7 Best INTJ Career & Job Matches + Top 10 Majors for INTJs
Opting for the right job field isn’t a cakewalk, especially when it comes to INTJ careers.
People with this personality type come across as determined individuals who know what they want. They need a compelling and challenging profession that will leave room for healthy growth and progress.
If you’re wondering in what fields INTJs thrive or which ones they should skip, keep reading!
This all-in-one guide will help you discover everything about the best jobs and career paths for INTJ people, including:
- 7 Best INTJ Careers and Job Matches
- 3 Careers INTJs Should Definitely Avoid
- Strengths and Weaknesses of INTJs at Work
- INTJ Career Statistics
…and many other things!
Shall we begin?
7 Best INTJ Careers and Job Matches
INTJ people belong to the thinking type, and their primary cognitive function is introverted intuition. Along with their auxiliary function—extraverted thinking—it gives them the power to easily pick up on problems and solve them efficiently.
Hence, they’ll find themselves in complex professions that encourage them to develop their minds and think more deeply.
In the list below, we bring you the best INTJ career matches that will help you grow and prosper.
#1. Engineering
INTJs love using their intuition and common sense to find solutions to complex problems.
Whether it's a mathematical equation, a technological issue, or a scientific entanglement, they consider it a challenge. As engineers, they can tackle such issues with ease and show their dedication to the matter.
INTJs are also precise and thorough, which is a must-have for this type of profession.
Depending on other preferences, INTJs can choose to be:
- Electrical engineers
- Civil engineers
- Mechanical engineers
- Aerospace engineers
- Biomedical engineers
#2. Accounting
To be successful in accounting, a person needs to be analytical, disciplined, and result-driven. By nature, INTJ people tick all these boxes.
INTJs are also great with numbers and are rather good at handling different types of data. They have an amazing sense of organization and can create outstanding strategies for better record-keeping and financial performance. What more could you possibly want from an accounting specialist?
Some of the best jobs for INTJ people in the accounting field would be:
- Internal or external auditor
- Controller
- Financial analyst
- Forensic accountant
- Public accountant
- Managerial accountant
#3. Teaching and Research
People with the INTJ personality type are natural skeptics and always thirsty for knowledge. They do an outstanding job checking facts and discovering new information on various topics.
This is a personal satisfaction for them. They feel useful when they simplify complicated processes and reveal answers to difficult questions. It’s their opportunity to show both creativity and logical thinking and to focus on what they’re truly interested in. For this reason, they make outstanding researchers and analysts.
INTJs can also convey the knowledge they acquire in a rather comprehensible way. Hence, they may also enjoy a job in education, such as:
- Tutor
- Teacher
- Learning specialist
- Training specialist
- College professor
#4. Project Management
Being in charge of important initiatives brings INTJs the feeling of being useful.
They are great strategists and like making detailed plans for everything they do. With a person like this as a leader, teams will always have precisely delegated responsibilities and adequately estimated budgets for their endeavors.
Some of the best project management jobs for INTJs include:
- Project coordinator
- Operations manager
- Project administrator
- Project management consultant
- Event manager
- Business analyst
Project management also belongs to one of the rare INTJ careers where these people can switch from one industry to another. This can satisfy their need for dynamic work conditions, which means they’ll never get bored.
#5. Law
Law is a complicated and constantly changing field. Yet, the way INTJs store and understand new information can make them quite successful in this sphere.
They’ll easily navigate through regulations and find joy in solving legal matters. Thanks to their sound judgment and logical reasoning, INTJs are true masters of persuasive arguments. That’s how their analytical nature comes to the surface.
Here are some common INTJ jobs related to law:
- Lawyer
- Judge
- Paralegal
- Hearing officer
Prioritizing reason over feelings is another aspect that makes law one of the most suitable INTJ careers.
People with this personality type don’t get attached to people or situations easily. Being reserved and realistic enables them to handle serious cases without getting emotionally involved.
#6. Criminology
INTJs’ intuition and ability to read between the lines is a great stepping stone to a successful career in the criminology field. Their fondness for unraveling mysteries and unusual problems makes it easy for them to see the bigger picture and put the pieces together.
