INTP Careers, Jobs, & Majors

by Dr. A.J. Drenth

Like INFPs, the road to a satisfying career is often a rough and rocky one for INTPs. Because their dominant function (Ti) is a Judging function, INTPs may be too quick to select a career or college major before exploring all the available options. This is especially true of INTPs still in Phase I of their type development. Those in Phase II, in which their auxiliary function (Ne) is being developed, may have the opposite problem, since Ne can make it difficult for INTPs to settle on any one particular path.

Like INFPs, INTPs feel they must discover themselves and their proper place in the world before settling into a career. This includes identifying their skills (which usually pertain to their top two functions, Ti and Ne), as well as their interests and values (which may also incorporate the desires of their inferior Fe (see below)). Nailing down exactly what they want to do can be a frustrating affair for INTPs, requiring a great deal of experimentation. Despite this, it is possible for INTPs to find a satisfying career niche. It may simply take many years, even well into their thirties, for their niche to emerge with sufficient clarity. Thus, selecting the “right” college major right out of high school might well be considered a dubious enterprise for INTPs. Hopefully this article will help INTPs find greater clarity and therefore make fewer mistakes in their career decision-making.

Because of their rugged individualism, INTPs may struggle to find satisfaction in traditional careers paths and are reluctant to function as employees. Perhaps more than any other type, they want to work independently. They loathe the idea of answering to someone else and can have difficulty embracing an organization’s vision as their own. They are sensitive to what they see as meaningless or menial aspects of a given job. This is exacerbated by their innate skepticism, which urges them to question the ultimate value of most tasks. Because of their need for autonomy and control over their work, many end up as self-employed entrepreneurs.

Another factor affecting INTPs’ work is their idiosyncratic and impulsive nature. Unlike J types, INTPs are not naturally systematic or consistent in their approach. Instead, INTPs can be rash and impatient. They may get it in their mind that they want to accomplish something, but instead of taking their time and tackling it methodically, INTPs are prone to dive in without sufficient planning or forethought.

Like other IPs, INTPs have the curious combination of an inner Judging nature (Ti) combined with outer Perceiving (Ne). While this makes them ambitious, good at setting goals, and initiating projects (Ti), their follow through, patience, and quality of their work may be hindered by their P/Ne. Their tendency to act rashly is no small problem for the INTP. INTPs want to be taken seriously as thinkers (Ti), but because of the arbitrary, haphazard, and hurried way they approach things, it can at times be difficult for others to respect work.

The Role of the Inferior Function in INTP Careers

All of this can be understood in light of INTPs’ functional stack. INTPs start with a Ti judgment or plan (often an arbitrary one). After Ti, the next function in their stack is a Perceiving function (Ne), which can cause them to become distracted, even to the point of losing sight of their original purpose (This is why Ps are sometimes said to lack follow-through or staying power.). This can be frustrating for INTPs, since the endpoint of their functional stack (i.e., their inferior function) is a Judging function (Fe), which compels them to come to a conclusion or produce a finished project. INTPs instinctively know this. They feel compelled to work toward a point of judgment or closure. This is what motivates them; it is what they are questing for. They ultimately want to produce answers, not more and more options. This is why INTPs may at times be rushed or careless in their work, since they are feverishly striving toward a point of closure (Fe).

There seems to be a fair amount of irrationality at play in the sorts of careers and relationships we select for ourselves. We commonly fall for our typological opposites and choose careers that are poorly suited for our personality type. The reason for this apparent irrationality, as I’ve explained in other posts, is that such decisions are being driven by our often overlooked, yet extremely potent, inferior function. This may lead Intuitive types, for instance, to be drawn to careers better suited for Sensing types, and vice-versa. The same can be said for Thinkers and Feelers.

In many ways, the inferior function represents the goal or attractor point for each type’s personal growth and development. It carries the promise of long-term balance, wholeness, and inner peace. Conversely, the inferior also tempts us to seek quick highs. Like a drug, indulging the inferior can transport us to an alternate reality, one that is so different from our normal mode of functioning that it feels novel and exhilarating. But as addicts are well aware, such highs are short-lived and are followed by a commensurate low or “crash.”

All of this is to say that the inferior function cannot and should not be ignored when it comes to personal growth, relationships, or career development. In dealing with the inferior, we must first be aware of its specific nature and manifestations in our personality type. Most importantly, we must differentiate between unhealthy inferior-related desires/behaviors (e.g., obsessive, addictive, or other uncontrolled states) and those that can lead to lasting satisfaction. We don’t want a partner or career that provides only a temporary high, but one that promises continued growth and satisfaction.

INTPs should be aware of the multiple faces of their inferior function, Extraverted Feeling (Fe), which I have already explored in my INTP profile. When it comes to careers, their Fe compels them to function in ways exemplified by ENFJs (for whom Fe is dominant). In a nutshell, ENFJs function as teachers and counselors. They like to provide counsel and advice to others to help them improve their lives. Similarly, INTPs like to think of themselves as wise philosophers. They dream of a career where they can seek wisdom and share it with others. This dream also includes a huge ego pay-off for INTPs, in which others lavish  them with praise and affirmation for their intelligence and wisdom. So Fe does not merely compel INTPs to act as wise sages, but perhaps even more so, it seeks broad-scale validation and affirmation.

This desire for affirmation and validation may cause INTPs to overlook good career options because, on the surface, such careers seem too far removed from the source of their desired validation: people. So rather than choosing a career in science, for instance, INTPs may opt for what amounts to a “quick fix” for their inferior and select a people-oriented career, such as healthcare or human services. While at first blush, such people-oriented careers may “feel right” to INTPs (or more specifically, to their inferior function), it is rarely long before they realize that they made a huge mistake and should have focused on work that more heavily employs their top two functions (Ti and Ne).

What INTPs are really after is not a quick fix, but a career that allows them to use their top two functions to work toward an Fe endpoint. In doing so, they can still allow their Fe to serve as the goal (e.g., to help others), but INTPs need to realize that they should not take a short cut and try to do this directly. INTPs should not be working to help people directly, such as working as counselors, since this requires them to regularly employ their underdeveloped and elusive Fe. INTPs whose work requires them to directly help others realize what a draining and unfulfilling enterprise it can be. Instead, INTPs are better off selecting Thinking-oriented majors or careers such as math, science, technology, engineering, etc. Such fields can provide them with the foundational knowledge necessary to work toward meaningful Fe change in a more natural and fulfilling way, proceeding from the top of their functional stack down (Ti-Ne-Si-Fe).