Physical Therapists

People in this career often have these skills:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

People in this career often know a lot about:

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

People in this career often have talent in:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

People in this career often do these activities:

• Develop medical treatment plans.
• Examine patients to assess general physical condition.
• Analyze patient data to determine patient needs or treatment goals.
• Record patient medical histories.
• Enter patient or treatment data into computers.

• Train patients, family members, or caregivers in techniques for managing disabilities or illnesses.
• Monitor patient progress or responses to treatments.
• Evaluate patient outcomes to determine effectiveness of treatments.
• Collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or provide treatment.
• Treat patients using physical therapy techniques.
• Process healthcare paperwork.
• Test patient heart or lung functioning.
• Supervise medical support personnel.
• Establish treatment goals.
• Explain medical procedures or test results to patients or family members.
• Communicate health and wellness information to the public.
• Communicate detailed medical information to patients or family members.
• Refer patients to other healthcare practitioners or health resources.
• Operate diagnostic or therapeutic medical instruments or equipment.
• Fabricate medical devices.
• Adjust prostheses or other assistive devices.
• Advise medical personnel regarding healthcare issues.
• Train medical providers.
• Conduct research to increase knowledge about medical issues.
• Design public or employee health programs.
• Advise others on matters of public policy.
• Direct healthcare delivery programs.

• Occupational Therapists

• Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary

• Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary