Rubber technologist to material testing technician
A rubber technologist already meets 29% of what the material testing technician role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
65.6/ 100
1 How much of what a material testing technician is expected to do is already part of a rubber technologist’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 material testing technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A material testing technician role treats 3 of its required skills as things a rubber technologist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- operate scientific measuring equipment
- quality standards
- record test data
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 10 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A material testing technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a rubber technologist background worth leading with.
- already held rubber technology engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held analyse stress resistance of materials information skills
- already held develop material testing procedures information skills
- already held assist scientific research communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held operate scientific measuring equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held provide technical expertise communication, collaboration and creativity
All 10 carried skills, including the 3 the material testing technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 19 missing skills fall into 9 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 perform laboratory tests required
- still to learn use testing equipment required
- optional, not held use non-destructive testing equipment optional
- still to learn apply safety procedures in laboratory required
- still to learn wear appropriate protective gear required
- still to learn report test findings required
- optional, not held conduct soil sample tests optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held conduct field work optional
- still to learn collect samples required
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held collect samples for analysis optional
- still to learn advanced materials required
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- still to learn maintain test equipment required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a material testing technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 advanced materials study this
- 02 apply safety procedures in laboratory practise this
- 03 collect samples 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 10 skills that carry over
- already held operate scientific measuring equipment skill
- already held quality standards knowledge
- already held record test data skill
- already held analyse stress resistance of materials skill
- already held assist scientific research skill
- already held develop material testing procedures skill
- already held liaise with engineers skill
- already held physics knowledge
- already held provide technical expertise skill
- already held rubber technology knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn materials engineering required
- still to learn health, safety and hygiene legislation required
- optional, not held build business relationships optional
9 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held conduct soil sample tests optional
- optional, not held label samples optional
- optional, not held use non-destructive testing equipment optional
- optional, not held analyse test data optional
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held build business relationships optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
- optional, not held collect samples for analysis optional
- optional, not held conduct field work optional
23 held skills the material testing technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adjust engineering designs skill
- not needed by the target role adjust the rubber machines skill
- not needed by the target role analyse production processes for improvement skill
- not needed by the target role analytical chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role basic chemicals knowledge
- not needed by the target role check quality of raw materials skill
- not needed by the target role chemical processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop green compounding solutions skill
- not needed by the target role develop rubber compound formulas skill
- not needed by the target role handle chemicals skill
- not needed by the target role manage environmental impact of operations skill
- not needed by the target role manage rubber products development skill
- not needed by the target role manufacturing processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role polymer chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role polymerisation knowledge
- not needed by the target role propose alternative rubber compound ingredients skill
- not needed by the target role quality assurance methodologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role synthetic materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role test chemical samples skill
- not needed by the target role test materials skill
- not needed by the target role use hand tools skill
- not needed by the target role work safely with chemicals skill
- not needed by the target role write technical reports skill
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 advanced materials required
- still to learn health, safety and hygiene legislation required
- still to learn materials engineering required
- optional, not held biology optional
- optional, not held chemistry optional
Common questions about this move
Can a rubber technologist become a material testing technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A rubber technologist already covers 29% of what a material testing technician is expected to do: 10 skills carry over, 3 of which the material testing technician role treats as required.
What skills does a rubber technologist need to become a material testing technician?
10 required skills are missing, plus 9 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with machinery and specialised equipment. The single most important is advanced materials.
How hard is the move from rubber technologist to material testing technician?
Its learning distance is 65.6 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.