How to assess mechanical engineering skills

Mechanical engineers are the driving force behind product development. They design, create, and test mechanical products and systems ready for public or private use.

Their work often involves collaborating with developers, engineers, managers, testers, and designers to build a product that meets all the relevant expectations. This not only requires strong interpersonal skills, but also comprehensive technical knowledge.

Hiring a mechanical engineer with the right skills is essential in ensuring the efficiency, quality, and success of your organization’s output. But how do you identify the most skilled candidates during your recruitment process?

Using TestGorilla’s talent assessments will help you evaluate the necessary skills and traits required to be a successful mechanical engineer. Discover how to use our tests to hire the best candidate in this guide.

What’s a mechanical engineering skills assessment?

A mechanical engineering skills assessment is a collection of tests that evaluate the competencies required to be a successful mechanical engineer. As a recruiter, you can use these tests to source the best candidates for your open positions.

A combination of hard and soft skills is essential for mechanical engineer positions, which is why a typical mechanical engineering skills assessment will evaluate a range of abilities and traits. These could include:

• Computer design

• Mathematics

• CAD tools

• Industry knowledge

• Problem solving

• Communication

• Creativity

• Mechanical reasoning

• Attention to detail

While this list is far from exhaustive, it covers the key skills and traits that you should look for in mechanical engineer candidates. The best applicants for your open position will demonstrate keen abilities in the above skills, and using talent assessments is the easiest way to determine whether your candidates possess these skills.

Why are mechanical engineering skills important?

Mechanical engineers must be highly skilled to fulfill their job responsibilities. They are involved in the entire product development cycle, from conceptualization to prototyping to production, requiring significant competencies to meet expectations. 

As a recruiter, you must find candidates who possess the relevant mechanical engineering skills to be successful in their new position. Skilled mechanical engineers are more likely to boost the efficiency, reputation, and profitability of your company.

Below, we examine three key reasons why mechanical engineering skills are so important for your organization:

1. Ensure product functionality

Strong math and computer design skills mean mechanical engineers can create functional products that fulfill client briefs. A solid understanding of industry materials and processes will ensure the right steps are taken to produce an effective end result.

With competencies in calculus, statistics, and CAD tools, mechanical engineers can design effective systems that remain functional and compliant with legal regulations. They can make the right calculations to avoid going over budget and use their industry knowledge to source robust materials that improve the overall quality and functionality of the product.

2. Prevent mishaps and design flaws

Problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, and creative skills all help mechanical engineers avoid errors in their work and identify mistakes or potential areas of improvement. This enhances the overall quality of your company’s end product or system, as there will ultimately be fewer design flaws.

These skills also lessen the time taken for troubleshooting. Miscalculations and ill considerations often create mishaps during the design process, but effective problem-solving skills can help mechanical engineers spot issues before they happen and resolve errors quickly and efficiently.

3. Create workplace cohesion and efficiency

Alongside hard skills, interpersonal abilities also play a vital role in a mechanical engineer’s job. Communication and active listening skills are important, as they ensure workplace cohesion and efficiency. Mechanical engineers who give clear and concise instructions will produce better results first-time, enhancing the efficiency of the product development process.

Effective communication also includes active listening and emotional intelligence. With these traits, mechanical engineers can foster positive relationships with their colleagues and team members. Since frequent collaboration is required as part of a mechanical engineer’s role, this will enhance the cohesion and productivity of the team.

Which skills and traits are important for mechanical engineers?

A mechanical engineer’s job requires a comprehensive blend of soft and hard skills. They frequently collaborate with other engineers across various stages of product development, meaning strong interpersonal skills like communication are essential. Additionally, the specialist nature of the work requires a significant understanding of technical concepts and practical skills, which are most often gained through education.

As a recruiter, you should be searching for candidates who possess a combination of these hard and soft skills. Strong communicative and creative abilities, for instance, are highly desirable, as is a solid understanding of computer design and mathematics.

Here are the key skills and traits that you should look out for when hiring a mechanical engineer:

Communication

Mechanical engineering is never a solo venture. The profession involves collaborating with other engineers, designers, testers, and leaders at various stages of the product development cycle to create an effective end result and meet all the necessary requirements.

