50 BEST JOBS FOR YOUR PERSONALITY

50
50
Farr
Shatkin
$16.95 (Higher in Canada)
Careers/Reference
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Research has proven that matching your personality to a career
brings work satisfaction and success. In this book, you discover your
personality type and the 50 best jobs that relate to it. This eye-
opening approach to careers pinpoints jobs that you are likely to
enjoy or be good at, that offer work environments that suit you, and
that include co-workers with your same personality type.
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Take a look at Part I for information about person-
ality types and how they relate to your career.
Complete a short assessment to find your person-
ality type in Part II. Browse the 140+ best jobs
lists in Part III to find the jobs in your personality
type that interest you most. Then look up their
descriptions in Part IV for details on earnings,
growth, job tasks, education and training require-
ments, and much more. Simple.
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Want to find a
job that fits you well? Researching and planning

your future education and career options?
Interested in exploring better-paying or more-
interesting jobs? This book is ideal for people
making important career plans and decisions, as
well as for the educators, counselors, and others
advising them.
AAbboouutt tt
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has written more
than 20 books on career and job search topics
and is one of the most respected and popular
authors in the field.
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is a consult-
ant with more than 20 years in the career infor-
mation field and the author of several career
books.
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The authors used the most up-to-date facts from government sources
throughout this volume. Besides the best jobs lists, the book includes
information-packed descriptions of 300 occupations that met the best
jobs criteria. Among this book’s many helpful facts:
)
The best Enterprising job overall in terms of pay, growth, and annu-

al openings is Sales Managers. It has annual earnings of $80,470,
a growth rate of 30.5% through 2012, and 54,000 annual open-
ings.
)
The fastest-growing Realistic job is Heating and Air Conditioning
Mechanics—its growth rate through 2012 is 31.8%.
)
The best Artistic job requiring a bachelor’s degree is Graphic
Designers, with average annual earnings of $36,630, a growth
rate of 21.9% through 2012, and 29,000 annual openings.
8902 Otis Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46216-1033
1-800-648-JIST
Fax 1-800-JIST-FAX
www.jist.com
™
Best Jobs
Part of JIST’s Best Jobs™ Series
for Your
Personality
Best Jobs
for Your
50
300 Job Descriptions for 6 Personality Types
)
140+ Best Jobs Lists, Including Jobs with the
Best Pay, Fastest Growth, and Most Openings
)
Make the best career fit for your personality type:
Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising,

or Conventional.
)
“Best jobs” lists for each personality type, organized
by earnings, growth, education level, and much
more.
)
Job descriptions packed with details on
wages, growth, education required, tasks and
responsibilities, and skills needed.
Michael Farr and Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D.
Personality
Based on the latest
government data
Part of JIST’s Best Jobs™ Series
“An excellent resource that allows people to assess their dominant personalit
y type and identify jobs related to that type. The perfect
tool for helping people make career decisions and gather occupational information.
”
Dr. John J. Liptak, Career Assessment and Career Counseling, Radford University
“Written in a friendly, conversational t
one.… The per
sonality test is simple and easy to understand but thorough in finding the
strengths of the reader’s personality. The job listings and descriptions have a code t
o match the reader’s personality type eas
ily.”
Ellen Tevault, Librarian, Indiana State Library
Personality
Best Jobs
™
for

Your
cover2.qxp 3/18/2005 9:21 AM Page 1
Michael Farr and Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D.
Also in JIST’s Best Jobs Series
) Best Jobs for the 21st Century
) 300 Best Jobs Without a Four-Year Degree
) 200 Best Jobs for College Graduates
) 250 Best Jobs Through Apprenticeships
Foreword by Kristine Dobson, Director, Career Information Delivery System,
Utah Career Resource Network
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page i
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality
© 2005 by JIST Publishing
Published by JIST Works, an imprint of JIST Publishing, Inc.
8902 Otis Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46216-1033
Phone: 1-800-648-JIST Fax: 1-800-JIST-FAX E-mail: Web site: www.jist.com
Some Other Books by the Authors
Michael Farr
The Quick Resume & Cover Letter Book
Getting the Job You Really Want
The Very Quick Job Search
Laurence Shatkin
Quick Guide to College Majors and Careers
Quick Guide to Career Training in Two Years
or Less
Quantity discounts are available for JIST products. Please call 1-800-648-JIST or visit www.jist.com for a free catalog
and more information.
Visit www.jist.com for information on JIST, free job search information, book excerpts, and ordering information on our
many products. For free information on 14,000 job titles, visit www.careeroink.com.

Acquisitions Editor: Susan Pines Interior Layout: Carolyn J. Newland
Development Editor: Stephanie Koutek Proofreader: Jeanne Clark
Cover and Interior Designer: Aleata Howard Indexer: Kelly D. Henthorne
Printed in Canada
09 08 07 06 05 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Farr, J. Michael.
50 best jobs for your personality / Michael Farr and Laurence Shatkin.
p. cm. (JIST's best jobs series)
Includes index.
ISBN 1-59357-177-1 (alk. paper)
1. Vocational guidance Psychological aspects. 2. Career
development Psychological aspects. 3. Personality and occupation. 4.
Vocational interests. 5. Occupations Psychological aspects. I. Title:
Fifty best jobs for your personality. II. Shatkin, Laurence. III. Title. IV.
Series.
HF5381.15.F3618 2005
331.702 dc22
2005005153
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without
prior permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles or reviews. Making copies of any part of this book
for any purpose other than your own personal use is a violation of United States copyright laws. For permission requests, please contact the
Copyright Clearance Center at www.copyright.com or (978) 750-8400.
We have been careful to provide accurate information throughout this book, but it is possible that errors and omissions have been introduced.
Please consider this in making any career plans or other important decisions. Trust your own judgment above all else and in all things.
Trademarks: All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks, or registered trademarks of
their respective owners.
ISBN 1-59357-177-1
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page ii
This Is a Big Book, But It

