Coding Jobs with O*NET OnLine
Trying to find the correct O*NET-SOC code for job orders, applicants, and UI claimants? Use the interactive steps below to leverage O*NET OnLine for your job-coding task.
1. Pick your path to find an occupation
Read through the options below, and start your search or browse using the boxes on the rightbox below your desired option.
All of these search options are also available from the O*NET Online home page or from the menu bar at the top of every page.
Quickest option: search with title, code, or phrase
In the Occupation Keyword Search box, type a job title (e.g., “dental assistant”) or an O*NET-SOC code (full or partial). As you type, your desired occupation may show up in the popup menu; you can click on it to go directly to the occupation report. Or you can click Search O*NET-SOC occupations to view more search results.
You can also enter a short task statement or descriptive phrase for the occupation, if you don’t have a specific or helpful job title. The search results will show you occupations which match key words from your phrase, with the closest matches displayed first. To discover why an occupation matched your search, click the How do they match? button above the results, and then click the question icon next to the occupation of interest.
If you prefer listings: browse occupation groups
In the Find Occupations box, you can select a specific list of occupations, and read through it to find a match. Choices include:
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Industry — grouped by top-level NAICS sectors, based on percentage of workers employed in that industry
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Job Family — grouped by 2-digit SOC families
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Job Zone — grouped by amount of job preparation needed (education, experience, training)
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All Occupations — every O*NET-SOC occupation on one page; the list can also be downloaded as XLSX or CSV
Bright Outlook occupations are expected to grow rapidly in the next several years, will have large numbers of job openings, or are new and emerging occupations.
The National Career Clusters® Framework
external site serves as an organizing tool for programs, curriculum design and instruction. Career Clusters contain occupations in the same field of work that require similar skills. They can help focus plans towards obtaining the necessary knowledge, competencies, and training for success in a particular career pathway.
Industries are broad groups of businesses or organizations with similar activities, products, or services.
Occupations are included based on the percentage of workers employed in that industry.
Job Families are groups of occupations based on work performed, skills, education, training, and credentials.
Job Zones group occupations into one of five categories based on levels of education, experience, and training necessary to perform the occupation.
Occupations are listed that require education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.
When titles are fuzzy: search by skills
In the Advanced Searches box, you can use a job’s skill set to identify occupations when a title or keyword search does not produce relevant results:
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Soft Skills — select the interpersonal and thinking skills needed for a job to find occupations across industries and preparation levels.
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Technology Skills — search for a software product or category to find occupations where workers might use that software on the job.
Use your job duties to find occupations that perform similar work. The search uses the O*NET database of over 19,000 occupation-specific task statements.
Professional associations are a great source of additional information on jobs, specialties, and industries. They also serve as an excellent starting point for networking in your career of choice. Get seamless access to professional associations by searching the O*NET database of almost 3,000 organizations related to the occupations in the U.S. economy.
Use activities performed across different types of jobs to find occupations. The search uses the O*NET database of over 2,000 detailed work activities performed across a small to moderate number of occupations.
Many employers value workers with soft skills—interpersonal and thinking skills needed to interact successfully with people and to perform efficiently and effectively in the workplace.
Find occupations using your current and/or future soft skills.
Build your skills list now
Find occupations based on software used on the job. Learn about the technology and related skills needed to successfully perform in today’s world of work.
To transition from another system: search by external code or title
In the Crosswalks box, you can convert a code or title from the MOC (military), CIP (education), OOH, SOC, DOT, RAPIDS, or ESCO systems into matching O*NET-SOC occupations.
2. Open and verify the occupation report
Click any result to open its Summary page (you’ll also see Details and Custom tabs). The O*NET-SOC code appears in the page header alongside the occupation title, and common/alternate titles are listed near the top.
Verify you’ve got the right match
Compare the Description, Tasks, and other content (e.g., Technology Skills, Knowledge, Skills, Work Activities) against your job order or work history. Use Related Occupations links and the Job Zone section if you’re deciding between close matches.
Record the code
Once confident, capture the O*NET-SOC code from the report header (e.g., “15-1252.00”) for your system entry or documentation.
3. Export occupation data optional
In the Details tab of occupation reports, most sections include a Save table option to download CSV or Excel files if you need to share or analyze specifics.
Need a complete list of all occupations? Browse or download it from See All Occupations.
4. Can’t find a match for your job title?
If you have conducted a thorough search within O*NET OnLine and cannot determine the appropriate code for your job title, request assistance through the Occupational Code Assignment (OCA) process.
Looking to automate or streamline your job-coding process?
Your organization can use Web Services APIs to develop unique job-coding processing tools. Most of the data and search features mentioned above are available through APIs. Programming expertise is required.