Efficient communication skills are essential to fulfill briefs, satisfy clients, and avoid misunderstandings that could lead to potential design flaws. Through effective verbal and written communication, mechanical engineers can relay the right instructions and convey any doubts or queries clearly and efficiently.

Strong communication skills also accelerate business processes. Relaying clear and concise information improves the efficiency of team members and ensures tasks are done correctly the first time around. This reduces delays and enhances the quality of the work.

Mathematics

Mechanical engineers need a strong grasp of math and mathematical concepts to succeed in their responsibilities. Their day-to-day duties typically involve a lot of calculations, such as in design specifications or budgeting, so competent math abilities are essential.

Math skills are usually learned throughout a mechanical engineer’s education. However, you cannot take this for granted when hiring, so it’s a good idea to test your candidates' basic math skills before you invite them for an interview.

Candidates with strong math skills make the best mechanical engineers since this knowledge allows them to make correct calculations and spot errors in their colleagues’ calculations. This will ensure your company’s end products and systems operate functionally and effectively.

Computer design

Since they frequently work with CAD programs, mechanical engineers need computer design skills. They typically use CAD (computer-aided design) software to imagine and construct mechanical products and systems, which forms a key part of the initial product development process.

Mechanical engineers must be familiar with CAD programs like SolidWorks 3D and AutoCAD to ensure they can create blueprints that fulfill client briefs and expectations. Candidates who lack these competencies will require extra training, so it’s best to evaluate your applicants’ knowledge before you hire them to avoid a more expensive onboarding process.

Attention to detail

Attention to detail is vital for mechanical engineers. They will typically work with various projects and materials to create functional and effective products, putting each through rigorous tests to avoid potential mishaps. Whenever issues arise, mechanical engineers must be able to identify the errors using a keen eye for detail.

Strong attention to detail also helps with quality assurance. Mechanical engineers are often involved in the end stages of production, which includes testing and touch-ups, so they need a keen eye to ensure the finished product is of high quality and complies with all the relevant regulations.

Problem solving

Mechanical engineers must also possess strong problem-solving skills. They typically use these abilities alongside a keen eye for detail to identify and fix issues in their projects. This could involve finding a more robust material to strengthen an exterior covering, for instance, or restructuring the wiring of a device to ensure complete functionality.

A mechanical engineer frequently recognizes problems and proposes relevant solutions. As a result, competent problem-solving skills are essential in fulfilling their expected duties. From identifying errors during product testing to auditing existing products for potential improvements, a mechanical engineer frequently uses problem-solving skills.

Creativity

Your mechanical engineering candidates should demonstrate a significant creative flair during the hiring process. Mechanical engineers are involved in designing products and mechanical systems that utilize modern software and components. Since technology constantly evolves, mechanical engineers must be creative to adapt to new concepts.

Creativity also helps during the troubleshooting process. A creative mindset works alongside problem-solving and attention-to-detail skills to help mechanical engineers find alternative solutions for unexpected setbacks. As such, creative skills are needed to ensure the end product or mechanism is of high quality.

Skills and traits tests

As a recruiter, you may feel that traditional resume-based hiring has its flaws. Particularly with technical jobs like mechanical engineers, judging candidates by resumes and interviews alone will not validate the skills your applicants claim to possess.

Instead, you should use skills and traits tests to evaluate the abilities of your candidates before you hire them. This way, you can be sure you’re hiring top talent for your company. Here are five skills tests you can use to recruit qualified mechanical engineers:

Mechanical reasoning

You can use our Mechanical reasoning test to recruit skilled mechanical engineers. This test evaluates the fundamentals of mechanics and how your candidates can apply logic and key principles to solve problems.

Core concepts that are covered include force and movement, velocity, and mechanical contraptions like pulleys, gears, and wheels. High-performing candidates will show an adept understanding of key mechanical and mathematical principles, and apply their knowledge to find appropriate solutions to the problems posed.

Intermediate math

Mechanical engineers need a solid understanding of math, including mathematical principles, calculus, and statistics. Almost all your candidates will possess basic math skills, but the best talent will demonstrate a more in-depth knowledge of mathematics.

This is why our Intermediate math test is an ideal skills test you can use to evaluate your candidates’ math skills. The test goes beyond simple addition and multiplication, testing applicants’ abilities in more advanced concepts like fractions, decimals, ratios, percentages, and time estimates.

