
- already held develop test procedures skill
- already held draft design specifications skill
- already held perform test run skill
- already held product data management knowledge
- already held record test data skill
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use testing equipment skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held adapt to new design materials optional
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held design power plant systems optional
- optional, not held keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes optional
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held adjust engineering designs optional
- optional, not held analyse stress resistance of materials optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
- optional, not held conduct research on trends in design optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held create technical plans optional
- optional, not held determine suitability of materials optional
- optional, not held draw design sketches optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
- optional, not held prepare production prototypes optional
- optional, not held supervise work on design planning optional
16 held skills the design engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply advanced manufacturing skill
- not needed by the target role calibrate precision instrument skill
- not needed by the target role define part requirements skill
- not needed by the target role design microelectromechanical systems skill
- not needed by the target role design scientific equipment skill
- not needed by the target role electrical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role electronics knowledge
- not needed by the target role industrial engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain test equipment skill
- not needed by the target role manage product testing skill
- not needed by the target role mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechatronics knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate precision machinery skill
- not needed by the target role operate precision measuring equipment skill
- not needed by the target role precision engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role precision mechanics knowledge
10 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 CAD software required
- still to learn circular economy required
- still to learn mathematics required
- optional, not held design management optional
- optional, not held nuclear physics optional
- optional, not held thermohydraulics optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held industrial research and development optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held model based system engineering optional
Common questions about this move
Can a precision engineer become a design engineer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A precision engineer already covers 49% of what a design engineer is expected to do: 21 skills carry over, 10 of which the design engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a precision engineer need to become a design engineer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 21 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is CAD software.
How hard is the move from precision engineer to design engineer?
Its learning distance is 54.1 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.