Is Very Easy to Use
P
sychologists have long understood a principle that many of us consider
just common sense: that people have an aspect called personality that
makes them feel more comfortable in some situations than in others. People
who have a certain personality feel more capable of doing certain things and
dealing with certain problems; they also feel more accepted when they are
among people with personalities similar to their own. This is especially true
for one place where people spend a major portion of their time: at work.
People want to feel they fit in with the people and with the activities where
they work.
If personality is the key to this feeling of fitting in, then you need to consider
this question: What kind of personality do you have? Maybe you can come up
with a few ways to describe yourself, such as “sunny,” “energetic,” “conscien-
tious,” “loyal,” “outgoing,” “funny,” or “competitive.” But what do those
terms suggest for the kind of work you might enjoy and do well? What terms
might be more useful?
This book can help you think about your personality in terms that have
proven relevance to the world of work. You’ll learn about the personality
types that many psychologists and guidance practitioners use to describe peo-
ple and jobs. You’ll take a quick assessment to help you clarify your dominant
personality type. Then you’ll dig into a gold mine of facts about the jobs that
are the best fit for your personality type—and that are the best for other rea-
sons, such as their wages and job openings. The lists of “best jobs” will help
you zero in on promising careers, and the descriptive profiles of the jobs will
open your eyes to career choices that previously you may not have known
much about.
We all want to fit in somewhere. And there are probably several different
careers where each of us could fit in. But why not do it in a really good job?
That’s what this book can help you choose.

(continued)
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page iii
CCrreeddiittss aanndd AAcckknnoowwlleeddggmmeennttss::
While the authors created this book, it is based on the work of many others. The occupational information is based on
data obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Census Bureau. These sources provide the most authoritative occupational information
available. The job titles and their related descriptions are from the O*NET database, which was developed by researchers and developers under the
direction of the U.S. Department of Labor. They, in turn, were assisted by thousands of employers who provided details on the nature of work in the
many thousands of job samplings used in the database’s development. We used the most recent version of the O*NET database, release 7. We
appreciate and thank the staff of the U.S. Department of Labor for their efforts and expertise in providing such a rich source of data.
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
iv
(continued)
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page iv
Table of Contents
Summary of Major Sections
Introduction. A short overview to help you better
understand and use the book. Starts on page 1.
Part I: Overview of Personality and Career. Part I
is an overview of personality and of personality
types. This section also explores the relationship
between personality and career. Starts on page 11.
Part II: What’s Your Personality Type? Take an
Assessment. This part helps you discover your per-
sonality type with a short, easy-to-complete assess-
ment. Starts on page 17.
Part III: The Best Jobs Lists: Jobs for Each of the
Six Personality Types. The 140 lists in Part III
show you the best jobs in terms of high salaries, fast
growth, and plentiful job openings for each of the
six personality types. You can also see which jobs

are best when these factors are combined. Further
lists classify the jobs according to education and
training required and several other features, such as
jobs with the highest percentage of women and of
men and jobs with high rates of self-employment
and part-time workers. Although there are a lot of
lists, they are easy to understand because they have
clear titles and are organized into groupings of
related lists. Starts on page 27.
Part IV: Descriptions of the 50 Best Jobs for
Each Personality. This part provides a brief but
information-packed description of the 50 jobs
from each personality type that met our criteria for
high pay, fast growth, or many openings. Each
description contains information on earnings, pro-
jected growth, education and training required, job
duties, skills, related job titles, related knowledge
and courses, and many other details. The descrip-
tions are presented in alphabetical order within
each personality type. This structure makes it easy
to look up a job that you’ve identified in a list from
Part III and that you want to learn more about.
Starts on page 119.
Part V: Appendixes. Appendix A contains a list of
occupations in this book and their two-letter
Personality codes. Appendix B explains the various
skills listed in the job descriptions in Part IV.
Appendix C lists the GOE interest fields and work
groups, and Appendix D defines the related knowl-
edges and courses listed in the job descriptions in

Part IV. Starts on page 427.
Detailed Table of Contents
Part I: Overview of Personality and Career 11
Why Use Personality to Choose a Career? 11
Describing Personality Types 12
The RIASEC Personality Types 12
Other Assessments with RIASEC Output 16
Part II: What’s Your Personality Type?
Take an Assessment 17
Step 1: Respond to the Statements 18
Step 2: Score Your Responses 25
Step 3: Find Jobs That Suite Your
Personality Type 25
Part III: The Best Jobs Lists: Jobs for Each
of the Six Personality Types 27
Best Jobs Overall for Each Personality Type:
Jobs with the Highest Pay, Fastest Growth,
and Most Openings 28
The 50 Best Realistic Jobs 29
The 50 Best Investigative Jobs 30
The 50 Best Artistic Jobs 32
The 50 Best Social Jobs 34
The 50 Best Enterprising Jobs 35
The 50 Best Conventional Jobs 38
The 20 Best-Paying Realistic Jobs 40
The 20 Best-Paying Investigative Jobs 40
The 20 Best-Paying Artistic Jobs 41
The 20 Best-Paying Social Jobs 42
The 20 Best-Paying Enterprising Jobs 42
The 20 Best-Paying Conventional Jobs 43

The 20 Fastest-Growing Realistic Jobs 44
The 20 Fastest-Growing Investigative Jobs 45
The 20 Fastest-Growing Artistic Jobs 45
The 20 Fastest-Growing Social Jobs 46
The 20 Fastest-Growing Enterprising Jobs 47
The 20 Fastest-Growing Conventional Jobs 47
The 20 Realistic Jobs with the Most
Openings 49
The 20 Investigative Jobs with the Most
Openings 49
The 20 Artistic Jobs with the Most
Openings 50
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page v
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
Table of Contents______________________________________________________________________
vi
The 20 Social Jobs with the Most
Openings 51
The 20 Enterprising Jobs with the Most
Openings 51
The 20 Conventional Jobs with the Most
Openings 52
The Best Jobs for Each Personality Type
Sorted by Education or Training Required 53
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring Short-Term
On-the-Job Training 55
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring Moderate-
Term On-the-Job Training 55
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring Long-Term
On-the-Job Training 56