Spatial reasoning

Spatial reasoning is a relatively niche skill to have, but it’s key to being a successful mechanical engineer. This is because mechanical engineers design and develop products using virtual software, manipulating shapes and analyzing space through digital tools.

Our Spatial reasoning test assesses candidates on their abilities to map, manipulate, and analyze two- and three-dimensional objects. Participants are tested on various skills, including mental rotation, mental folding, spatial working memory, and spatial visualization.

This test is ideal for hiring mechanical engineers, but can also be used to recruit for any STEM-related job positions. The concepts included are fairly advanced, so it may not be suitable for entry-level or junior mechanical engineer positions.

Structural engineering

Structural engineering as a discipline overlaps considerably with mechanical engineering. As such, skilled mechanical engineers will have a significant understanding of structures and structural principles. This helps them in product design, choosing materials, and budgeting.

You can test your candidates’ structural engineering skills using our Structural engineering test. It covers a broad range of relevant abilities and knowledge, including design of structural elements, stability and dynamics, structural analysis, construction techniques, and site considerations.

SolidWorks 3D CAD

One of the key skills mechanical engineers need is a solid understanding of CAD tools and computer design software. SolidWorks 3D is one of the most popular CAD tools that mechanical engineers use, so the best candidates will likely have strong abilities with the software.

Use our SolidWorks 3D CAD test to source candidates with considerable knowledge in this CAD tool. This test is ideal if your organization frequently uses this software to design products, run tests, and develop simulations.

The SolidWorks 3D CAD test evaluates applicants on numerous skills, including part modeling, design for manufacturing, assembly modeling, and simulations and other advanced features. Your candidates should be able to demonstrate practical applications of SolidWorks 3D and use their knowledge to solve problems and answer questions.

Mechanical engineering skills assessment FAQs

Want further insight into how to assess mechanical engineering skills? Check out these answers to frequently asked questions to find more information.

What skills do mechanical engineers need?

Mechanical engineers need a variety of technical knowledge and interpersonal skills to succeed in their roles. Strong communication and active listening skills are required to work efficiently and fulfill client briefs, while specialist skills like computer design and mathematics are needed to produce high-quality work.

What are the hard skills of mechanical engineers?

Alongside soft skills like communication and problem solving, mechanical engineers need multiple hard skills. Computer design abilities and familiarity with CAD programs like SolidWorks 3D and AutoCAD are essential in the product design stages. Additionally, math skills like calculus and statistics will help a mechanical engineer produce error-free work.

How do you recruit great mechanical engineers?

To hire the best mechanical engineers for your company, you must validate your candidates’ skills before you offer anyone a position. You can do this by using talent assessments, like the ones from TestGorilla, in your recruitment process prior to the interview stage. This way, you can ensure all your interviewees are worth your time.

How TestGorilla can help you find skilled mechanical engineers

Recruiting a mechanical engineer can be difficult, particularly if you don’t know the field yourself. The responsibility involved in a mechanical engineer role means that the onus is on you to source skilled and talented individuals for your organization. This means validating your candidates’ skills before you hire them.

With TestGorilla’s talent assessments, you can ensure you hire the right person for the job. Here’s how our hiring method can help your recruitment process:

• Science-backed tests. Our tests are designed by relevant subject matter experts and supported by extensive research. They’re then peer-reviewed by other subject matter experts for validation.

• Bias-free recruitment. Our tests eliminate unconscious bias in your hiring process, as you’ll be presented with an objective list of the top-performing candidates, regardless of age, race, or gender.

• Speedy hiring. With our quick 10-minute tests, you can easily identify the candidates worth interviewing and avoid wasting time speaking to underqualified applicants.

After you’ve run the tests, you can invite the top-performing candidates for interviews. There, you can use our mechanical engineer interview questions to make sure your applicants expand on their abilities and divulge their experience. 

Hire top mechanical engineers with TestGorilla

If you’re looking to recruit the best mechanical engineers for your company, look no further than TestGorilla. Our talent assessments ensure a bias-free, science-backed approach to recruitment, meaning you can reduce your time-to-hire and improve the quality and retention of your first-time hire.

By evaluating your candidates’ hard and soft skills with our talent assessments, you can make sure you hire the right person for the job. Start your free TestGorilla plan today to revolutionize your recruitment!