In this brief guide, we will look at some INTP careers, and some INTP careers to avoid. We will also look at some INTP famous people and some INTP career advice.
INTP Careers
INTP careers need to be centered around the ability to think critically and analyze things intuitively, and therefore some of the best INTP careers are as follows:
- Philosopher
- Writer
- Physicist
- Scientist
- Judge
- Lawyer
- Programmer
- Creative Director
- Politician
- Psychologist
- Doctor/Surgeon
INTP career is not something that they are likely to need a lot of help with, mostly because they are usually very good at knowing what they want from life and their career and they also usually have a fairly good idea of what they are good at.
Most INTP careers will be based around something which enables the person a bit of isolation and alone time, and the independence to do what they want to do, because the introverted tendencies of the INTP are quite typical and usually mean that the person wants to be on their own more often than not.
An INTP career that involves coworkers or leaders that are too rigid and or when their work environment is a place that does not allow for their creativity to foster and grow they may even quit almost immediately or they will be thoroughly miserable and heading to anxiety, depression or stress.
INTP careers may not take into account organizational rules or traditions that are typical in nature, and they may therefore not go towards any career that has too much of these, instead they may prefer to forge their own path to innovation which is why so many of these people are found in research fields or in fields that are autonomous.
Being limited by bureaucracy and rules is something that finishes off a lot of otherwise burgeoning INTP Careers, because they simply cannot stand this issue; an INTP just wants to be engaged with the theoretical soundness of their ideas than deal with rules and regulations, and they most certainly do not want to deal with any of the practical applications of the same ideas.
The primary focus of an INTP in any career is mostly on creating the idea, which is why so many of them are philosophers, thinkers and visionaries, and they generally tend to leave the tedious details of implementation to someone else, so it is always better for any INTP career to involve people like the ENTJ or the ESTJ, so that the brilliance of the INTP can come through in actual plans.
INTP usually does not go towards leadership roles in their career on purpose but if they do find themselves there they will usually do a good job, given that they will have the ideas and brilliant plans which may be implemented and executed by the employees under them.
An INTP leader in any career may not have the potential to provide constant supervision to the team or be too authoritative and commanding, but with their amazing ideas and plans they may inspire those around them to action because they can sound like they know everything (sometimes they do, too).
INTPs are mostly thinkers, and this tendency comes through in their choice of careers because a happy and satisfied INTP will almost invariably be found in a career that allows them to use their intellect, analyze concepts, and think deeply.
INTP are not just thinkers of the abstract though, they also have some uniquely innovative nature which is the primary reason why they are often drawn to cutting-edge fields such as technology, engineering, and the sciences.
The interest an INTP has in careers related to technology and sciences might be why so many of them can be found in technological areas like California’s Silicon Valley or a tech company like Google or Apple.
Any INTP career that involves this kind of challenging, unpredictable world of tech may automatically be set up for success.
Many INTPs are also quite creative and unlike the INTJ who mostly seeks fields where they can think, these individuals can often seek an artistic bent to their career.
The more creative INTPs may be particularly drawn to artistic fields where they can also indulge their analytical thinking processes and add science or technology to the creative mix, and fields like this could be architecture or graphic design.
INTP Careers and Personality Traits
INTP personalities are known for their thinking, creativity and intuition which means that any suitable career match will need to have a demand for at least one or two of these traits.
An INTP may often be motivated to solve complex problems in an original, innovative way which is why so many of them are interested in technology and science, but a lot of them may also be interested in creative fields that involve some amount of art and science at the same time.
Many INTP careers involve their capability to analyze systems and ideas thoroughly to create deep understanding, and enjoy designing creative solutions to highly abstract problems.
The Intuition function of an INTP personality usually gets better with more information that the person takes in, therefore, the INTP needs to be in a field where there is more scope for new information and the possibility to explore uncharted territories and these individuals always need to grow, any stagnation will finish off their interest faster than stress.
INTPs work best independently or with a small team of colleagues that are perceived as smart, competent, and logical and they don’t like being around people they deem not as competent or those who are too aggressive or overbearing without the intellect to back it all up, and they may also not respect people who are far too sweet and caring or emotional in the workplace.
An ideal career for any INTP personality needs to be flexible and non-traditional, and these individuals often value ingenuity over conformity, which they may look for in their career as well.
Any INTP personality may find that they like careers that allow them to address complex theoretical or technical problems with creative, novel solutions.
