Work Context Index
Jobs with the least time pressure that pay above the U.S. median
Jobs with the least time pressure, restricted to occupations with a BLS median annual wage above $50,980, the 2025 median for all U.S. occupations. Every value is O*NET's own mean rating; the percentile is where that value sits among all 894 occupations, not among the restricted set.
Which jobs have the fewest strict deadlines that pay above the U.S. median wage?
Only 594 of the 894 occupations O*NET 30.3 rates have a BLS median annual wage above $50,980, the 2025 median for all U.S. occupations. Ranked by Time Pressure, lowest first, 25 are listed: 4 also appear in the unrestricted ranking and 21 enter only under this restriction, led by Midwives (2.8 of 5), Fallers (2.83 of 5), Social Science Research Assistants (2.85 of 5). The strongest overall are Massage Therapists (2.28 of 5), Animal Breeders (2.44 of 5), Directors, Religious Activities and Education (2.61 of 5). Their median BLS wage is $65,790 (2025, 25 of 25 with a BLS line item), and 8 of the 25 with BLS education data typically need less than a bachelor's degree.
- Occupations compared
- 594 of 894 O*NET occupations qualify (a BLS median annual wage above $50,980, the 2025 median for all U.S. occupations); percentiles are still taken over all 894
- What O*NET asks incumbents
- Time Pressure: "How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?"
- Scale
- 1 = Never; 3 = Once a month or more but not every week; 5 = Every day. Values are mean incumbent ratings.
- Wage and outlook source
- BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, Table 1.2 Occupational projections, 2025–35, and worker characteristics, 2025 (Employment in thousands). 3 of the 25 occupations listed have a dedicated RoleSprint page.
Source and method
O*NET 30.3 Database (Work Context), U.S. Department of Labor, and BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2. Verified 2026-09-05. Ratings are reproduced from O*NET as published mean incumbent responses on each question's own 1-to-5 scale. Percentile ranks, composite averages and the resulting order are RoleSprint's computation and are described on the methodology page. Wage, education and outlook fields are reproduced from BLS for the matching SOC code and left blank where BLS publishes no line item.
What this page does and does not claim
People search this as “jobs with no deadlines”. O*NET does not measure whether a job has no deadlines at all, so this ranking is built from what it does measure: Time Pressure, rated on a fixed 1-to-5 scale by people who do each job. That compares the work; it does not predict how a job will feel to you.
It does not say which jobs suit a personality, a temperament or a health condition. It reports a measured condition of the work and lets you decide whether that condition is the one you meant.
The 25 occupations
Ordered by mean rating for Time Pressure, lowest first. Scale: 1 = Never; 5 = Every day.
| # | Occupation | O*NET value | Rank | BLS wage and education |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Massage Therapists O*NET-SOC 31-9011.00 | 2.28 of 5 between "Once a year or more but not every month" and "Once a month or more but not every week" | Lower than 99% of 894 occupations | $58,450 median (2025) Postsecondary nondegree award · +15.3% 2025-35 |
| 2 | Animal Breeders O*NET-SOC 45-2021.00 | 2.44 of 5 between "Once a year or more but not every month" and "Once a month or more but not every week" | Lower than 98% of 894 occupations | $51,130 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · +3% 2025-35 |
| 3 | Directors, Religious Activities and Education O*NET-SOC 21-2021.00 | 2.61 of 5 between "Once a year or more but not every month" and "Once a month or more but not every week" | Lower than 98% of 894 occupations | $52,100 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +3.3% 2025-35 |
| 4 | Environmental Economists O*NET-SOC 19-3011.01 | 2.77 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 97% of 894 occupations | $124,720 median (2025) Master's degree · +4.7% 2025-35 |
| 5 | Midwives O*NET-SOC 29-9099.01 | 2.80 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 97% of 894 occupations | $65,790 median (2025) Postsecondary nondegree award · +5.1% 2025-35 |
| 6 | Fallers O*NET-SOC 45-4021.00 | 2.83 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 97% of 894 occupations | $52,100 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · -9.9% 2025-35 |
| 7 | Social Science Research Assistants O*NET-SOC 19-4061.00 | 2.85 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 97% of 894 occupations | $61,990 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +5% 2025-35 |
| 8 | Park Naturalists O*NET-SOC 19-1031.03 | 2.90 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 96% of 894 occupations | $73,010 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +5.3% 2025-35 |
| 9 | Astronomers O*NET-SOC 19-2011.00 | 2.91 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 96% of 894 occupations | $128,820 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +7.8% 2025-35 |