Jobs in this sphere aren’t for faint-hearted people who get upset easily. That’s exactly why they’re perfect for INTJs. They won’t hesitate to visit dangerous places or take on difficult cases if that means their investigation will have a happy ending.
Popular INTJ jobs related to criminology include:
- Detective
- Inspector
- Private investigator
- Criminology professor
- Forensic scientist
- Criminal profiler
#7. Healthcare
INTJs don’t come across as the most compassionate personality types. Hence, not many of them find themselves in the medical care field. Yet, their intelligence and analytical skills can come in handy in certain healthcare professions.
Since INTJs love their solitude and prefer working on their own, they can swiftly relate to medical jobs that don’t require working in bigger teams. These include:
- GP
- Dentist
- Healthcare technician
- Health information technician
- Medical coding specialist
- Histotechnologist
3 Careers INTJs Should Definitely Avoid
We’ve learned that INTJs’ personality traits greatly influence their career choice. Professions that require emotional investment or doing repetitive and tedious tasks don’t bring them satisfaction. That being said, here are a few INTJ jobs to avoid.
#1. Counseling
Being a counselor works for an introverted person only if their urge to help people is stronger than their need to be alone. This isn’t the case with INTJs.
Even though they are rather intrigued by the human mind, they can’t stand too much contact with people they don’t know. It makes them nervous and impatient, which definitely aren’t the traits you want your counselor to have.
Besides this, INTJs also often suffer from a superiority complex and seem quite arrogant. Such an attitude won’t work with people who need help. It can only repel them and make them choose another professional to turn to.
#2. Sales
Yes, INTJs are worldly-wise and persuasive. Yet, a job in sales doesn’t impose any significant challenges on them—and they live for these.
Moreover, being around people all the time can be rather exhausting and draining for this personality type. Hence, it wouldn’t be long until an INTJ called it a day and started looking for a more independent role.
Another thing that might turn INTJs away from pursuing a career in sales is the potential lack of honesty. This is a dealbreaker for them since they truly appreciate sincerity and are highly moral.
Apart from that, building emotional connections with customers doesn’t come naturally for INTJ people. Their nature doesn’t allow them to be too relaxed with strangers, and they definitely can’t fake it.
#3. Hospitality
Hospitality relies on bubbly, communicative individuals whose main duty is to make other people’s stays in restaurants or hotels enjoyable. No need to say—INTJs don’t belong to this species.
They won’t fake smiles and politeness just to impress guests, nor will they fit into the “strong teamwork” environment.
What INTJs want is a workplace where they can work independently and take up more compelling tasks. For this reason, they probably wouldn’t do well as waiters/waitresses, receptionists, housekeepers, or porters.
INTJs in the Workplace
INTJs are what most employers nowadays would consider a definition of an ideal employee. Regardless of the profession they choose, they are usually the brains of every operation.
Driven by their natural intelligence and analytical minds, INTJ people enjoy deciphering complex systems. They use innovative ideas and new approaches to understand how these systems work and make them more efficient. And, since they’re rather ambitious, INTJs gladly use their creativity and problem-solving skills to move up the career ladder.
While they appreciate organized work and well-structured businesses, INTJs aren’t fans of time-wasting tasks that will bore them to death.
Instead, INTJs live to engage in challenging activities that will help the entire team achieve business goals. This is the main reason why they don’t stay in administrative and similar positions for a long time.
INTJs Working in Teams
We’ve already mentioned that INTJ people are usually loners who enjoy working on their own. However, it doesn’t mean they can’t function as a part of a team. Quite the contrary.
INTJs can make outstanding connections with colleagues who share similar personality traits and business goals. This means they’ll enjoy working with intelligent, capable, and hard-working people. INTJ people yearn to do business with individuals who will want to listen to their suggestions, brainstorm with them, and therefore add value to the entire team.
Although INTJs are independent, they love hearing other people’s ideas and perspectives as these can help them think more deeply and achieve mutual goals. Healthy INTJs will always appreciate bright insights and show their admiration for people who come up with them.
