Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers
In the Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers occupation, workers perform various tasks to arrange and direct individual funeral services, such as coordinating transportation of body to mortuary, interviewing family or other authorized person to arrange details, selecting pallbearers, aiding with the selection of officials for religious rites, and providing transportation for mourners. Expect to oversee the preparation and care of the remains of people who have died. The strongest interest signal is Conventional (4.7 of 7), then Enterprising (4.7) and Social, which gives it the code CES. Plan on one or two years of vocational training, an apprenticeship or an associate’s degree; O*NET labels this medium preparation. Strength in social perceptiveness, active listening, and service orientation helps most here. People who want orderly work with data, records and clear procedures usually fit better here than those who need research, analysis and working through hard problems.
What they do
Perform various tasks to arrange and direct individual funeral services, such as coordinating transportation of body to mortuary, interviewing family or other authorized person to arrange details, selecting pallbearers, aiding with the selection of officials for religious rites, and providing transportation for mourners.
Main tasks
- Oversee the preparation and care of the remains of people who have died.
- Obtain information needed to complete legal documents, such as death certificates or burial permits.
- Perform embalming duties, as necessary.
- Consult with families or friends of the deceased to arrange funeral details, such as obituary notice wording, casket selection, or plans for services.
- Remove deceased remains from place of death.
- Contact cemeteries to schedule the opening and closing of graves.
Skills
- Social Perceptiveness
- Active Listening
- Service Orientation
- Speaking
- Coordination
- Time Management
Who this career fits
May suit you if
- You like clear rules and getting the details right.
- You like taking the lead and making the call.
- You are willing to put in a year or two of focused training.
- You are comfortable relying on social perceptiveness and active listening.
May not suit you if
- You get restless with routine, records and exact procedures.
- You want to spend most of your time analyzing and researching. Investigative rates 1.4 out of 7 here.
- You need to start within a few months, with no training period.
Interest profile
O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code CES takes the three highest, and Conventional comes first here.
Preparation
Medium preparation. Expect vocational school, an apprenticeship, related experience or an associate’s degree, usually one or two years in total.
Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Associate's Degree or other 2-year 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
- Funeral Arrangement Director
- Funeral Arranger
- Funeral Counselor
- Funeral Director
- Funeral Family Service Assistant
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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.