| 10 | Timing Device Assemblers and Adjusters O*NET-SOC 51-2061.00 | 2.91 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 96% of 894 occupations | $62,620 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · -6.1% 2025-35 |
| 11 | Geneticists O*NET-SOC 19-1029.03 | 2.92 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 96% of 894 occupations | $98,920 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +4.7% 2025-35 |
| 12 | Archivists O*NET-SOC 25-4011.00 | 2.94 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 95% of 894 occupations | $64,550 median (2025) Master's degree · +3.4% 2025-35 |
| 13 | Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders O*NET-SOC 51-9012.00 | 2.95 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 95% of 894 occupations | $51,610 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · -5.7% 2025-35 |
| 14 | Low Vision Therapists, Orientation and Mobility Specialists, and Vision Rehabilitation Therapists O*NET-SOC 29-1122.01 | 2.96 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 95% of 894 occupations | $100,330 median (2025) Master's degree · +14.8% 2025-35 |
| 15 | Database Administrators O*NET-SOC 15-1242.00 | 2.99 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 95% of 894 occupations | $104,620 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · -0.1% 2025-35 |
| 16 | Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas O*NET-SOC 47-5023.00 | 3.00 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 94% of 894 occupations | $60,190 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · +3.6% 2025-35 |
| 17 | Acupuncturists O*NET-SOC 29-1291.00 | 3.03 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 94% of 894 occupations | $76,040 median (2025) Master's degree · +8.6% 2025-35 |
| 18 | Physicists O*NET-SOC 19-2012.00 | 3.05 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 93% of 894 occupations | $172,250 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +7.2% 2025-35 |
| 19 | Electronics Engineers, Except Computer O*NET-SOC 17-2072.00 | 3.06 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 93% of 894 occupations | $130,220 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +3.7% 2025-35 |
| 20 | Special Education Teachers, Preschool O*NET-SOC 25-2051.00 | 3.09 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $64,830 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +2.4% 2025-35 |
| 21 | Transportation Planners O*NET-SOC 19-3099.01 | 3.10 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $101,110 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · -0.2% 2025-35 |
| 22 | Bridge and Lock Tenders O*NET-SOC 53-6011.00 | 3.10 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $57,700 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · -2.3% 2025-35 |
| 23 | Foresters O*NET-SOC 19-1032.00 | 3.11 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $76,400 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +2.2% 2025-35 |
| 24 | Pediatricians, General O*NET-SOC 29-1221.00 | 3.14 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $210,040 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +1.5% 2025-35 |
| 25 | Exercise Physiologists O*NET-SOC 29-1128.00 | 3.14 of 5 Once a month or more but not every week | Lower than 92% of 894 occupations | $59,460 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +12.8% 2025-35 |
Values are mean ratings from O*NET 30.3; most come from surveys of people in the occupation, some from occupational experts, and some for newer occupations from O*NET analysts. Wage, education and outlook are from BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2 for the matching SOC code and are blank where BLS publishes no line item.
How this was measured
Time Pressure (O*NET element 4.C.3.d.1). The question put to incumbents: “How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?”
- 1
Never
- 2
Once a year or more but not every month
- 3
Once a month or more but not every week
- 4
Once a week or more but not every day
- 5
Every day
894 of 894 occupations have a published, unsuppressed value for this element. The percentile beside each occupation is its position among them.
The full method, including how ties are broken and what the data cannot tell you, is on the methodology page.
The restriction applied
Only occupations with a BLS median annual wage above $50,980, the 2025 median for all U.S. occupations are listed: 594 of 894 qualify.
The unrestricted ranking is at Jobs with the least time pressure.
Combine this with other conditions
The explorer ranks all occupations on any set of measures you choose, with the same values and the same arithmetic as this page.
Open the explorer with this selectionThis page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. RoleSprint has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Wage, education and outlook figures are reproduced from BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
What to do next
These rankings describe occupations in general. The next question is whether a specific opening in one of them actually matches what you can show, and that is answered by comparing the posting with your resume.