Quantity surveyor to contract engineer
A quantity surveyor already meets 24% of what the contract engineer role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
70.6/ 100
1 How much of what a contract engineer is expected to do is already part of a quantity surveyor’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 contract engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A contract engineer role treats 4 of its required skills as things a quantity surveyor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- contract law
- manage budgets
- manage contracts
- project management
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 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A contract engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a quantity surveyor background worth leading with.
- already held carry out tendering management skills
- already held construction industry engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held contract law business, administration and law
- already held cost management business, administration and law
- already held project management business, administration and law
- already held manage contracts communication, collaboration and creativity
All 7 carried skills, including the 4 the contract engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 26 missing skills fall into 7 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 interpret technical requirements required
- still to learn assess financial viability required
- still to learn perform scientific research required
- optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
- optional, not held maintain contract administration optional
- optional, not held perform contract compliance audits optional
- still to learn engineering processes required
- still to learn engineering principles required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- still to learn manage engineering project required
- optional, not held issue sales invoices optional
- optional, not held define technical requirements optional
- optional, not held identify suppliers optional
- optional, not held manage sub-contract labour optional
- optional, not held manage tender processes optional
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- still to learn build business relationships required
- optional, not held compare contractors' bids optional
- optional, not held consult with technical staff optional
- optional, not held handle customer complaints optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held meet contract specifications optional
- still to learn ensure compliance with purchasing and contracting regulations required
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a contract engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 engineering processes study this
- 02 ensure compliance with purchasing and contracting regulations practise this
- 03 interpret technical requirements 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 7 skills that carry over
- already held contract law knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage contracts skill
- already held project management knowledge
- already held carry out tendering skill
- already held construction industry knowledge
- already held cost management knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
- optional, not held issue sales invoices optional
- optional, not held compare contractors' bids optional
- optional, not held consult with technical staff optional
- optional, not held define technical requirements optional
- optional, not held handle customer complaints optional
- optional, not held identify suppliers optional
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held maintain contract administration optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held manage sub-contract labour optional
- optional, not held manage tender processes optional
- optional, not held meet contract specifications optional
- optional, not held perform contract compliance audits optional
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
34 held skills the contract engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role Monte Carlo simulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise architects skill
- not needed by the target role advise on construction materials skill
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role audit contractors skill
- not needed by the target role building codes knowledge
- not needed by the target role building construction principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role calculate needs for construction supplies skill
- not needed by the target role check construction compliance skill
- not needed by the target role civil engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role civil law knowledge
- not needed by the target role communicate with construction crews skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role control of expenses skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate construction activities skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with construction project deadline skill
- not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow the statutory obligations skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer objectives skill
- not needed by the target role keep records of work progress skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with financiers skill
- not needed by the target role monitor construction site skill
- not needed by the target role monitor contractor performance skill
- not needed by the target role monitor parameters' compliance in construction projects skill
- not needed by the target role order construction supplies skill
- not needed by the target role oversee construction project skill
- not needed by the target role perform cost accounting activities skill
- not needed by the target role prepare construction documents skill
- not needed by the target role provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
- not needed by the target role quality standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role quantity surveying knowledge
- not needed by the target role real estate market knowledge
- not needed by the target role urban planning law knowledge
5 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 engineering processes required
- still to learn engineering principles required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
Other moves recorded from quantity surveyor
- construction general contractor 57% covered · moderate
- construction manager 43% covered · substantial
- property developer 33% covered · substantial
- installation engineer 25% covered · substantial
- construction general supervisor 24% covered · career change
- cost analyst 24% covered · substantial
- civil engineering technician 22% covered · career change
- construction engineer 20% covered · career change
Common questions about this move
Can a quantity surveyor become a contract engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A quantity surveyor already covers 24% of what a contract engineer is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 4 of which the contract engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a quantity surveyor need to become a contract engineer?
10 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is engineering processes.
How hard is the move from quantity surveyor to contract engineer?
Its learning distance is 70.6 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.