Skills Needed for a Career in Robotics (2024)

Not many people are aware of this, but robots play an important role in the day-to-day operations of various industries worldwide, including construction, retail, agriculture and healthcare. It is for this reason that roboticists are in great demand these days. As revealed by Indeed, the average salary of a robotics engineer can be up to $100,000 a year!

Aside from being a robotics engineer, there are several other roles that you can take up when working in the robotics industry. But regardless of which role you have chosen to apply for, you must have the right skills to achieve a career in robotics. Here are the skills that anyone should have when working in the robotics industry.

1. Problem Solving Skills

Knowing how to design and build a functioning technical system is important in robotics, but it's also important to be able to figure out why the system is not working properly. If it is a mechanical issue, you should be able to apply the best practices to repair or solve the problem. But if the problem relates to the software, then you should know how to detect any bugs from in code, which requires testing and the use of logic.

Problem-solving is a skill that’s not only useful in robotics. In fact, this is highly sought after by employers in a wide range of industries since they rely on their employees to identify problems and to resolve them. Sometimes, it is not immediately clear what the issue is, but you should be able to apply your problem-solving skills to assess the situation and come up with a suitable solution as quickly as possible.

Companies involved in robotics prefer to hire people with good problem-solving skills. These are people who can carefully investigate the problem and identify potential solutions to remedy the situation. They are the best employees to hire in complex industries like robotics since they can be relied upon to find effective solutions to the complicated problems that the industry must deal with every single day.

2. Electric Soldering Skills

Robotics is an interdisciplinary field that has a varied area of study - mechanical, industrial, computer science, and electrical engineering. When working in the electrical area of robotics, soldering is an important skill that you need to have. This basically refers to the process of connecting metals through a fusion of alloys in a low melting point.

In robotics, you might be required to work with a soldering robot that can perform a designated task through a custom program. Therefore, you must be familiar with the soldering process. Soldering is also used to attach components into the circuit, which is why it's an important skill to master.

Electronic devices used in robotics are often made of separate and distinct components that include resistors, capacitors, transistors, and LEDs. Each of these components performs an essential function. By joining them together using the electric soldering method, you will be able to build different types of electronic devices, including computers, gaming devices, and televisions.

3. Critical Thinking

To think critically means using rationality in deciding what to do in certain situations. People who can engage in critical thinking are independent, reflective, and competent. When you practise critical thinking in the workplace, you are logically connecting ideas, evaluating arguments, and looking for errors and inconsistencies in your work and that of others.

To be able to think critically is an important skill for robotics professionals. This skill is very useful for solving all sorts of problems, such as deciding whether to use an existing component in a new manner or coming up with a brand-new component altogether. Basically, critical thinking is the ability to think rationally and understand the logical connection between ideas.

Being a good roboticist means you should be able to continually make engineering-related decisions. This could include deciding what method to use to program the robot or how many fingers to give the robot. Working in robotics will require you to face so many choices every single day, but you should be in a better position to weigh certain issues and choose the best solutions. Your critical thinking skills will give you the ability to use logic and reasoning in weighing the pros and cons of every solution.

4. Computer and Software Skills

As mentioned, robotics is an interdisciplinary field. You need to possess various skills if you are interested to work in this industry, including computer and software skills. Depending on the role that you will take up, you may need to perform computer programming, whether you are working on low-level control systems or as a computer scientist that designs high-level cognitive systems. As a roboticist, you will be involved in every state of the programming abstraction, but you will mostly be dealing with hardware and electronics.

Some robotic engineers may also need to possess knowledge in Computer-aided design (CAD). These are engineers who are involved in designing and improving the blueprints of robotic systems with the use of innovative 3D modelling programs, such as Blender, AutoCAD, Inventor, and SolidWorks to come up with plans and schematics. Depending on the area they are assigned, a robotics engineer may need to develop software and processes that will dictate the functionality of the robotic systems. Thus, the knowledge and skills in computer and software are a must in terms of a smooth application process through the robotics engineering jobs market.

5. Decision Making Skills

A good roboticist should be able to continually make engineering decisions. For instance, you should be able to decide the right method to program your robot or the right sensors to use. Remember that when working in the robotics industry, you will be faced with so many choices and yet there is almost no correct answer. But given your wide knowledge base, you should be in a better position to solve these issues compared to other engineers in a more specialized field.

Judgment and decision-making and problem-solving skills are both essential when working for a career in robotics. Having analytical thinking skills will help you to evaluate issues from various perspectives. Sometimes, you may need to use logic and reasoning in weighing the strengths and weaknesses of every solution. This is where critical thinking comes in.