Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary
The occupation Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary covers people who teach courses in health specialties, in fields such as dentistry, laboratory technology, medicine, pharmacy, public health, therapy, and veterinary medicine. O*NET rates it as extensive preparation, which usually means graduate school and often five years or more of related experience. It leans on speaking, reading comprehension, and instructing. You may also need to prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts. On the six-type interest model it reads SIC, meaning helping, teaching or caring for people comes first, followed by research, analysis and working through hard problems. If you want helping, teaching or caring for people, keep it on your list. If you need leading, persuading and making business decisions, it may feel thin.
What they do
Teach courses in health specialties, in fields such as dentistry, laboratory technology, medicine, pharmacy, public health, therapy, and veterinary medicine.
Main tasks
- Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
- Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
- Supervise laboratory sessions.
- Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
- Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.
Skills
- Speaking
- Reading Comprehension
- Instructing
- Writing
- Learning Strategies
- Critical Thinking
Who this career fits
May suit you if
- You get energy from helping other people move forward.
- You enjoy working out why something happens, not just what happened.
- You are prepared for graduate-level study and a long training path.
- You are comfortable relying on speaking and reading comprehension.
May not suit you if
- You find a full day of dealing with people draining.
- You want to lead people or run the business side. Enterprising rates 2.0 out of 7 here.
- You want to be working in the field within the next few years.
Interest profile
O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code SIC takes the three highest, and Social comes first here.
Preparation
Extensive preparation. Many jobs here need graduate study, and people often spend five years or more building specialist experience.
Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Master's Degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.
Also called
- Assistant Professor
- Associate Professor
- Clinical Professor
- Instructor
- Lecturer
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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 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.