Best Careers for INTP Personalities

People with the Myers-Briggs INTP personality type tend to be both intelligent and independent. They are often known for being organised and innovative and have a lot of value in many different career paths. To be fulfilled and satisfied in their careers, INTP personality types tend to prefer a career path that offers a range of interesting challenges and plenty of opportunities for them to be creative.

INTP Personality:

According to the MBTI, the INTP personality’s main traits are introverted, intuitive, thinking, and prospecting. INTPs tend to be fascinated by logical analysis, design, and systems. They are philosophical innovators who are interested in theory and search for an understanding of the unifying themes of life. They are often likely to be absorbed in deep thought, which can lead to them appear detached and oblivious to the world around them. INTPs spend a lot of time in their own heads and enjoy making connections, exploring concepts, and seeking a deeper understanding of how things work.

The INTP often presents with a cool exterior, but privately, they are often very passionate about analysis, innovation, and reason. They are often drawn to careers where they can create complex systems of understanding to unify principles that they have observed in the environment. They have active, complicated minds and will often go to great mental lengths to come up with ingenious solutions to problems. Typically, the INTP personality type is non-traditional and will often be found working out their own individual way of doing things rather than simply following the crowd. INTP personality types are often suspicious of conventions and assumptions and prefer breaking apart ideas that other personality types might take for granted.

Best Careers for INTP:

While there’s no specific career path that will be perfect for each personality type, understanding the INTP type gives you important insights into which career might be best suited. In the workplace environment, INTPs tend to prefer a career where they can work independently and avoid relying on others to get the work done. They will usually be drawn to work environments where they can solve complex problems and deep dive into topics to gain new knowledge. The INTP personality type also tends to prefer a workplace where they are able to enjoy the freedom to come up with inventive, new solutions without relying on previous methods or traditional ways of doing things.

Some of the Best Jobs for INTP:

INTP personality types have a logical and structured way of thinking, which leads to them being highly sought after in a range of intellectual career types. At work, INTP personality types are motivated to solve complex problems in a way that is innovative and original. They prefer career paths where they can analyse systems and ideas to create a deeper understanding. They tend to thrive best in a career where they can spend their time designing creative solutions to abstract problems. In the work environment, INTPs tend to work best independently or within a small team of like-minded colleagues. A flexible, non-traditional workplace that values ingenuity and ideas over conformity is often the best choice of workplace for the INTP, while others prefer to be self-employed or start their own business. While INTPs can be successful in almost any career, the following professions tend to be a better fit for this personality type:

·      Architect:

‘The architect’ is one of the nicknames for the INTP personality type, so it’s probably not surprising that this career path is an ideal choice. Work that involves carefully designing and crafting new structures offers a combination of both logic and creativity that is ideal for the INTP. INTP personality types often have the skills that are required to assess both the requirements and the aesthetics to come up with building designs that are just as functional as they are beautiful.

·      Computer Programmer:

A role that involves debugging programs, evaluating code, and streamlining technological structures to come up with projects that function well, a career as a computer programmer might be a good fit for the INTP. This personality type will approach new programs with enthusiasm and their strong eye for efficiency makes them a great fit for the role. While the natural perfectionist traits of the INTP might means that they take a little longer to create programs, the end result is likely to be bug-free and ready to hit the ground running.

·      Information Security Analyst:

Information security is a field that is always offering new challenges due to lots of change and evolution. Working in this field might be an ideal fit for an INTP, as this personality type tends to have a natural love for systems, organisation, and patterns, which are right at the core of information security systems. INTP individuals tend to do well with identifying weaknesses and reverse-engineering solutions; this personality type has a naturally inventive nature, which helps when coming up with options for keeping data secure.

·      Business Analyst:

An INTP who is business-minded will do well in the role of a business analyst. This career path involves in-depth analysis which tends to come naturally to this personality type due to their curious nature and attention to detail. In addition, a business analyst role often also presents lots of opportunities for innovation, which is perfect for the INTP who enjoys creative freedom in the workplace. In this role, the INTP will focus on ways to improve financial management, streamline production, and organise projects. Since the INTP personality type thrives best in a work environment where they have a lot of diverse and fresh challenges to tackle, contracting their services as a business analyst to various companies may be a better choice compared to working with a single organisation.

·      Forensic Medical Examiner:

Since the INTP personality type will typically prefer to work alone or in a small group, the role of a forensic medical examiner may be ideal for them. In this role, the INTP will find both autonomy in the workplace and plenty of fresh challenges. The INTP personality type will also often find the high level of education required to become a forensic medical examiner a worthy challenge and is likely to be successful with academic writing. The role requires persistence, which is ideal for the INTP who will not be satisfied until the job is completed as thoroughly as possible.

·      Technical Writer:

INTP personality types are often highly intelligent people, who are very skilled when it comes to researching different topics. They take on and digest new information efficiently and quickly, and typically have a very strong attention to detail, which makes them well-suited for a job as a technical writer. INTP personality types tend to be very proficient at collecting statistics and facts, carefully analysing them, and presenting them in a way that is both interesting and clear. In addition, this role also allows them INTP to work alone, which is often their preferred work environment.

INTP Personality Careers to Avoid:

While the INTP can do well in any career, some will be better than others when it comes to career satisfaction. The INTP personality type tends to perform best in a career path that allows autonomy in their work. They tend to be more comfortable working in smaller groups rather than with a large number of people and are not usually a great fit for a job that involves a lot of customer contact. Some of the main careers that you might want to avoid if you are an INTP include:

·      Sales Representative:

Sales is a very social career path, which is often better suited to extroverted people, rather than the introverted INTP. Those who are successful in sales tend to be people who can start easy conversations with anybody and quickly assess what they want and need to sell them the right product or service. Building relationships is key when it comes to sales, which might be difficult for the more logically-minded INTP.

·      Marketing:

Since INTP personality types tend to prefer hard facts over personalities and subjective opinions, marketing might not always be a good fit since it doesn’t often have concrete solutions and answers. However, data analysis for marketing might be ideal for the INTP since this is often much more factual.

·      Registered Nurse:

While the science-based aspect of a role as a nurse might be something that appeals to the INTP, in general, this role might not be a good fit for this personality type due to the high level of social interaction that is required. For the INTP that is interested in a science-based career, working in a lab environment is often a better fit since this allows the INTP to work either autonomously or as part of a small team, without any interaction with the patients.

As highly logical people who are drawn to problem-solving and finding solutions, there are many great career options for the INTP. Ideally, the INTP will find a career where they can work autonomously, and their ideas are valued.