Best Realistic Jobs Requiring Work
Experience in a Related Occupation 56
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring Postsecondary
Vocational Training 56
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring an Associate’s
Degree 57
Best Realistic Jobs Requiring a Bachelor’s
Degree 57
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring an
Associate’s Degree 57
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring a
Bachelor’s Degree 57
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring Work
Experience Plus Degree 58
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring a Master’s
Degree 58
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring a
Doctoral Degree 59
Best Investigative Jobs Requiring a First
Professional Degree 59
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring Moderate-Term
On-the-Job Training 59
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring Long-Term
On-the-Job Training 60
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring Work
Experience in a Related Occupation 60
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring Postsecondary
Vocational Training 60
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring a Bachelor’s
Degree 60

Best Artistic Jobs Requiring Work
Experience Plus Degree 61
Best Artistic Jobs Requiring a Master’s
Degree 61
Best Social Jobs Requiring Short-Term
On-the-Job Training 62
Best Social Jobs Requiring Moderate-Term
On-the-Job Training 62
Best Social Jobs Requiring Long-Term
On-the-Job Training 62
Best Social Jobs Requiring Work Experience
in a Related Occupation 62
Best Social Jobs Requiring Postsecondary
Vocational Training 63
Best Social Jobs Requiring an Associate’s
Degree 63
Best Social Jobs Requiring a Bachelor’s
Degree 63
Best Social Jobs Requiring Work Experience
Plus Degree 64
Best Social Jobs Requiring a Master’s
Degree 64
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring Short-Term
On-the-Job Training 64
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring Moderate-
Term On-the-Job Training 65
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring Long-Term
On-the-Job Training 65
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring Work
Experience in a Related Occupation 65

Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring an
Associate’s Degree 66
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring a
Bachelor’s Degree 66
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring Work
Experience Plus Degree 67
Best Enterprising Jobs Requiring a First
Professional Degree 67
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring Short-
Term On-the-Job Training 67
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring Moderate-
Term On-the-Job Training 68
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring Long-
Term On-the-Job Training 69
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page vi
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring Work
Experience in a Related Occupation 69
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring
Postsecondary Vocational Training 69
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring an
Associate’s Degree 69
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring a
Bachelor’s Degree 70
Best Conventional Jobs Requiring Work
Experience Plus Degree 70
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a
High Percentage of Women and Men 70
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Women 71
Best Realistic Jobs Overall Employing

70 Percent or More Women 71
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Men 72
Best Realistic Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 73
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Women 75
Best Investigative Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Women 75
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Men 75
Best Investigative Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 76
Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Women 76
Best Artistic Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Women 77
Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Men 77
Best Artistic Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 77
Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Women 77
Best Social Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Women 78
Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Men 79
Best Social Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 79
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest

Percentage of Women 80
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Women 80
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Men 80
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 81
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Women 82
Best Conventional Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Women 83
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Men 83
Best Conventional Jobs Overall Employing
70 Percent or More Men 84
The Best Jobs for Each Personality Type
with a High Percentage of Workers
Age 16–24 84
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Workers Age 16–24 85
Best Realistic Jobs Overall Employing
10 Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 85
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 16–24 86
Best Investigative Jobs Overall Employing
10 Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 87
Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Workers Age 16–24 87
Best Artistic Jobs Overall Employing 10
Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 88

Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Workers Age 16–24 88
Best Social Jobs Overall Employing 10
Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 89
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 16–24 90
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall Employing
10 Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 90
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 16–24 90
Best Conventional Jobs Overall Employing
10 Percent or More Workers Age 16–24 91
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
________________________________________________________________________Table of Contents
vii
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page vii
The Best Jobs for Each Personality Type
with a High Percentage of Workers
Age 65 and Over 92
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Workers Age 65 and Over 93
Best Realistic Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 93
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 65 and Over 93
Best Investigative Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 94
Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage

of Workers Age 65 and Over 95
Best Artistic Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 96
Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Workers Age 65 and Over 96
Best Social Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 97
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 65 and Over 98
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 98
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Workers Age 65 and Over 99
Best Conventional Jobs Overall Employing
4 Percent or More Workers Age 65
and Over 99
The Best Jobs for Each Personality Type
with a High Percentage of Part-Time
Workers 100
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Part-Time Workers 100
Best Realistic Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 100
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Part-Time Workers 101
Best Investigative Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 101

Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Part-Time Workers 102
Best Artistic Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 104
Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Part-Time Workers 105
Best Social Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 106
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Part-Time Workers 107
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 108
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Part-Time Workers 108
Best Conventional Jobs Overall Employing
15 Percent or More Part-Time Workers 109
The Best Jobs for Each Personality Type
with a High Percentage of Self-Employed
Workers 110
Realistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Self-Employed Workers 110
Best Realistic Jobs Overall with 15 Percent
or More Self-Employed Workers 111
Investigative Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Self-Employed Workers 111
Best Investigative Jobs Overall with 15
Percent or More Self-Employed Workers 112
Artistic Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Self-Employed Workers 113
Best Artistic Jobs Overall with 15 Percent

or More Self-Employed Workers 114
Social Jobs with the Highest Percentage
of Self-Employed Workers 115
Best Social Jobs Overall with 15 Percent
or More Self-Employed Workers 115
Enterprising Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Self-Employed Workers 116
Best Enterprising Jobs Overall with 15
Percent or More Self-Employed Workers 116
Conventional Jobs with the Highest
Percentage of Self-Employed Workers 117
Best Conventional Jobs Overall with 15
Percent or More Self-Employed Workers 117
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
Table of Contents______________________________________________________________________
viii
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page viii
Part IV: Descriptions of the 50 Best Jobs
for Each Personality 119
Descriptions for all the jobs in this book are
included in this part in alphabetical order. The
titles are presented below, along with the page
numbers where each description begins. We
suggest that you use Part III to identify job
titles that interest you and then locate their
descriptions in Part IV.
Realistic Jobs 121
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight
Engineers 121
Automotive Master Mechanics 122

