The method
What's under the hood — and what isn't.
A career tool is only worth trusting if it's honest about how it works and where it stops. Here's both.
What it's built on
Charted matches you the way career researchers do: it builds a Holland interest profile — the six RIASEC codes (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, Conventional) — and compares the shape of your profile against the interest profile of each occupation in O*NET. The match is a profile-shape correlation: how closely your pattern of interests lines up with the pattern the work actually rewards.
On top of interests, it weighs two more things: your work values — what you need work to give you, like stability, independence, or helping people — and your work-style fit, meaning how you prefer to work and the practical limits a body or a life puts on the options.
How the three layers are weighted
- 50%Interests (Holland / RIASEC)
- 30%Work values
- 20%Work style
Interests carry the most weight because, across decades of career research, they predict fit and staying power better than a snap self-rating of skills. Values come next because a job that fights what you need from work wears you down no matter how well it matches on paper.
What it is not
Being straight about this is the point of the page.
- It is not a clinical instrument. It doesn't diagnose anything, measure your mental health, or assess aptitude. It's a tool for exploring directions, not a test you pass or fail.
- It is not a Big Five personality test. The work-style layer is directional, not psychometric — it's a read on preferences to steer suggestions, not a validated measure of your personality, and it shouldn't be treated as one.
- It is not a guarantee. A strong match is a place to start looking, not a promise about how a job will feel, what it will pay you locally, or whether you'll get hired. It's a compass, not a GPS.
Where the data comes from — and its limits
Occupation profiles and requirements come from O*NET, maintained by the U.S. Department of Labor. Salary ranges are national figures based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data. That's real, sourced data — but national numbers hide a lot of local variation. What a role pays, and what it takes to get hired, shifts with your city, your market, and your timing. Treat the figures as a realistic starting picture, not a quote for where you live.
Charted is a career exploration tool, not a clinical assessment or professional counseling. Recommendations are suggestions grounded in career science research — a starting point, not advice tailored to your situation. Results vary by location, circumstances, and the job market. For guidance built around your specifics, a certified career counselor is the right call.