Whether you’re trying to land your first electrical designer position or want to take your career to the next level, having the right hard skills is a must. Those critical capabilities ensure you can handle the demands of the role and meet or exceed productivity standards.
While every job may have slightly different requirements, certain hard skills are broadly considered must-haves by essentially every company hiring professionals for electrical designer positions. If you want to make sure that you have what they want to find, here are the hard skills you need to hone.
The Hard Skills You Need to Become an Electrical Designer
Having the right hard skills – or technical capabilities – is crucial if you’re going to land a job as an electrical designer. Often, the ones you need to focus on are those that employers specifically seek out. By concentrating in those areas, you develop an in-demand skill set that aligns closely with your target role.
Overall, the following hard skills are widely sought by companies hiring electrical designers:
- Electrical Design
- AutoCAD
- Electricity
- Schematics
- Computer-Aided Design
- Revit
- Electrical Engineering
- Wiring
- NEC Electrical Codes
- Drafting
By honing the capabilities above, you can position yourself as an ideal candidate for an electrical design role. However, other hard skills can also be valuable, especially when supplementing a skillset featuring the capabilities above.
For example, cable and MicroStation are commonly included in job descriptions, making them potentially wise additions to your resume once you have everything above. The same goes for estimating, blueprint reading, voltage, motor control, and mechanical design. Circuit knowledge and math skills can also take your resume to the next level.
Having experience with testing is also beneficial. It shows that you aren’t just familiar with creating designs but also ensuring they work properly. You’ll understand how to identify and troubleshoot issues, and that can make a big difference when you’re trying to land a desirable opportunity.
How to Get Essential Hard Skills If You Don’t Have Them
If you’re hoping to launch a career as an electrical designer, the first step is usually earning a college degree. Either an Associate’s or Bachelor’s in electrical engineering gives you a solid foundation, ensuring you have the right technical capabilities to handle an entry-level role.
However, you could also go in a different direction. For example, an apprenticeship is an excellent option for gaining relevant experience while also earning an income. Similarly, finding an employer that’s willing to train in some of the skill areas above could put you on the path toward an exciting career in electrical design.
Ultimately, gaining the hard skills above is critical if you want to become an electrical designer. If you’d like to learn more about what it takes to secure a career-boosting job in an exciting field like electrical design, the experienced team at Selectek can help. Contact us to speak with one of our knowledgeable recruiters today and see how our job search expertise can benefit you.