Still, if they believe a fellow team member’s idea isn’t useful or efficient enough, they won’t hesitate to say so aloud.
Unlike more extraverted personality types such as ENFPs and ESFJs, INTJs shy away from making personal connections with their teammates. Involving emotions in business ventures is a big no-no for them. They want to solely focus on business results—that's the reason why they see their colleagues every day in the first place.
INTJs in Management Positions
Not everyone is meant to be in a managerial position, especially in big companies. To keep the business thriving, teams need a capable leader who will make sure each segment of their workload is perfectly organized.
And, believe us, there’s no better personality type for a role like this than the ambitious and disciplined INTJ. INTJs flourish in managerial positions because they bring them dynamics and new challenges every day.
An INTJ at work might not be the most popular member of the team. They may not laugh with their colleagues while having their first coffee break during the day. Instead of making friends with their coworkers, INTJs will likely focus on accomplishing their daily tasks.
That said, INTJs are eager and ready to take control and will always ensure the job is done efficiently and on time.
However, as managers, INTJs aren’t quite patient when it comes to inefficiency. Their tolerance for work-shy employees and procrastinators is close to zero. More often than not, INTJs aren’t reluctant to let the weakest links go in order to improve their company’s performance.
Strengths and Weaknesses of INTJs at Work
INTJs’ strengths and weaknesses don’t only affect their love life and friendships. They also have a significant impact on INTJ careers, and the way these people function within a business.
First, let’s see what traits help people with this personality type excel at their jobs:
- Curiosity. Even if they don’t have much information on the topics they’re being told about, INTJs will be eager to learn more. Their thirst for knowledge is insatiable, and they won’t regret spending hours reading about and exploring new topics if they believe it can help them improve themselves.
- Independency. As previously mentioned, INTJs love working alone and don’t find it difficult at all. For this reason, if you have an INTJ on your team, you probably won’t ever need to micromanage them.
- Combination of creativity and rational thinking. No matter what kind of issue an INTJ encounters at work, they’ll know how to find the best solution. Their logical reasoning allows them to spot the problem and analyze it. In the meantime, their creative side helps them come up with the perfect way to eliminate it.
- Originality. The above-mentioned creativity is also responsible for all the amazing and unique ideas INTJs come up with.
Even if INTJs don’t like to admit it, they also have flaws. At work, INTJs can be:
- Too critical. At most times, this comes from INTJs thinking that they’re more enlightened than other people in the team.
- Perfectionistic. Meticulousness isn’t always a flaw—it can significantly help INTJs in their business endeavors. Still, if they set high and unrealistic standards both for themselves and other team members, it can become an ongoing issue.
- Emotionally distant. While showing feelings isn’t always crucial for INTJ careers, a complete lack of them can cause awkwardness and tension.
Have a good laugh while reading our funny and extremely relatable INTJ memes!
10 Best College Majors For INTJs
INTJs often opt for a specific career long before they get their first job in their chosen field. To reach that point, they usually pick a relevant college major to gain the necessary knowledge of the matter.
Below is the list of the 10 most suitable college majors for INTJs:
- Architecture
- Computer Information Systems
- Construction Management
- Criminal Justice and Criminology
- Economics
- Finance
- Legal Studies
- Medical Technology
- Logistics and Supply Chain Management
- Physics
Key Takeaways
Congrats! If you read this article carefully, you should know more or less everything about the best and worst INTJ careers.
However, it doesn’t hurt to make a short retrospection. Here it goes:
- INTJs are highly intelligent, diligent, and precise. These traits make it easy for them to build a great career in fields such as engineering, accounting, law, and project management.
- Due to a lack of emotional response, INTJs wouldn’t do well as hospitality workers, counselors, therapists, or salesmen/ saleswomen. Their ambitions also don’t allow them to stay in a boring position since they strive to progress and achieve more.
- INTJs are responsible and hard-working employees but may be strict and (sometimes) ruthless managers.
- They will enjoy working in a team only if they consider the people in it true visionaries and solid contributors.
- Some of the most fitting college majors for the INTJ personality type include economics, physics, architecture, and computer information systems.