Even though it can be hard for people to find employment, there are a number of opportunities that exist. Temple Grandin, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at Colorado University offers a list of recommended jobs for people with autism based on their learning preference and whether they are cognitively high or low. She explains how people with various levels of functionality have difficulty remembering in the short-term, but excel when asked to recall information in the long-term (Grandin, 1999). Her book, Developing Talents: Careers for Individuals with Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism (2008) is a great resource for further information. (This and many other great resources can be found on the Targeting Autism Resource Database).There are all types of learners, and people with autism are no exception. Some learn better visually, while others are extremely talented with numbers and mathematical concepts.

Grandin developed the following lists, suggesting jobs that would not be good for people with autism (list A), jobs that would be good for visual thinkers (list B), good jobs for non-visual thinkers (list B), and jobs for those who are non-verbal or have poor verbal skills (list D). These lists were taken directly from the Indiana Resource Center for Autism article on Choosing The Right Job for People with Autism or Asperger's syndrome.

LIST A:

Bad Jobs for People with "High Functioning Autism" (Grandin) or Asperger's syndrome:

Jobs that require high demands on short-term working memory

Cashier -- making change quickly puts too much demand on short-term working memory
Short order cook -- Have to keep track of many orders and cook many different things at the same time
Waitress -- Especially difficult if have to keep track of many different tables
Casino dealer -- Too many things to keep track of
Taxi dispatcher -- Too many things to keep track of
Taking oral dictation -- Difficult due to auditory processing problems
Airline ticket agent -- Deal with angry people when flights are cancelled
Air traffic controller -- Information overload and stress
Receptionist and telephone operator -- [Might] have problems when the switch board got busy

LIST B:

Good Jobs for Visual Thinkers

Computer programming -- Wide-open field with many jobs available especially in industrial automation, software design, business computers, communications and network systems
Drafting -- Engineering drawings and computer aided drafting. Commercial art -- Advertising and magazine layout can be done as freelance work
Photography -- Still and video, TV cameraman can be done as freelance work
Equipment designing -- Many industries, often a person starts as a draftsman and then moves into designing mechanical and medical equipment
Animal trainer or veterinary technician -- Dog obedience trainer, behavior problem consultant
Automobile mechanic -- Can visualize how the entire car works
Computer-troubleshooter and repair -- Can visualize problems in computers and networks
Small appliance repair -- Can make a nice local business
Handcrafts of many different types such as wood carving, jewelry making, ceramics, etc.
Laboratory technician -- Who modifies and builds specialized lab equipment
Web page design -- Find a good niche market can be done as freelance work
Building trades -- Carpenter or welder. These jobs make good use of visual skills but some people will not be able to do if they have motor and coordination problems.
Computer animation -- Visual thinkers would be very good at this field, but there is more competition in this field than in business or industrial computer programming. Businesses are recruiting immigrants from overseas because there is a shortage of good programmers in business and industrial fields.
Building maintenance -- Fixes broken pipes, windows and other things in an apartment complex, hotel or office building
Factory maintenance -- Repairs and fixes factory equipment

LIST C:

Good Jobs for Non-Visual Thinkers:

Those who are good at math, music or facts

Accounting -- Get very good in a specialized field such as income taxes or actuarial science for insurance companies
Library science -- reference librarian. Help people find information in the library or on the Internet. If you prefer to not interact with people, choose digitizing, cataloguing, or archiving.
Computer programming -- Less visual types can be done as freelance work
Engineering -- Electrical, electronic, chemical, mechanical, civil, or aerospace engineering
Journalist -- Very accurate facts, can be done as freelance
Copy editor -- Corrects manuscripts. Many people freelance for larger publishers
Taxi driver -- Knows where every street is
Inventory control -- Keeps track of merchandise stocked in a store
Tuning pianos and other musical instruments, can be done as freelance work
Laboratory technician -- Running laboratory equipment
Bank Teller -- Very accurate money counting, much less demand on short-term working memory than a busy cashier who mostly makes change quickly
Clerk and filing jobs -- knows where every file is
Telemarketing -- Get to repeat the same thing over and over, selling on the telephone. Noisy environment may be a problem. Telephone sales avoids many social problems.
Statistician -- Work in many different fields such as research, census bureau, industrial quality control, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, etc.
Physicist or mathematician -- There are very few jobs in these fields. Only the very brilliant can get and keep jobs. Jobs are much more plentiful in computer programming and accounting.

LIST D:

Jobs for Non-speaking People with Autism or People with Poor Verbal Skills

Reshelving library books -- Can memorize the entire numbering system and shelf locations
Factory assembly work -- Especially if the environment is quiet
Copy shop -- Running photocopies. Printing jobs should be lined up by somebody else
Janitor jobs -- Cleaning floors, toilets, windows and offices
Restocking shelves -- In many types of stores
Recycling plant -- Sorting jobs
Warehouse -- Loading trucks, stacking boxes
Lawn and garden work -- Mowing lawns and landscaping work
Data entry -- If the person has fine motor problems, this would be a difficult job
Fast food restaurant -- Cleaning and cooking jobs with little demand on short-term memory
Plant care -- Water plants in a large office building

While these suggestions may be helpful to some extent, all people with autism are different and desire different things. In Michael Carley's, Unemployed on the Autism Spectrum, he talks about the "Spectrum of Behavioral Permissibility" in the workplace (2016). On one end of the spectrum you have the arts, where eccentricities are more accepted. On the other end is the military, which is an extremely strict and rigid environment. In the middle are your common jobs, which tolerate some behavioral variation. The assumption may be that the arts are the most commonly sought jobs by people with autism. However, because of the informal nature of many arts jobs, people with autism can feel intimidated by the lack of direction.

The military can be attractive because there is no wiggle room. Clear directions are given and rules are strictly followed. However, the middle ground is what Carley calls "the real minefield" (2016). In this type of work rules vary greatly from job to job and social expectations are ambiguous. People are easily replaced, which makes it harder to keep a job. However, these are the most common jobs available. The trick is finding the one that will make you the most comfortable and happy.

As previously stated, the type of job you apply for should depend on the nature of work. Temple Grandin uses a metaphor to explain how people with autism process and store information. She states, "If I were a computer, I would have a huge hard drive that could hold 10 times as much information as an ordinary computer but my processor chip would be small. To use 1999 computer terminology, I have a 1000 gigabyte hard drive and a little 286 processor. Normal people may have only 10 gigabytes of disc space on their hard drive and a Pentium for a processor. I cannot do two or three things at once" (Grandin, 1999) . People with autism may be able to store a large amount of information, but that does not mean they can regurgitate the information at a fast speed. Employers need to understand how this can affect job performance in certain areas and thus utilize their skills without jeopardizing their wellbeing.

Chapter 9 of Grandin's Book, The Way I See It , provides excellent advice for people on the spectrum regarding how to find a good fit in the workforce and how to acquire (and keep) the job.

Activity: Can you think of your own metaphor to describe how someone with autism may feel in an uncomfortable work environment?

Type Your Ideas Here

References

Carley, M. J. (2016). Unemployed on the autism spectrum: How to cope productively with the effects of unemployment and job hunt with confidence. London: Jessica Kingsley.

Grandin, T., Ph.D. (1999, November). Choosing the right job for people with autism or Asperger's syndrome. Retrieved from https://www.iidc.indiana.edu/pages/Choosing-the-Right-Job-for-People-with-Autism-or-Aspergers-Syndrome

Breaking Barriers

The Good News!

Employment and Training Opportunities

Employment and Training Opportunities

Topic 6: Employment and Training Opportunities

References

External Document links