Printed circuit board designer to electronics drafter
A printed circuit board designer already meets 56% of what the electronics drafter role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.
48/ 100
1 How much of what an electronics drafter is expected to do is already part of a printed circuit board designer’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 electronics drafter role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An electronics drafter role treats 14 of its required skills as things a printed circuit board designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- create technical plans
- design circuit boards
- design drawings
- design prototypes
- draw blueprints
What stands in the way is 8 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 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An electronics drafter role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a printed circuit board designer background worth leading with.
- already held design circuit boards communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held printed circuit boards information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held manual draughting techniques arts and humanities
- already held use manual draughting techniques communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held plan manufacturing processes management skills
- already held develop assembly instructions communication, collaboration and creativity
All 20 carried skills, including the 14 the electronics drafter role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 3 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 electronic components required
- still to learn electronic equipment standards required
- still to learn integrated circuits required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- still to learn types of electronics required
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held power electronics optional
- still to learn customise drafts required
- still to learn design electronic systems required
- still to learn liaise with engineers required
- optional, not held design hardware optional
- optional, not held design sensors optional
- optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held design microelectronics optional
- optional, not held prepare assembly drawings optional
- optional, not held review drafts optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- optional, not held draft bill of materials optional
- optional, not held keep records of work progress optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an electronics drafter role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 electronic components study this
- 02 customise drafts practise this
- 03 design electronic systems 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 20 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held create technical plans skill
- already held design circuit boards skill
- already held design drawings knowledge
- already held design prototypes skill
- already held draw blueprints skill
- already held electricity knowledge
- already held electronics knowledge
- already held interpret circuit diagrams skill
- already held manual draughting techniques knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held printed circuit boards knowledge
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held create a product's virtual model skill
- already held develop assembly instructions skill
- already held electrical engineering knowledge
- already held manufacturing processes knowledge
- already held plan manufacturing processes skill
- already held use manual draughting techniques skill
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held design hardware optional
- optional, not held design sensors optional
- optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held design microelectronics optional
- optional, not held draft bill of materials optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held keep records of work progress optional
- optional, not held power electronics optional
- optional, not held prepare assembly drawings optional
- optional, not held review drafts optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
9 held skills the electronics drafter role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role CADD software knowledge
- not needed by the target role draft design specifications skill
- not needed by the target role electrical wiring plans knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure equipment maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role monitor manufacturing quality standards skill
- not needed by the target role test printed circuit boards skill
- not needed by the target role use CADD software skill
8 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 electronic components required
- still to learn electronic equipment standards required
- still to learn integrated circuits required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- still to learn types of electronics required
- optional, not held consumer electronics optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held power electronics optional
Other moves recorded from printed circuit board designer
Common questions about this move
Can a printed circuit board designer become an electronics drafter?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A printed circuit board designer already covers 56% of what an electronics drafter is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 14 of which the electronics drafter role treats as required.
What skills does a printed circuit board designer need to become an electronics drafter?
8 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is electronic components.
How hard is the move from printed circuit board designer to electronics drafter?
Its learning distance is 48 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.