Possible Career Paths for an INTP?

[emmalema]

Hello everybody, and thank you for taking the time to read this thread! For those of you who don't know me, I'm currently a high school student who is definitely an INTP, with occasional bouts of ENTP behavior.

Anyway, my school's career fair is coming up, where we get to talk to real professionals in different lines of work, and see if perhaps their career is the best fit for us. This got me thinking about my own goals in life and what I might be able to achieve.

Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to follow the path of my family members and become a doctor. I didn't know what kind, but I just LOVED the idea of being able to help others. Plus, there was this certain mysterious drama to the medical profession that I couldn't help but feel drawn to... anyway, that's neither here nor there.

Now that I've matured and entered into my senior year of highschool, I've gravitated slightly from my previous career choice and am now thinking of pursuing a career in psychology, particularly in becoming a therapist. Is this something that is attainable in INTP's?

Forgive me, as I'm new to this forum, and as a result am actually pretty new to what being an INTP means, exactly. I myself had a rather rough upbringing, alcoholic parents, slight abandonment issues, depression, yada yada yada. But as a result, I've been seeing therapists on and off since I was about 11 years old. I've seen what it's like to be both the one receiving AND giving the therapy, and honestly, none of that has deterred my love of the psychological field and helping people through their emotional struggles.

But I also know that I do tend to sometimes emotionally invest myself in other peoples' lives, so separating myself from my work may be a bit difficult at times.

If being a therapist is a bad idea, please let me know! I know the majority of people on this site are older than I, so getting some advice from people with my personality type, who've seen more of the world and have had their own careers seemed to be the best idea. If therapy is a bad option for people like us, what careers are better suited? Thank you!

 

[Creeping Death]

Therapy would entail engaging with people on deeply personal issues, which INTPs might not always be known for, but on the other hand we've been known for giving good advice.

If that's what interests you, go for it. There isn't a wrong career path, unless it's something you really end up hating.

I've considered recovery coaching, which could be like a therapist. One of my counselors is ENFJ, they seem good at that, but an INTP can do just as well.

 

[dutchdisease]

I think it is difficult for anyone here to give you a straight answer between the two. It personally took me years to have an idea of the general direction I wanted to go into. I looked at just about every career path available and endlessly considered all the possibilities. I took all of the tests (I didn't find them to be that helpful). I eventually narrowed it down to one or two and that is where I am at now.

I often find that people of your type who have family members all in one professional career to naturally gravitate to that career early on. This could be due to the family's pressures. It can also be caused by a need to live up to your parent's expectations of you. It is very important that you take a look at yourself and ask if this is what you really want or if this is something that you feel you are supposed to want. Only you can make these decisions.

As was mentioned by the post above INTPs typically need to be very cautious of their desire to help people as they will often times end up in a career that is too people oriented and burn themselves out. I have found we are more often better suited to help the world through indirect means. This has been often observed. Any I apologize for giving no clear answer but these are things that will heavily impact the course of your life and I know very little about you.

 

[windpc]

Yup,you should go to medical school and be a psychiatrist instead. Your strengths lie in Ti and Ne. You are drawn to psychology because of Fe, it is a motivation but it is not your strength.
Being a psychiatrist, you are helping people also. Clinical counselling is just not an INTP thing.

 

[dutchdisease]

Yup,you should go to medical school and be a psychiatrist instead. Your strengths lie in Ti and Ne. You are drawn to psychology because of Fe, it is a motivation but it is not your strength.
Being a psychiatrist, you are helping people also. Clinical counselling is just not an INTP thing.

I was very tempted to say this.

 

[Architect]

First figure out if you really are an INTP since you're unsure. From your post I get the small impression you're something else, but you need to get a good handle on that. Second, if you really are one, psych would be a bad choice. The Drenth books get into this; he has a PhD in psychology. It's a 1-1 profession largely which is horrible for INTP's.

but I just LOVED the idea of being able to help others

An INTP might be attracted to the idea in an Fe inferior kind of way, but that kind of desire doesn't ring the right bells. Try being a F dominant with a T inferior for size, which is perhaps why you typed as an INTP.