Automotive Specialty Technicians 123
Boat Builders and Shipwrights 124
Brattice Builders 125
Brazers 126
Brickmasons and Blockmasons 127
Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel
Engine Specialists 129
Calibration and Instrumentation
Technicians 130
Carpenter Assemblers and Repairers 131
Ceiling Tile Installers 132
Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers 133
Civil Engineers 134
Construction Carpenters 135
Correctional Officers and Jailers 136
Drywall Installers 137
Electrical Engineering Technicians 138
Electricians 139
Electronics Engineering Technicians 140
First-Line Supervisors and Manager/
Supervisors—Landscaping Workers 141
Forest Fire Fighters 142
Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention
Supervisors 143
Grader, Bulldozer, and Scraper Operators 144
Heating and Air Conditioning Mechanics 145
Highway Patrol Pilots 146
Maintenance and Repair Workers,
General 147
Municipal Fire Fighters 149

Municipal Fire Fighting and Prevention
Supervisors 150
Operating Engineers 151
Pipe Fitters 151
Pipelaying Fitters 153
Plumbers 153
Pressure Vessel Inspectors 155
Radiologic Technicians 155
Radiologic Technologists 156
Refractory Materials Repairers, Except
Brickmasons 157
Refrigeration Mechanics 159
Roofers 160
Rough Carpenters 161
Sheet Metal Workers 162
Ship Carpenters and Joiners 163
Solderers 164
Surgical Technologists 166
Technical Directors/Managers 166
Telecommunications Line Installers and
Repairers 167
Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers 169
Truck Drivers, Heavy 169
Welder-Fitters 170
Welders and Cutters 172
Welders, Production 173
Investigative Jobs 176
Agricultural Sciences Teachers,
Postsecondary 176
Anesthesiologists 177

Biochemists 178
Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary 179
Biophysicists 181
Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary 181
Chiropractors 183
Clinical Psychologists 184
Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis
Specialists 185
Computer Hardware Engineers 186
Computer Programmers 187
Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary 188
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
________________________________________________________________________Table of Contents
ix
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50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
Table of Contents______________________________________________________________________
x
Computer Security Specialists 189
Computer Software Engineers,
Applications 190
Computer Software Engineers, Systems
Software 191
Computer Support Specialists 192
Computer Systems Analysts 193
Database Administrators 194
Dentists, General 195
Economists 196
Educational Psychologists 197
Electrical Engineers 198

Electronics Engineers, Except Computer 199
Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary 200
Environmental Scientists and Specialists,
Including Health 202
Family and General Practitioners 203
Financial Analysts 204
Forestry and Conservation Science
Teachers, Postsecondary 205
Geologists 206
Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary 207
Internists, General 209
Market Research Analysts 210
Mathematical Science Teachers,
Postsecondary 211
Medical and Clinical Laboratory
Technologists 213
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists 214
Natural Sciences Managers 215
Network Systems and Data Communications
Analysts 216
Obstetricians and Gynecologists 217
Optometrists 218
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons 218
Orthodontists 219
Pediatricians, General 220
Pharmacists 220
Physician Assistants 222
Physics Teachers, Postsecondary 222
Prosthodontists 224
Psychiatrists 224

Respiratory Therapists 225
Surgeons 226
Veterinarians 227
Artistic Jobs 229
Actors 229
Advertising and Promotions Managers 230
Architects, Except Landscape and Naval 231
Art Directors 231
Art, Drama, and Music Teachers,
Postsecondary 232
Broadcast News Analysts 234
Camera Operators, Television, Video, and
Motion Picture 235
Caption Writers 236
Cartoonists 236
Choreographers 237
Commercial and Industrial Designers 237
Composers 238
Copy Writers 239
Costume Attendants 240
Creative Writers 241
Curators 241
Directors—Stage, Motion Pictures,
Television, and Radio 243
Editors 244
English Language and Literature Teachers,
Postsecondary 245
Exhibit Designers 246
Fashion Designers 247
Film and Video Editors 248

Floral Designers 249
Foreign Language and Literature Teachers,
Postsecondary 249
Graphic Designers 251
Interior Designers 252
Interpreters and Translators 253
Landscape Architects 254
Librarians 255
Makeup Artists, Theatrical and
Performance 256
Merchandise Displayers and Window
Trimmers 257
frontmatter.qxp 3/21/2005 7:30 AM Page x
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
________________________________________________________________________Table of Contents
xi
Models 258
Musuem Technicians and Conservators 259
Music Arrangers and Orchestrators 260
Music Directors 261
Musicians, Instrumental 262
Painters and Illustrators 262
Photographers, Scientific 263
Photographic Retouchers and Restorers 264
Poets and Lyricists 266
Producers 266
Professional Photographers 267
Radio and Television Announcers 268
Reporters and Correspondents 269
Sculptors 270

Set Designers 270
Singers 271
Sketch Artsits 272
Talent Directors 272
Technical Writers 273
Social Jobs 275
Anthropology and Archeology Teachers,
Postsecondary 275
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies
Teachers, Postsecondary 276
Child, Family, and School Social Workers 278
Counseling Psychologists 279
Dental Assistants 280
Dental Hygienists 280
Economics Teachers, Postsecondary 281
Education Administrators, Elementary
and Secondary School 282
Educational, Vocational, and School
Counselors 283
Elementary School Teachers, Except
Special Education 285
Emergency Medical Technicians and
Paramedics 286
Employment Interviewers, Private or
Public Employment Service 287
Fitness Trainers and Aerobics Instructors 289
Graduate Teaching Assistants 290
History Teachers, Postsecondary 291
Home Health Aides 293
Instructional Coordinators 293

Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special
Education 294
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational
Nurses 296
Medical and Public Health Social Workers 297
Medical Assistants 298
Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Social Workers 299
Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Attendants 299
Nursing Instructors and Teachers,
Postsecondary 300
Occupational Therapist Assistants 302
Occupational Therapists 303
Personal and Home Care Aides 304
Personal Financial Advisors 304
Physical Therapist Assistants 306
Physical Therapists 307
Police Patrol Officers 308
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary 309
Preschool Teachers, Except Special
Education 310
Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary 312
Radiation Therapists 313
Registered Nurses 314
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special
and Vocational Education 315
Security Guards 317
Self-Enrichment Education Teachers 318
Sheriffs and Deputy Sheriffs 320
Social and Community Service Managers 320