Based on the INTP personality features discussed above, some of the best INTP careers may be the following:
- Epidemiologist
- Medical Scientist
- Microbiologist
- Physicist or Astronomer
- Political Scientist
- Anthropologist or Archaeologist
- Economist
- Environmental Scientist
- Physician or Surgeon
- Aerospace Engineer
- Architect
- Biomedical Engineer
- Urban or Regional Planner
- Mathematician
- Statistician
- Chemical Engineer
- Computer Hardware Engineer
- Environmental Engineer
- Industrial Designer
- Multimedia Artist or Animator
- Photographer
- Technical Writer
- Landscape Architect
- Computer Network Architect
- Computer or Information Research Scientist
- Computer Programmer
- Computer Systems Analyst
- Network or Computer Systems Administrator
- Music Director or Composer
- Producer or Director
- Graphic Designer
INTP Careers to Avoid
Most INTP careers to avoid tend to be those that involve too much pointless interaction with others or ones that need them to be overly empathetic or understanding about people, which are not their strong points.
An INTP is a thinker, not a feeler, so careers that involve a lot of hand-holding or exchanging of pleasantries with people they don’t know may leave them feeling exhausted and they may want to get away.
Additionally, something with far too much stagnation or not enough possibility for growth is something the INTP will avoid very much, because these individuals like learning as much as possible.
Lastly, an INTP might also need to avoid careers which involve too much creation or making things happen and planning for the future, because these individuals are not as interested in thinking of the future and they might want to stay in the present because of their prospecting trait.
- Dental Hygienist
- Public Health Nurse
- Dental Assistant
- Licensed Practical Nurse
- Dietitian
- Corrections Officer
- Religious Educator
- Teacher’s Aide
- Preschool Teacher
- Elementary Teacher
- Recreation Worker
- Cosmetologist
- Retail Salesperson
- Restaurant Manager
- Sales Manager
INTP Career Advice
All the most significant INTP career advice can be consolidated into the following 5 points, which may help an INTP choosing a career:
- Look for fields that allow you to be autonomous and independent.
- Don’t go into fields where you will be in charge of execution.
- Avoid fields with too much people interaction or emotions.
- Try to engage in things that leave you time for your hobbies and interests.
- Try to find things where you don’t have to analyze bits and pieces of data.
Any career advice for INTP will involve telling them that they always need to look for fields where they are able to be in the present, because the prospecting or perceiving trait in the INTP function stack is more oriented towards current experiences and thought processes.
Furthermore, the INTP also needs to learn to take career advice in the first place, because many of these individuals can sometimes be a little wary of listening to others, as they value their own thought process more than anyone else’s.
INTP Famous People
Here are some of the most famous INTP people, and going through this list will give you a pretty fair idea of what kind of careers the smartest and best INTPs gravitate towards:
- Abraham Lincoln
- Socrates
- Meryl Streep
- Jane Austen
- Bill Gates
- Isaac Newton
- Charles Darwin
- Midori Ito
- Bob Newhart
- William Harvey
- Rene Descartes
- Mary Kate Olsen
- Ashley Olsen
- Rick Moranis
- James Madison
- John Quincy Adams
- Gerald Ford
- John Locke
- Richard Dawkins
- Immanuel Kant
- William James
- Blase Pascal
- Brent Spiner
- John Tyler
- Jeff Bingham
- Marie Curie
- Ellen Page
- Jesse Eisenberg
- Thomas Aquinas
- Larry Page
Conclusion
In this brief guide, we looked at some INTP careers, and some INTP careers to avoid. We also looked at some INTP famous people and some INTP career advice.
INTP personality is another introverted type that is relatively uncommon, likely because of their intuitive and thinking functions, and this personality type may actually be even more uncommon in females.
INTP careers need to appeal to their unique sense of information gathering styles, and they need to be about thinking and analysis rather than anything else, because these personality types are critical thinkers.
If you have any more questions or comments about INTP careers, please feel free to reach out to us at any time.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): INTP Careers
What careers are best for INTP?
Here’s a list of the 9 best INTP Careers that will make the best use of your unique skills:
Software Engineer.
Data Analyst/Data Scientist.
Game Designer.
Aerospace Engineer.
Forensic Scientist.
Architect.
Journalist.
Creative Director.
What should an INTP major in?
INTP should major in fields like:
Anthropology.
Business Administration.
Business Information Technology.
Architecture.
Biochemistry.
Art.
Biology.
Chemistry.
Is INTP a rare personality type?
Yes, INTP is a rare personality type, and overall they may make up only about 3 percent of the population.
INTP women are even more uncommon for some reason, and a common thinking behind this tends to be that women think in a more detail oriented manner than men do, which might be why women with dominant intuition functions might be slightly more uncommon
Citations
https://www.truity.com/personality-type/INTP/careers
https://www.truity.com/blog/4-questions-intps-must-ask-themselves-they-can-find-their-ideal-career