Table 1Transition record

manufacturing engineertoaerospace engineer

A manufacturing engineer already meets 47% of what the aerospace engineer role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.

From manufacturing engineer

47%

Overlap1

To aerospace engineer

18 Skills carried over

8 Required, not held

57 Difficulty2

Career overlap Partial match

47%

Learning distance Substantial retraining

57/ 100

Easy adjacentmoderatesubstantialcareer change Hard

1 Share of the aerospace engineer role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the manufacturing engineer 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

Why this move works

A aerospace engineer role treats 11 of its required skills as things a manufacturing engineer already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

adjust engineering designs
approve engineering design
assess financial viability
engineering principles
engineering processes
industrial engineering

What stands in the way is 8 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 18 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A aerospace engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a manufacturing engineer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area

already held apply advanced manufacturing management skills
already held industrial engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
already held draft design specifications communication, collaboration and creativity
already held production processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
already held design principles arts and humanities
already held assess financial viability information skills

All 18 carried skills, including the 11 the aerospace engineer role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 29 missing skills fall into 11 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.

Skill to acquire Tier

01 engineering, manufacturing and construction 3 required, 7 supplementary

required, not held aerospace engineering required
required, not held aircraft mechanics required
required, not held safety engineering required

optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
optional, not held aerodynamics optional
optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
optional, not held material mechanics optional
optional, not held state estimation optional

02 communication, collaboration and creativity 1 required, 2 supplementary

required, not held troubleshoot required

optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
optional, not held design prototypes optional

03 information skills 1 required, 2 supplementary

required, not held execute feasibility study required

optional, not held oversee assembly operations optional
optional, not held record test data optional

04 assisting and caring 1 required

required, not held ensure aircraft compliance with regulation required

05 business, administration and law 1 required

required, not held quality standards required

06 information and communication technologies (icts) 1 required

required, not held computer simulation required

5 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a aerospace engineer 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 18 skills that carry over

Skill Type

already held adjust engineering designs skill
already held approve engineering design skill
already held assess financial viability skill
already held engineering principles knowledge
already held engineering processes knowledge
already held industrial engineering knowledge
already held manufacturing processes knowledge
already held perform scientific research skill
already held production processes knowledge
already held technical drawings knowledge
already held use technical drawing software skill
already held CAE software knowledge
already held analyse production processes for improvement skill
already held apply advanced manufacturing skill
already held design principles knowledge
already held draft design specifications skill
already held use CAD software skill
already held use CAM software skill

The 5 learning areas not shown above

Skill to acquire Tier

07 management skills 4 supplementary

optional, not held plan test flights optional
optional, not held control production optional
optional, not held develop test procedures optional
optional, not held manage product testing optional

08 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 2 supplementary

optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
optional, not held mathematical modelling optional

09 services 2 supplementary

optional, not held defense system optional
optional, not held stealth technology optional

10 constructing 1 supplementary

optional, not held conduct performance tests optional

11 handling and moving 1 supplementary

optional, not held build a product's physical model optional

21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required

Skill to acquire Tier

optional, not held defense system optional
optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
optional, not held plan test flights optional
optional, not held stealth technology optional
optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
optional, not held aerodynamics optional
optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
optional, not held control production optional
optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
optional, not held design prototypes optional
optional, not held develop test procedures optional
optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
optional, not held manage product testing optional
optional, not held material mechanics optional
optional, not held mathematical modelling optional
optional, not held oversee assembly operations optional
optional, not held record test data optional
optional, not held state estimation optional

23 held skills the aerospace engineer role does not ask for

Skill Type

not needed by the target role advise on efficiency improvements skill
not needed by the target role advise on manufacturing problems skill
not needed by the target role assess the life cycle of resources skill
not needed by the target role circular economy knowledge
not needed by the target role consumer protection knowledge
not needed by the target role continuous improvement philosophies knowledge
not needed by the target role create a work atmosphere of continuous improvement skill
not needed by the target role ensure equipment availability skill
not needed by the target role ensure health and safety in manufacturing skill
not needed by the target role ensure material compliance skill
not needed by the target role human-robot collaboration knowledge
not needed by the target role industrial research and development knowledge
not needed by the target role integrate new products in manufacturing skill
not needed by the target role keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes skill
not needed by the target role liaise with engineers skill
not needed by the target role maintain financial records skill
not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
not needed by the target role monitor plant production skill
not needed by the target role production engineering knowledge
not needed by the target role provide improvement strategies skill
not needed by the target role recommend product improvements skill
not needed by the target role recruit employees skill
not needed by the target role reverse engineering knowledge

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 acquire Tier

required, not held aerospace engineering required
required, not held aircraft mechanics required
required, not held computer simulation required
required, not held quality standards required
required, not held safety engineering required
optional, not held defense system optional
optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
optional, not held stealth technology optional
optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
optional, not held aerodynamics optional
optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
optional, not held material mechanics optional
optional, not held mathematical modelling optional
optional, not held state estimation optional

Index

Other moves recorded from manufacturing engineer

Full index of moves from manufacturing engineer

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.