Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

User interface designer to software architect

A user interface designer already meets 53% of what the software architect role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From user interface designer
53 % overlap
Partial match
To software architect
53 You already bring
12 Still to learn
89 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

59.7/ 100

1 How much of what a software architect is expected to do is already part of a user interface 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 software architect role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A software architect role treats 7 of its required skills as things a user interface designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • analyse business requirements
  • build business relationships
  • business process modelling
  • create software design
  • define technical requirements
  • design process

What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 53 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A software architect role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a user interface designer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held task algorithmisation information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held use query languages working with computers
  • already held create software design communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held design process communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held web programming information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held use markup languages working with computers

All 53 carried skills, including the 7 the software architect role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 36 missing skills fall into 6 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information and communication technologies (icts) 5 required, 10 supplementary
  • still to learn object-oriented modelling required
  • still to learn system design required
  • still to learn tools for software configuration management required
  • still to learn unified modelling language required
  • still to learn systems development life-cycle required
  • optional, not held Ansible optional
  • optional, not held Apache Maven optional
  • optional, not held Jenkins (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visual C++ optional
  • optional, not held Puppet (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held SPARK optional
  • optional, not held STAF optional
  • optional, not held Salt (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held WildFly optional
  • optional, not held systems theory optional
02 working with computers 2 required, 6 supplementary
  • still to learn align software with system architectures required
  • still to learn analyse software specifications required
  • optional, not held apply ICT systems theory optional
  • optional, not held develop software prototype optional
  • optional, not held do cloud refactoring optional
  • optional, not held implement data warehousing techniques optional
  • optional, not held utilise computer-aided software engineering tools optional
  • optional, not held perform ICT troubleshooting optional
03 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 required, 4 supplementary
  • still to learn define software architecture required
  • still to learn create flowchart diagram required
  • optional, not held design cloud architecture optional
  • optional, not held design database in the cloud optional
  • optional, not held design database scheme optional
  • optional, not held provide ICT consulting advice optional
04 information skills 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn collect customer feedback on applications required
  • still to learn provide cost benefit analysis reports required
  • optional, not held perform resource planning optional
  • optional, not held perform risk analysis optional
05 management skills 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn oversee development of software required
  • optional, not held manage staff optional
06 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held security engineering optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a software architect role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 53 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held analyse business requirements skill
  • already held build business relationships skill
  • already held business process modelling knowledge
  • already held create software design skill
  • already held define technical requirements skill
  • already held design process skill
  • already held use an application-specific interface skill
  • already held ABAP knowledge
  • already held AJAX knowledge
  • already held APL knowledge
  • already held ASP.NET knowledge
  • already held Agile project management knowledge
  • already held Assembly (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held C# knowledge
  • already held C++ knowledge
  • already held COBOL knowledge
  • already held CoffeeScript knowledge
  • already held Common Lisp knowledge
  • already held Erlang knowledge
  • already held Groovy knowledge
  • already held Haskell knowledge
  • already held ICT project management methodologies knowledge
  • already held ICT security legislation knowledge
  • already held Java (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held JavaScript knowledge
  • already held Lisp knowledge
  • already held MATLAB knowledge
  • already held ML (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Objective-C knowledge
  • already held OpenEdge Advanced Business Language knowledge
  • already held PHP knowledge
  • already held Pascal (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Perl knowledge
  • already held Process-based management knowledge
  • already held Prolog (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Python (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held R knowledge
  • already held Ruby (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held SAP R3 knowledge
  • already held SAS language knowledge
  • already held Scala knowledge
  • already held Scratch (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Smalltalk (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held Swift (computer programming) knowledge
  • already held TypeScript knowledge
  • already held VBScript knowledge
  • already held Visual Basic knowledge
  • already held computer programming knowledge
  • already held lean project management knowledge
  • already held task algorithmisation knowledge
  • already held use markup languages skill
  • already held use query languages skill
  • already held web programming knowledge
24 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held Ansible optional
  • optional, not held Apache Maven optional
  • optional, not held Jenkins (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visual C++ optional
  • optional, not held Puppet (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held SPARK optional
  • optional, not held STAF optional
  • optional, not held Salt (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held WildFly optional
  • optional, not held apply ICT systems theory optional
  • optional, not held design cloud architecture optional
  • optional, not held design database in the cloud optional
  • optional, not held design database scheme optional
  • optional, not held develop software prototype optional
  • optional, not held do cloud refactoring optional
  • optional, not held implement data warehousing techniques optional
  • optional, not held provide ICT consulting advice optional
  • optional, not held systems theory optional
  • optional, not held utilise computer-aided software engineering tools optional
  • optional, not held manage staff optional
  • optional, not held perform ICT troubleshooting optional
  • optional, not held perform resource planning optional
  • optional, not held perform risk analysis optional
  • optional, not held security engineering optional
42 held skills the software architect role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role Adobe Illustrator knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Adobe Photoshop knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Agile development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role DevOps knowledge
  • not needed by the target role GIMP (graphics editor software) knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ICT accessibility standards knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Microsoft Visio knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Prototyping development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Rapid application development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role SketchBook Pro knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Spiral development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Synfig knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Waterfall development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role World Wide Web Consortium standards knowledge
  • not needed by the target role application usability knowledge
  • not needed by the target role assess users' interaction with ICT applications skill
  • not needed by the target role augmented reality knowledge
  • not needed by the target role cognitive psychology knowledge
  • not needed by the target role create website wireframe skill
  • not needed by the target role design graphics skill
  • not needed by the target role design user interface skill
  • not needed by the target role develop creative ideas skill
  • not needed by the target role draw design sketches skill
  • not needed by the target role graphics editor software knowledge
  • not needed by the target role human-computer interaction knowledge
  • not needed by the target role incremental development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role interact with users to gather requirements skill
  • not needed by the target role interactive media knowledge
  • not needed by the target role iterative development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role manage localisation skill
  • not needed by the target role manage online content skill
  • not needed by the target role natural language processing knowledge
  • not needed by the target role perform online data analysis skill
  • not needed by the target role quality standards knowledge
  • not needed by the target role screen reader knowledge
  • not needed by the target role software UI design patterns knowledge
  • not needed by the target role software design methodologies knowledge
  • not needed by the target role software interaction design knowledge
  • not needed by the target role test system accessibility for users with special needs skill
  • not needed by the target role translate requirements into visual design skill

2 further entries not listed here

16 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn object-oriented modelling required
  • still to learn system design required
  • still to learn tools for software configuration management required
  • still to learn unified modelling language required
  • still to learn systems development life-cycle required
  • optional, not held Ansible optional
  • optional, not held Apache Maven optional
  • optional, not held Jenkins (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visual C++ optional
  • optional, not held Puppet (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held SPARK optional
  • optional, not held STAF optional
  • optional, not held Salt (tools for software configuration management) optional
  • optional, not held WildFly optional
  • optional, not held systems theory optional
  • optional, not held security engineering optional
Index

Other moves recorded from user interface designer

Full index of moves from user interface designer

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a user interface designer become a software architect?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. A user interface designer already covers 53% of what a software architect is expected to do: 53 skills carry over, 7 of which the software architect role treats as required.

What skills does a user interface designer need to become a software architect?

12 required skills are missing, plus 24 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information and communication technologies (icts). The single most important is align software with system architectures.

How hard is the move from user interface designer to software architect?

Its learning distance is 59.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.