Social and Human Service Assistants 321
Sociology Teachers, Postsecondary 322
Special Education Teachers, Middle School 324
Special Education Teachers, Preschool,
Kindergarten, and Elementary School 325
Special Education Teachers, Secondary
School 327
Speech-Language Pathologists 329
Teacher Assistants 330
Training and Development Specialists 331
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Vocational Education Teachers,
Postsecondary 332
Enterprising Jobs 335
Administrative Services Managers 335
Agents and Business Managers of Artists,
Performers, and Athletes 335
Child Support, Missing Persons, and
Unemployment Insurance Fraud
Investigators 336
Compensation and Benefits Managers 337
Computer and Information Systems
Managers 338
Construction Managers 339
Criminal Investigators and Special Agents 340
Education Administrators, Postsecondary 341
Engineering Managers 342
Financial Managers, Branch or
Department 343
First-Line Supervisors and Manager/

Supervisors—Construction Trades
Workers 344
First-Line Supervisors and Manager/
Supervisors—Extractive Workers 345
First-Line Supervisors, Administrative
Support 346
First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Food
Preparation and Serving Workers 347
First-Line Supervisors/Managers of
Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers 348
First-Line Supervisors/Managers of
Non-Retail Sales Workers 349
First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Police
and Detectives 350
First-Line Supervisors/Managers of
Production and Operating Workers 351
Government Service Executives 352
Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge
and Coffee Shop 353
Human Resources Managers 354
Insurance Adjusters, Examiners, and
Investigators 355
Lawn Service Managers 356
Lawyers 357
Loan Officers 358
Management Analysts 359
Marketing Managers 360
Medical and Health Services Managers 361
Paralegals and Legal Assistants 362
Personnel Recruiters 363

Police Detectives 364
Private Sector Executives 365
Program Directors 366
Public Relations Specialists 367
Retail Salespersons 368
Sales Agents, Financial Services 368
Sales Agents, Securities and Commodities 369
Sales Engineers 370
Sales Managers 371
Sales Representatives, Agricultural 372
Sales Representatives, Chemical and
Pharmaceutical 373
Sales Representatives, Electrical/Electronic 373
Sales Representatives, Instruments 374
Sales Representatives, Mechanical
Equipment and Supplies 375
Sales Representatives, Medical 375
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and
Manufacturing, Except Technical and
Scientific Products 376
Storage and Distribution Managers 377
Training and Development Managers 378
Transportation Managers 379
Treasurers, Controllers, and Chief
Financial Officers 380
Conventional Jobs 382
Accountants 382
Actuaries 383
Adjustment Clerks 383
Air Traffic Controllers 384

Assessors 385
Audio and Video Equipment Technicians 386
Audio-Visual Collections Specialists 387
Auditors 388
Bill and Account Collectors 389
Billing, Cost, and Rate Clerks 390
50 Best Jobs for Your Personality © JIST Works
Table of Contents______________________________________________________________________
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Billing, Posting, and Calculating Machine
Opeators 391
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing
Clerks 392
Budget Analysts 393
Cargo and Freight Agents 394
Cartographers and Photogrammetrists 395
Cashiers 396
Claims Examiners, Property and Casualty
Insurance 397
Construction and Building Inspectors 398
Cost Estimators 399
Counter and Rental Clerks 400
Court Clerks 401
Credit Analysts 401
Customer Service Representatives, Utilities 402
Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and
Ambulance 403
Executive Secretaries and Administrative
Assistants 404

Freight Inspectors 405
Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks 405
Human Resources Assistants, Except
Payroll and Timekeeping 406
Immigration and Customs Inspectors 407
Insurance Claims Clerks 408
Insurance Policy Processing Clerks 408
Insurance Underwriters 409
Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan 410
Legal Secretaries 411
Library Assistants, Clerical 412
Licensing Examiners and Inspectors 413
Mapping Technicians 414
Marine Cargo Inspectors 415
Medical Records and Health Information
Technicians 416
Medical Secretaries 417
Office Clerks, General 418
Pharmacy Technicials 419
Police Identification and Records Officers 419
Postal Service Mail Carriers 420
Production, Planning, and Expediting
Clerks 421
Receptionists and Information Clerks 422
Reservation and Transportation Ticket
Agents 423
Statement Clerks 423
Tax Preparers 424
Travel Clerks 425
Part V: Appendixes 427

Appendix A: Occupations Ordered by
Two-Letter Personality Codes 429
Appendix B: Definitions of Skills 435
Appendix C: GOE Interest Fields and
Groups 437
Appendix D: Definitions of Related
Knowledge/Courses 451
Index 455
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Foreword
Whether you’re a counselor or a career explorer, this book is a must-have resource!
For more than 20 years, I have used assessment tools based on career guidance researcher
John Holland’s work when assisting students and adults. I have found that helping individu-
als identify their personality types according to six primary codes, also called the Holland
codes, is a valuable first step that establishes the counselor as an ally in the career exploration
process yet empowers individuals to move forward on their own with new information
about themselves.
If you are making decisions about your career, this book will not only guide you in identify-
ing your personality type; it will also help you to take that important next step. That is, you
will discover some key occupations that are likely to fit your individual personality type,
and—at the same time—you will learn about the education, outlook, and salary for occupa-
tions of interest. This book is uniquely organized to encourage you to consider a range of
information as you explore potential occupations.
The O*NET (Occupational Information Network, a database of career information created
by the U.S. Department of Labor) structure, from which the job descriptions in this book
were derived, and the in-depth descriptions of occupations that have grown out of it, are of
huge significance. The O*NET has provided career professionals and others with more easily

understood information about the world of work. It was thrilling to see Holland’s six per-
sonality types reflected in the O*NET occupational descriptions, as this validated the promi-
nence of the Holland codes in career counseling.
This book takes advantage of the vast amount of information in the O*NET database and
organizes it in a number of ways to advance the career exploration process. Though the focus
is on personality type, other important occupational information is presented in a clear and
user-friendly manner.
As a career counseling professional, I have experienced firsthand the gratification that comes
with helping individuals understand how their personal characteristics relate to occupational
choice. I have witnessed the effects, both in terms of job satisfaction and of productivity,
when there is a good match between an individual’s personality and an environment that
supports his/her personality traits. It’s an exciting process, one that will be furthered through
the use of this book.
Kristine Dobson
Director
Career Information Delivery System
Utah Career Resource Network
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1
Introduction
B
efore we get started finding the best jobs for your personality type, here are a few things
to know about the information in this book and how it is organized.
Where the Information Came From
The information we used in creating this book came mostly from databases created by the
U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Census Bureau:
) We started with the jobs included in the Department of Labor’s O*NET (Occupational
Information Network) database, which is now the primary source of detailed informa-
tion on occupations. The Labor Department updates the O*NET on a regular basis,

