Product development engineering drafter to civil drafter
A product development engineering drafter already meets 59% of what the civil drafter role asks for. The move turns on 3 required skills not yet in the profile.
45.7/ 100
1 How much of what a civil drafter is expected to do is already part of a product development engineering drafter’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 civil drafter role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A civil drafter role treats 13 of its required skills as things a product development engineering drafter already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- create technical plans
- design drawings
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- manual draughting techniques
What stands in the way is 3 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 18 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A civil drafter role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a product development engineering drafter background worth leading with.
- already held use CADD software working with computers
- already held manual draughting techniques arts and humanities
- already held use manual draughting techniques communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held draw blueprints communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held draft design specifications communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held 3D modelling natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
All 18 carried skills, including the 13 the civil drafter role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 24 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 building information modelling required
- still to learn civil engineering required
- optional, not held bridge engineering optional
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held building codes optional
- optional, not held construction methods optional
- optional, not held mechanics optional
- optional, not held zoning codes optional
- still to learn operate drones in civil engineering required
- optional, not held operate surveying instruments optional
- optional, not held communicate with construction crews optional
- optional, not held create architectural sketches optional
- optional, not held advise architects optional
- optional, not held design transportation systems optional
- optional, not held render 3D images optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held apply digital mapping optional
- optional, not held create cadastral maps optional
- optional, not held conduct land surveys optional
- optional, not held estimate cost of building materials optional
- optional, not held aesthetics optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a civil drafter role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 building information modelling study this
- 02 operate drones in civil engineering practise this
- 03 civil engineering 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 18 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held create technical plans skill
- already held design drawings knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held manual draughting techniques knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held read engineering drawings skill
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use CADD software skill
- already held use manual draughting techniques skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held 3D modelling knowledge
- already held design principles knowledge
- already held draft design specifications skill
- already held draw blueprints skill
- already held liaise with engineers skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held architecture regulations optional
- optional, not held make architectural mock-ups optional
21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held architecture regulations optional
- optional, not held bridge engineering optional
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held communicate with construction crews optional
- optional, not held conduct land surveys optional
- optional, not held create architectural sketches optional
- optional, not held estimate cost of building materials optional
- optional, not held operate surveying instruments optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held advise architects optional
- optional, not held aesthetics optional
- optional, not held apply digital mapping optional
- optional, not held building codes optional
- optional, not held construction methods optional
- optional, not held create cadastral maps optional
- optional, not held design transportation systems optional
- optional, not held make architectural mock-ups optional
- optional, not held mechanics optional
- optional, not held render 3D images optional
- optional, not held zoning codes optional
16 held skills the civil drafter role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adjust engineering designs skill
- not needed by the target role build a product's physical model skill
- not needed by the target role circular economy knowledge
- not needed by the target role create a product's virtual model skill
- not needed by the target role define part requirements skill
- not needed by the target role design management knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop assembly instructions skill
- not needed by the target role draw design sketches 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 industrial research and development knowledge
- not needed by the target role manufacturing processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role product data management knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide technical documentation skill
11 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 building information modelling required
- still to learn civil engineering required
- optional, not held architecture regulations optional
- optional, not held bridge engineering optional
- optional, not held cartography optional
- optional, not held topography optional
- optional, not held aesthetics optional
- optional, not held building codes optional
- optional, not held construction methods optional
- optional, not held mechanics optional
- optional, not held zoning codes optional
Other moves recorded from product development engineering drafter
- mechanical engineering drafter 68% covered · moderate
- rolling stock engineering drafter 68% covered · moderate
- automotive engineering drafter 62% covered · moderate
- heating, ventilation, air conditioning (and refrigeration) drafter 57% covered · moderate
Full index of moves from product development engineering drafter
Common questions about this move
Can a product development engineering drafter become a civil drafter?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A product development engineering drafter already covers 59% of what a civil drafter is expected to do: 18 skills carry over, 13 of which the civil drafter role treats as required.
What skills does a product development engineering drafter need to become a civil drafter?
3 required skills are missing, plus 21 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is building information modelling.
How hard is the move from product development engineering drafter to civil drafter?
Its learning distance is 45.7 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.