train dispatchertorail traffic controller
A train dispatcher already meets 24% of what the rail traffic controller role asks for. The move turns on 16 required skills not yet in the profile.
24%
76.4/ 100
1 Share of the rail traffic controller role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the train dispatcher profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.
Why this move works
A rail traffic controller role treats 5 of its required skills as things a train dispatcher already does. These are the ones it depends on most.
- handle stressful situations in the work place
- maintain computerised records of railway traffic
- operate railway communication systems
- process data from railway control rooms
- use different communication channels
What stands in the way is 16 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 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A rail traffic controller role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a train dispatcher background worth leading with.
- already held monitor train schedules information skills
- already held maintain computerised records of railway traffic working with computers
- already held process data from railway control rooms information skills
- already held operate railway communication systems working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held handle stressful situations in the work place management skills
- already held use different communication channels communication, collaboration and creativity
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the rail traffic controller role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you would need to learn
The 19 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.
- required, not held oversee operational safety on trains required
- required, not held provide information on train routes required
- required, not held react calmly in stressful situations required
- required, not held manage train working timetable required
- required, not held oversee the daily train operations plan required
- optional, not held determine train operational safety actions optional
- required, not held modern power signalling systems required
- required, not held signal box parts required
- optional, not held train planning optional
- required, not held signal boxes required
- required, not held mechanics of trains required
- required, not held operate train integrated electronic control centre required
- required, not held operate LED-based panel signal boxes required
- required, not held maintain railway signal equipment required
- required, not held operate train signalling equipment required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a rail traffic controller role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 manage train working timetable skill · occupation specific
- 02 operate train integrated electronic control centre skill · occupation specific
- 03 oversee the daily train operations plan skill · occupation specific
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held handle stressful situations in the work place skill
- already held maintain computerised records of railway traffic skill
- already held operate railway communication systems skill
- already held process data from railway control rooms skill
- already held use different communication channels skill
- already held monitor train schedules skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- required, not held write signalling reports required
- optional, not held check for defects in railcars optional
- required, not held test railway signalling equipment required
- required, not held mark differences in colours required
3 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held determine train operational safety actions optional
- optional, not held check for defects in railcars optional
- optional, not held train planning optional
12 held skills the rail traffic controller role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role act reliably skill
- not needed by the target role analyse weather forecast skill
- not needed by the target role control train arrivals skill
- not needed by the target role control train departures skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with railway regulation skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with colleagues skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with rail experts skill
- not needed by the target role manage rail yard resources skill
- not needed by the target role monitor conditions affecting train movement skill
- not needed by the target role perform services in a flexible manner skill
- not needed by the target role shunt inbound loads skill
- not needed by the target role shunt outbound loads 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.
- required, not held modern power signalling systems required
- required, not held signal box parts required
- required, not held signal boxes required
- required, not held mechanics of trains required
- optional, not held train planning optional
Other moves recorded from train dispatcher
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.