and we used the most recent one available—O*NET release 7.
) Because we wanted to include earnings, growth, number of openings, and other data
not in the O*NET, we cross-referenced information on earnings developed by the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the U.S. Census Bureau. This information on
earnings is the most reliable data we could obtain. For data on earnings, projected
growth, and number of openings, the BLS uses a slightly different set of job titles than
the O*NET uses. Data about part-time workers, age of workers, and the male-female
breakdown of workers was derived from the Census Bureau, which also uses a slightly
different set of job titles. By linking the BLS and Census data to the O*NET job titles
in this book, we tied information about growth, earnings, and characteristics of workers
to all the job titles in this book.
Of course, information in a database format can be boring and even confusing, so we did
many things to help make the data useful and present it to you in a form that is easy to
understand.
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How the Jobs in This Book Were
Selected
Here is the procedure we followed to select the 300 jobs (50 for each personality type) we
included in this book:
1. We began by creating our own database from the O*NET, the Census Bureau, and
other sources to include the information that we wanted. This database covered about
1,000 job titles, 900 of which were rated in terms of the six RIASEC personality types.
(“RIASEC” stands for “Realistic,” “Investigative,” “Artistic,” “Social,” “Enterprising,”
and “Conventional”—the six personality types developed by the researcher John
Holland. For more information about the RIASEC personality types, see “The RIASEC
Personality Types” in Part I.)
2. From these 900 occupations, we were able to create comprehensive lists of occupations
that primarily fit into one of the six personality types. The six lists ranged in size from
51 jobs for the Artistic type to 455 for the Realistic type.

3. Next, for each of the six comprehensive lists, we created three sub-lists that ranked the
jobs by annual earnings, projected growth, and number of job openings projected per
year. Each of these sub-lists was then sorted from highest to lowest, and the jobs were
assigned a number score. For example, the highest-paying job on the list of 455 Realistic
jobs received an earnings score of 455, and the lowest-paying Realistic job received an
earnings score of 1.
4. We then added the number scores from all three sub-lists—the earnings score, the
growth score, and the job-openings score—for each job and created a new list that pre-
sented all the jobs for that personality type in order from highest to lowest total score
for all three measures.
5. To emphasize jobs that tend to pay more, are likely to grow more rapidly, and have
more job openings, we selected the 50 job titles with the highest total scores from each
of the six final lists. These 300 jobs are the focus of this book.
For example, Accountants is the Conventional job with the highest combined score for earn-
ings, growth, and number of job openings, so Accountants is listed first in our “50 Best
Conventional Jobs” list even though it is not the best-paying Conventional job (which is Air
Traffic Controllers), the fastest-growing Conventional job (which is Medical Records and
Health Information Technicians), or the Conventional job with the most openings (which is
Cashiers).
Introduction __________________________________________________________________________
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Understand the Limits of the Data in
This Book
In this book we use the most reliable and up-to-date information available on earnings,
projected growth, number of openings, and other topics. The data came from the U.S.
Department of Labor source known as Occupation and Employment Statistics. As you look
at the data, keep in mind that the figures are estimates. They give you a general idea about
the number of workers employed, annual earnings, rate of job growth, and annual job

openings.
Understand that a problem with such data is that it describes an average. Just as there is no
precisely average person, there is no such thing as a statistically average example of a particu-
lar job. We say this because data, while helpful, can also be misleading.
Take, for example, the yearly earnings information in this book. This is highly reliable
data obtained from a very large U.S. working population sample by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. It tells us the average annual pay received as of May 2003 by people in various
job titles (actually, it is the median annual pay, which means that half earned more and
half less).
This sounds great, except that half of all people in that occupation earned less than that
amount. For example, people who are new to the occupation or with only a few years of
work experience often earn much less than the average amount. People who live in rural
areas or who work for smaller employers typically earn less than those who do similar work
in cities (where the cost of living is higher) or for bigger employers. People in certain areas
of the country earn less than those in others. Other factors also influence how much you
are likely to earn in a given job in your area. For example, Lawn Service Managers (an
Enterprising job) have median earnings of $33,770, but those in cold climate areas would
work only part of the year.
Also keep in mind that the figures for job growth and number of openings are projections
by labor economists—their best guesses about what we can expect between now and 2012.
They are not guarantees. A major economic downturn, war, or technological breakthrough
could change the actual outcome.
Finally, because different government agencies classify jobs in slightly different ways, some-
times we had to treat two jobs as if they were identical in terms of earnings, growth, open-
ings, or some other topic. For example, in this book we treat Accountants and Auditors as
two different jobs because the O*NET database provides separate descriptions for them.
However, information about their earnings is available only for the combined occupation
called “Accountants and Auditors.” As a result, when you look at the list called “The 20
Best-Paying Conventional Jobs,” you will find them listed side by side with the exact same
earnings.

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So, in reviewing the information in this book, please understand the limitations of data. You
need to use common sense in career decision making as in most other things in life. We
hope that, using that approach, you find the information helpful and interesting.
How This Book Is Organized
The information in this book moves from the general to the highly specific. It starts by
explaining how personality relates to career choice and presents a widely used model for
making that connection. An assessment helps you focus on your dominant personality type
(or types), and then you can consult a wealth of lists that itemize the best jobs for your per-
sonality type. These lists let you look at the jobs from several different perspectives—for
example, which pay the best, which employ the most young people, and which require an
associate’s degree for entry. Finally, you can get highly detailed information about any of
these career choices in the fact-packed job descriptions that make up the last part of the
book.
Part I: Overview of Personality and Career
Part I is an overview of how personality relates to careers—the basic theory, plus the six per-
sonality types that were originally described by John Holland and have since become the
basis of many guidance resources. This section may clear up some misunderstandings you
have about what personality means in the context of career choice, and it will help you
understand a useful way of looking at yourself and the world of work.
Part II: What’s Your Personality Type?
Take an Assessment
You probably are not reading this book simply to educate yourself about career development
theory. Rather, the odds are that you have a more practical goal: making a career choice. To
help you, we’ve included a paper-and-pencil assessment that can help you clarify your domi-
nant personality type or types. The Personality Type Inventory usually takes about 20 to 30
minutes to complete, but there is no time limit, nor are there any right or wrong answers.

