Investigative interests

What this kind of work looks like

O*NET® OnLine describes work with a lot of Investigative interest like this:

• Researching the physical world in the physical sciences
• Studying living things in the life sciences
• Researching illness and injury in medical science and health care
• Studying how people behave in the social sciences and humanities
• Answering questions with maths, statistics or data
• Solving problems with information technology

Jobs where this comes first

The O*NET® database scores every job on all six interest areas. Investigative comes first for 113 of the 923 jobs it scores. These are the ones where it scores highest. Each link opens the job on O*NET OnLine.

• Environmental Economists
• Epidemiologists
• Political Scientists
• Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
• Anthropologists and Archeologists
• Biostatisticians
• Biologists
• Economists
• Industrial Ecologists
• Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
• Geneticists
• Computer and Information Research Scientists

In tech

Tech roles where Investigative is one of the two strongest areas. Most roles mix several areas, so one can suit you even if it isn’t listed here.

• Biostatisticians
• Computer and Information Research Scientists
• Mathematicians
• Data Scientists
• Statisticians
• Bioinformatics Technicians
• Computer Systems Analysts
• Health Informatics Specialists

Most people have more than one

These six areas describe kinds of work you might enjoy, not kinds of people. Your results are a mix of all six, so look at your top two or three together rather than at one letter. If Investigative is one of them, the jobs above are a place to start, not a verdict.

The other five areas

• Realistic: hands-on work with tools, machines or things
• Artistic: creating, designing and writing
• Social: helping, teaching and caring for people
• Enterprising: leading, persuading and selling
• Conventional: organizing data, records and processes

Occupation data from O*NET® 31.0, USDOL/ETA.