Surgeons

Skills

People in this career need to:

Communicate

• Listen to others, understand, and ask questions.
• Express ideas clearly when speaking or writing.
• Read and understand work-related materials.

Reason and Problem Solve

• Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong.
• Use reasoning to discover answers to problems.
• Analyze ideas and use logic to determine their strengths and weaknesses.
• Combine several pieces of information and draw conclusions.
• Identify problems and review information. Develop, review, and apply solutions.
• Judge the costs and benefits of a possible action.
• Concentrate and not be distracted while performing a task.
• Make sense of new information by studying it.
• Develop rules or follow guidelines for arranging items.
• Think of new ideas or original and creative ways to solve problems.
• Identify ways to measure and improve system performance.
• Determine how a system should work. Study how changes in conditions affect outcomes.
• Remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.

Use Math and Science

• Use math skills and scientific methods to solve problems.

Manage Oneself, People, Time and Things

• Check how well one is learning or doing something.
• Manage the time of self and others.
• Go back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information without becoming confused.
• Motivate, develop, and direct people as they work.

Work with People

• Be aware of others' reactions and change behavior in relation to them.
• Look for ways to help people.
• Use several methods to learn or teach others how to do something.

Work with Things

• Determine the tools and equipment needed to do a job.
• Watch gauges, dials, and output to make sure a machine is working properly.
• Test and inspect products, services, or processes. Evaluate quality or performance.

Perceive and Visualize

• Identify a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in distracting material.
• Imagine how something will look if it is moved around or its parts are rearranged.
• Quickly and accurately compare letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns.

Knowledge

People in this career need knowledge in the following areas:

• Medicine and Dentistry: Knowledge of injuries, illnesses, and defects. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
• Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of providing special services to customers based on their needs.
• English Language: Knowledge of the meaning, spelling, and use of the English language.
• Biology: Knowledge of plants, animals, and living organisms and how they function.
• Education and Training: Knowledge of teaching and the methods involved in learning and instruction.
• Psychology: Knowledge of people, their actions, and mental processes. This may include knowledge of how to treat emotional and behavioral problems.
• Computers and Electronics: Knowledge of computer hardware and software.
• Personnel and Human Resources: Knowledge of the department that is in charge of the relationship between a company and its employees. In particular, includes knowledge of the activities performed by the department.
• Therapy and Counseling: Knowledge of the effect of diseases and injuries. Knowledge of how to give advice on social or personal problems. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
• Administration and Management: Knowledge of managing the operations of a business, company, or group.
• Law, Government, and Jurisprudence: Knowledge of laws, rules, court procedures, and the political process.
• Sales and Marketing: Knowledge of advertising and selling products and services.
• Chemistry: Knowledge of the properties of substances and the changes that occur when they interact.
• Engineering and Technology: Knowledge of how to build machines, buildings, and other things. Also includes knowledge of how to use computers, machines, and tools to do work more usefully.
• Mathematics: Knowledge of the rules and uses of numbers. Areas of knowledge include arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and statistics.
• Mechanical: Knowledge of designing, using, and repairing machines and tools.

Interests

People in this career are people who tend to:

• Consider achievement important. They like to see the results of their work and to use their strongest abilities. They like to get a feeling of accomplishment from their work.
• Consider recognition important. They like to work in jobs which have opportunities for them to advance, be recognized for their work, and direct and instruct others. They usually prefer jobs in which they are looked up to by others.
• Consider independence important. They like to make decisions and try out ideas on their own. They prefer jobs where they can plan their work with little supervision.
• Consider good working conditions important. They like jobs offering steady employment and good pay. They want employment that fits their individual work style. They may prefer doing a variety of tasks, working alone, or being busy all the time.
• Consider relationships important. They like to work in a friendly, non-competitive environment. They like to do things for other people. They prefer jobs where they are not pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.
• Have investigative interests. They like work activities that have to do with ideas and thinking. They like to search for facts and figure out solutions to problems mentally.
• Have realistic interests. They like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like to work with plants, animals, and physical materials such as wood, tools, and machinery. They often prefer to work outside.
• Have social interests. They like work activities that assist others and promote learning and personal development. They like to communicate with others: to teach, give advice, help, or otherwise be of service to others.

Source: Minnesota Department of Education.