After taking the Personality Type Inventory, you can use what you’ve learned about your per-
sonality type to identify a job that suits you well. This book makes that task easy because all
of the information about jobs is grouped by the dominant personality type of the jobs. That
means you don’t have to waste time exploring jobs that are unlikely to be a good match for
your personality. Also, because this book focuses on the 50 most rewarding jobs for each
personality type, you don’t have to complicate your search by considering jobs with low
earnings or highly limited odds of being employed.
Introduction __________________________________________________________________________
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Part III: The Best Jobs Lists: Jobs for Each of
the Six Personality Types
For many people, the 141 lists in Part III are the most interesting section of the book. Here
you can see which jobs for each personality type are best in terms of high salaries, fast
growth, and plentiful job openings and best when these three factors are combined. Other
lists break out the best of each type according to the level of education or training required
and several other features of the jobs and the people who hold them. Look in the Table of
Contents for a complete list of lists. Although there are a lot of lists, they are not difficult to
understand because they have clear titles and are organized into groupings of related lists.
People who prefer to think about careers in terms of economic rewards will want to browse
the lists that show the best jobs in terms of earnings, growth, and openings. On the other
hand, some people think first in terms of opportunities for young people or representation
of women, and these people will find other useful lists that reflect these interests.
We suggest that you use the lists that make the most sense for you. Following are the names
of each group of lists along with short comments on each group. You will find additional
information in a brief introduction provided at the beginning of each group of lists in
Part III.
Best Jobs Overall for Each Personality Type: Jobs with the
Highest Pay, Fastest Growth, and Most Openings

This group has four sets of six lists, and they are the ones that most people want to see first.
The first set of lists presents, for each personality type, all 50 jobs that are included in this
book in order of their total scores for earnings, growth, and number of job openings. These
jobs are used in the more specialized lists that follow and in the descriptions in Part IV.
Three more sets of lists in this group present, for each personality type, specialized lists of
jobs extracted from the best 50 overall: the 20 best-paying, the 20 fastest-growing, and the
20 with the most openings.
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type Sorted by Education or
Training Required
When considering a career choice, many people put a lot of emphasis on how long it takes
to prepare for the job and what kind of preparation is appropriate—education, training, or
work experience. Just as it’s important to choose a job that suits your personality, it can be
helpful to choose a learning style that suits your preferences and abilities. Your financial cir-
cumstances also may shape your plans for career preparation because higher education can
be expensive (even with financial aid) and the years you spend in college will postpone the
years in which you will earn a salary. This set of lists sorts the jobs linked to each personality
type into groups according to what preparation method is the fastest route to career entry.
Within each group, the jobs are sorted by their overall ranking for earnings, growth, and
openings.
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Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a High Percentage of
Women and Men
This group includes 24 lists in all: For each personality type, you can see the jobs that have
the highest percentage of workers who are women and men. That would make up 12 lists,
but each of these lists is also re-sorted to show these predominantly male or predominantly
female jobs ordered by their overall ranking for earnings, growth, and openings.
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a High Percentage of

Workers Age 16–24
This section provides lists of the jobs for each personality type that have the highest percent-
age of workers age 16–24. Like the lists in the previous section, each list is then re-sorted to
present these youthful jobs in order of their total combined scores for earnings, growth, and
number of openings. Thus there is a total of 12 lists in this section.
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a High Percentage of
Workers Age 65 and Over
The 12 lists in this section were assembled in the same manner as the lists in the previous
section, except that these jobs have a high percentage of workers age 65 and over.
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a High Percentage of
Part-Time Workers
There are 12 lists in this group, and they extract the jobs from our 50 best jobs that have a
high percentage of part-time workers. Again, they are ordered first in terms of percentage of
part-time workers, so you can easily find the jobs with the most opportunities for part-
timers, and then they are re-sorted in order of their total combined score for earnings,
growth, and number of openings.
Best Jobs for Each Personality Type with a High Percentage of
Self-Employed Workers
The 12 lists in this section show you the jobs that have the highest percentage of self-
employed workers. Once again, the lists for the six personality types are re-sorted in order of
their total combined score for earnings, growth, and number of openings.
Part IV: Descriptions of the 50 Best Jobs for
Each Personality
This part of the book provides a brief but information-packed description of each of the 300
best jobs that met our criteria for this book. The descriptions are divided into six groups,
one for each personality type, and are presented in alphabetical order within each group.
This structure makes it easy to look up a job that you’ve identified in a list from Part III and
that you want to learn more about.
Introduction __________________________________________________________________________
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We used the most current information from a variety of government sources to create the
descriptions. Although we’ve tried to make the descriptions easy to understand, the sample
job description that follows—and the explanation of each of its parts—may help you better
understand and use the descriptions.
____________________________________________________________________________Introduction
7
Artistic Jobs
Actors
) Personality Code: AE
) Growth: 17.7%
) Annual Job Openings: 8,000
) Annual Earnings: $26,460
) Education/Training Required: Long-term
on-the-job training
) Self-Employed: 17.4%
) Part-Time: 28.2%
Play parts in stage, television, radio, video, or
motion picture productions for entertainment,
information, or instruction. Interpret serious or
comic role by speech, gesture, and body movement
to entertain or inform audience. May dance and
sing. Attend auditions and casting calls in order to
audition for roles. Collaborate with other actors as
part of an ensemble. Learn about characters in
scripts and their relationships to each other in order
to develop role interpretations. Perform humorous
and serious interpretations of emotions, actions, and
situations, using body movements, facial expres-

