Work Context Index
Jobs with the most freedom to make decisions that are growing faster than average
Jobs with the most freedom to make decisions, restricted to occupations with projected employment growth above 3.5% over 2025-35, the BLS projection for all 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 give the most decision-making freedom without supervision that BLS projects to grow faster than average?
Only 405 of the 894 occupations O*NET 30.3 rates have projected employment growth above 3.5% over 2025-35, the BLS projection for all occupations. Ranked by Freedom to Make Decisions, highest first, 25 are listed: 10 also appear in the unrestricted ranking and 15 enter only under this restriction, led by General Internal Medicine Physicians (4.84 of 5), Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary (4.83 of 5), Astronomers (4.83 of 5). The strongest overall are Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric (5.0 of 5), Dermatologists (4.99 of 5), Chiropractors (4.96 of 5). Their median BLS wage is $105,770 (2025, 25 of 25 with a BLS line item), and 7 of the 25 with BLS education data typically need less than a bachelor's degree.
- Occupations compared
- 405 of 894 O*NET occupations qualify (projected employment growth above 3.5% over 2025-35, the BLS projection for all occupations); percentiles are still taken over all 894
- What O*NET asks incumbents
- Freedom to Make Decisions: "How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?"
- Scale
- 1 = No freedom; 3 = Limited freedom; 5 = A lot of freedom. 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). 7 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.
The 25 occupations
Ordered by mean rating for Freedom to Make Decisions, highest first. Scale: 1 = No freedom; 5 = A lot of freedom.
| # | Occupation | O*NET value | Rank | BLS wage and education |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric O*NET-SOC 29-1241.00 | 5.00 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $300,080 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +4.5% 2025-35 |
| 2 | Dermatologists O*NET-SOC 29-1213.00 | 4.99 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $328,730 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +6.8% 2025-35 |
| 3 | Chiropractors O*NET-SOC 29-1011.00 | 4.96 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $79,200 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +8.7% 2025-35 |
| 4 | Motorboat Operators O*NET-SOC 53-5022.00 | 4.96 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $47,520 median (2025) Postsecondary nondegree award · +4.9% 2025-35 |
| 5 | Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary O*NET-SOC 25-1042.00 | 4.95 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $84,620 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +7.3% 2025-35 |
| 6 | Prosthodontists O*NET-SOC 29-1024.00 | 4.95 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 99% of 894 occupations | $311,180 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +5.8% 2025-35 |
| 7 | Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons O*NET-SOC 29-1022.00 | 4.93 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 98% of 894 occupations | $352,220 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +5.6% 2025-35 |
| 8 | Neurologists O*NET-SOC 29-1217.00 | 4.92 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 98% of 894 occupations | $248,560 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +6.4% 2025-35 |
| 9 | Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary O*NET-SOC 25-1066.00 | 4.89 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 98% of 894 occupations | $80,340 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +4% 2025-35 |
| 10 | Psychiatrists O*NET-SOC 29-1223.00 | 4.87 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 98% of 894 occupations | $281,870 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +7.2% 2025-35 |
| 11 | General Internal Medicine Physicians O*NET-SOC 29-1216.00 | 4.84 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 97% of 894 occupations | $256,560 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +4% 2025-35 |
| 12 | Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary O*NET-SOC 25-1071.00 | 4.83 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $107,310 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +17.9% 2025-35 |
| 13 | Astronomers O*NET-SOC 19-2011.00 | 4.83 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $128,820 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +7.8% 2025-35 |
| 14 | General and Operations Managers O*NET-SOC 11-1021.00 | 4.81 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $105,770 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +5% 2025-35 |
| 15 | Bioinformatics Scientists O*NET-SOC 19-1029.01 | 4.81 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $98,920 median (2025) Bachelor's degree · +4.7% 2025-35 |
| 16 | Commercial Pilots O*NET-SOC 53-2012.00 | 4.81 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $123,220 median (2025) Postsecondary nondegree award · +5.2% 2025-35 |
| 17 | Orthodontists O*NET-SOC 29-1023.00 | 4.81 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $289,140 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +6% 2025-35 |
| 18 | Farm Labor Contractors O*NET-SOC 13-1074.00 | 4.81 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 96% of 894 occupations | $58,460 median (2025) No formal educational credential · +7.4% 2025-35 |
| 19 | Couriers and Messengers O*NET-SOC 43-5021.00 | 4.79 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 95% of 894 occupations | $39,200 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · +8% 2025-35 |
| 20 | Airfield Operations Specialists O*NET-SOC 53-2022.00 | 4.79 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 95% of 894 occupations | $56,850 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · +7.8% 2025-35 |
| 21 | Acupuncturists O*NET-SOC 29-1291.00 | 4.79 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 95% of 894 occupations | $76,040 median (2025) Master's degree · +8.6% 2025-35 |
| 22 | Animal Trainers O*NET-SOC 39-2011.00 | 4.78 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 94% of 894 occupations | $39,990 median (2025) High school diploma or equivalent · +4.2% 2025-35 |
| 23 | Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists O*NET-SOC 39-5012.00 | 4.76 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 94% of 894 occupations | $35,790 median (2025) Postsecondary nondegree award · +7.7% 2025-35 |
| 24 | Veterinarians O*NET-SOC 29-1131.00 | 4.76 of 5 A lot of freedom | Higher than 94% of 894 occupations | $130,100 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +9.4% 2025-35 |
| 25 | Physical Therapists O*NET-SOC 29-1123.00 | 4.75 of 5 between "Some freedom" and "A lot of freedom" | Higher than 93% of 894 occupations | $102,760 median (2025) Doctoral or professional degree · +11.9% 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
Freedom to Make Decisions (O*NET element 4.C.3.a.4). The question put to incumbents: “How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?”
- 1
No freedom
- 2
Very little freedom
- 3
Limited freedom
- 4
Some freedom
- 5
A lot of freedom
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 projected employment growth above 3.5% over 2025-35, the BLS projection for all occupations are listed: 405 of 894 qualify.
The unrestricted ranking is at Jobs with the most freedom to make decisions.
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.