sions, and gestures. Portray and interpret roles,
using speech, gestures, and body movements in
order to entertain, inform, or instruct radio, film,
television, or live audiences. Sing and/or dance dur-
ing dramatic or comedic performances. Study and
rehearse roles from scripts in order to interpret,
learn, and memorize lines, stunts, and cues as direct-
ed. Work closely with directors, other actors, and
playwrights to find the interpretation most suited to
the role. Manipulate strings, wires, rods, or fingers
to animate puppets or dummies in synchronization
with talking, singing, or recorded programs. Per-
form original and stock tricks of illusion to entertain
and mystify audiences, occasionally including audi-
ence members as participants. Promote productions
using means such as interviews about plays or
movies. Read from scripts or books to narrate action
or to inform or entertain audiences, utilizing few or
no stage props. Tell jokes; perform comic dances,
songs and skits; impersonate mannerisms and voic-
es of others; contort face; and use other devices to
amuse audiences. Work with other crewmembers
responsible for lighting, costumes, makeup, and
props. Write original or adapted material for dra-
mas, comedies, puppet shows, narration, or other
performances. Construct puppets and ventriloquist
dummies and sew accessory clothing, using hand
tools and machines. Dress in comical clown cos-
tumes and makeup and perform comedy routines to
entertain audiences. Introduce performances and

performers in order to stimulate excitement and
coordinate smooth transition of acts during events.
Prepare and perform action stunts for motion pic-
ture, television, or stage productions. SKILLS—
Speaking; Monitoring; Social Perceptiveness;
Repairing; Coordination; Active Learning; Reading
Comprehension; Equipment Maintenance.
GOE—Interest Area: 01. Arts, Entertainment, and
Media. Work Group: 01.05. Performing Arts.
Other Jobs in This Work Group: Choreographers;
Composers; Dancers; Directors—Stage, Motion
Pictures, Television, and Radio; Entertainers and
Performers, Sports and Related Workers, All Other;
Music Arrangers and Orchestrators; Music Direc-
tors; Music Directors and Composers; Musicians
and Singers; Musicians, Instrumental; Public
Address System and Other Announcers; Radio and
Television Announcers; Singers; Talent Directors.
EDUCATION/TRAINING PROGRAM(S)—
Acting; Directing and Theatrical Production;
Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, General; Dra-
matic/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft, Other. RELAT-
ED KNOWLEDGE/COURSES—Fine Arts;
Communications and Media; English Language.
Job Title
Data
Elements
Summary Description
and Tasks
Skills

Related
Knowledge/Courses
GOE
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Here are some details on each of the major parts of the job descriptions you will find in
Part IV:
) Job Title—This is the job title for the job as defined by the U.S. Department of Labor
and used in its O*NET database.
) Data Elements—This information comes from various U.S. Department of Labor and
Census databases for this occupation, as explained elsewhere in this introduction.
) Summary Description and Tasks—The bold sentences provide a summary description
of the occupation. This is followed by a listing of tasks that are generally performed by
people who work in this job. We followed the listing of tasks in the O*NET database,
except that where necessary we edited the tasks to keep them from exceeding 2200 char-
acters.
) Skills—The government provides data on many skills; we decided to list only those that
were most important for each job rather than list pages of unhelpful details. For each
job, we identified any skill with a rating that was higher than the average rating for that
skill for all jobs. If there were more than eight, we included only those eight with the
highest ratings, and we present them from highest to lowest score (that is, in terms of by
how much its score exceeds the average score). We include up to 10 skills if scores were
tied for eighth place. You can find definitions of the skills in Appendix B.
) GOE—This information cross-references the Guide for Occupational Information
(or the GOE), a system that organizes jobs based on interests and is used in a variety
of career information systems. We use the third edition of the Guide for Occupational
Information, as published by JIST. The description includes the major Interest Area the
job fits into, its more specific Work Group, and a list of related job titles that are in this
same GOE Work Group. This will help you identify other jobs that relate to similar
interests or require similar skills. You can find more information on the GOE Interest

Areas in Appendix C.
) Education/Training Program(s)—This part gives the names of one or more programs
for preparing for the job. The titles are based on the U.S. Department of Education
Classification of Instructional Programs. A particular college major or training program
may not have the identical title—for example, there probably is no college that offers a
major called “Political Science and Government, General,” but you are likely to find a
major called “Political Science” or “Government.” In a few cases we edited the list of
programs to keep it from exceeding 2000 characters.
) Related Knowledge/Courses—This entry can help you understand the most important
knowledge areas that are required for a job and the types of subjects you will likely
study in the training or curriculum that prepares you for the job. We used information
in the O*NET database for this entry. We went through a process similar to the one we
used for skills (earlier in this list) to determine which entries were most important for
each job. In this case, however, we listed at least two knowledge areas for each job, even
if the ratings for those knowledge areas were lower than the average for all jobs. You can
find definitions of related knowledge/courses in Appendix D.
Introduction __________________________________________________________________________
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How to Use This Book
This is a book that you can dive right into:
) If you don’t know much about what personality types are, you’ll want to read Part I,
which is an overview of the theory behind using personality types as a way of making
career choices. You’ll also see definitions of the six personality types that are used in this
book.
) If you want to understand your own personality type, you’ll want to do the assessment
in Part II. It takes only 20 to 30 minutes to complete and can guide you to jobs that
suit you.
) If you like lists and want an easy way to compare jobs, you should turn to Part III.

Here you can browse lists showing the 50 jobs for each personality type with the best
pay, the fastest growth, and the most job openings. You can see these “best jobs” broken
down in various ways, such as by amount of education or training required.
) For detailed information about jobs, turn to Part IV and read the profiles of the jobs.
We include 300 jobs and itemize their major tasks, their top skills, their educational or
training programs, and other facts you won’t learn from the lists in Part III.
On the other hand, if you like to do things in a methodical way, you may want to read the
sections in order:
) Part I will give you useful background on how personality type can be a guide in choos-
ing a career.
) The assessment in Part II will help you identify your dominant personality type.
) With a clearer understanding of your personality type, you can browse the appropriate
lists of “best jobs” in Part III and take notes on the jobs that have the greatest appeal for
you.
) Then you can look up the descriptions of these jobs in Part IV and narrow down your
list. Ask yourself, Do the work tasks interest me? Does the required education or train-
ing discourage me?
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