Jobs that aren't for Autistic people?

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I personally think that it should depend on the person and not on the disability since some disabled people would be beneficial for any job, especially some folks with Asperger's Syndrome or High Functioning Autism, but that's just me. I have severe Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder which has left me curious about other disabilities and what their typical jobs are. Anyways, here's the list and feel to reflect on it.

1. Any branch in the Armed Forces (whether it's the Navy, Marine Corps, the Coast Guards, the Army or the Air Force). Asperger's Syndrome and Autism are specifically listed as automatic disqualifiers for all of the above.
2. An airline pilot (well Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is an automatic disqualifier for this, so I'm assuming that Autism and Asperger's Syndrome are as well).
3. The police force (it's not listed as an automatic disqualifier, but they wouldn't take somebody with any case of Asperger's Syndrome or Autism).
4. A lawyer (it isn't listed, but the requirements kind of narrow it out of the picture).
5. A professional athlete (it depends on the coordination since there's a professional athlete with Cerebral Palsy out there named Michael McKillop who has won two gold medals in the 2012 olympics which shows that anything is possible). I brought up Cerebral Palsy since there are even worse motor coordination deficits displayed in it.
6. A commercial trader
7. A politician (Al Gore might be Autistic however, and he's a highly successful politician).
8. A psychologist (there are some Autistic psychologists out there however, and they seem to be decent at it).
9. An actor or an actress (Daryl Hannah has Asperger's Syndrome though).
10. Doctor (this is questionable for folks with both ADHD and Asperger's Syndrome).

What are some other bad jobs for them? What are your opinions on them?

Two that come to mind are salesperson and customer service....

I think in some realms of medicine, Autistic people would do better than average. As far as things I'd assume would be bad...

Negotiation/mediator
DJ (If you have sensory problems)
Construction (Again sensory problems)

My job – Mediator and conflict resolution manager.

I joined the Airforce before I knew about this part of me (AS). It was a disaster for me. I was discharged after 4 months.
I don't regret joining, and I'm proud that I made it through basic training, but it definitely wasn't for me.

I present to you, Oh Great King of Lists, the pros and cons of nursing.

PROS
If you don't cry and lack empathy, the sight of a dying man or bacteria-shrouded child won't faze you.
You'll make enough money to pay the rent live on your own so you won't be homeless.
Yes, RN's are having a hard time finding jobs these days, but it's still within the realm of possibility.

CONS
The amount of ass kissing you're forced to do is way beyond the normal human limit.
You have to bite your tongue when encountering superiors not even half as smart as your toenail.
If you're overly sensitive to bright lights, loud noises and foreign speech in all their cacophonous glory, stay far away.
The amount of disparaging smells within a 10 cubic foot area is more than what you'd find at a typical game farm.
Hopefully you have a strong shoulder as being low man on the totem pole requires it.

Cyberdad beat me to it. I worked in customer service several times and it was an absolute nightmare. I wouldn't recommend that anyone with autism should work in customer service unless they have learned to be VERY good at coping with e.g. lots of sensory input, constantly changing demands, changing targets; "shifting the goalposts" ** I actually did really well to begin with at all of my customer service jobs - I was almost always highest on my teams in terms of performance metrics and things like that but I would very rapidly burn out and have to leave the job or get myself fired one way or the other (not turning up due to anxiety and also not being able to use the phone to call them due to anxiety - I get BAD anxiety - , having meltdowns at work and losing my temper with somebody, being generally unreliable due to the difficulties the jobs were causing me... various other reasons too but those are what spring to mind). I'm sure there are some autistic people that can cope with these kind of jobs - after all I coped for a while and there will certainly be people around with a greater capacity for coping than me - but all in all if there is any kind of choice in the matter I would suggest there are probably better jobs for the average autistic person than customer service.

** As an example of this kind of behaviour: one time my supposedly 2-month ahead shift pattern was changed from nights (my original pattern which I had been hired to do and had been doing for 2 months), to days, to nights in the space of a week - I had to change my sleep pattern correspondingly each time. This was during my 6 month trial period so I could hardly argue. Additionally, I *literally* never met my team-manager. My first shift he had just gone off sick with depression and never returned during the whole time I was there. After about 2 months the two senior members of the team (in so much as they had been there for a few years) both left and went to work doing the same job for a competitor. They got a bunch of extra newbies in on to the night team with me and eventually we got some supervision but for an entire month I was the most "senior" employee in the building for the night shift; this was doing first-line tech support for a big player in the UK internet industry and there were no second line support at night so we were "it". All of calls in the UK would come to us and the most senior employee around for an entire month - me - had been there for about two months. There was nobody to call for technical advice if I didn't know the answer and as the most proficient and experienced most of the team were looking to me for their answers when they didn't know. I was also the designated first-aider and fire-evacuation dude. All of this (except the first aid, I volunteered for that) was sprung on me and they made no effort to pay me any extra or even really acknowledge the immense responsibility I shouldered for them with a smile on my face. They even had the cheek to extend my trial period despite all of what I did for them because I had one more sick day than the other members of my team despite me largely outperforming them in our actual job and all the extra stuff I did. Also the sick days were as a result of an infection that I caught from another team member, at work. That was the point I quit working for them; there was no way I was working for a company who could so thoroughly use me and then when it came to my performance review to decide on my trial period just discard all of the s**t I put myself through for them and focus on one bloody sick day instead of two in a >6 month period. What the actual f**k. This was all a number of years ago but it still pisses me off. That whole episode contributed a lot to how cynical I am. I wont say who my employer was as I don't have proof of any of what I am saying and as such some of it could be considered to be libellous. Anyway, sorry for the long rant about that. It is semi-relevant though; it just shows what these companies are capable of doing to their supposedly "valued" employees. edit: credit is due to the other team members in that incident too - they all rose to the challenge as well, it was certainly NOT all me) This all happened at the "high point" of my life i.e. when I was coping the best and doing most of what I wanted to do. It's pretty much been downhill since then tbh - not because I am dwelling on this thing or anything but this episode certainly contributed.

TLDR: Don't work in customer service because it is (a) incredibly unpleasant and (b) there is a high chance they will f**k you over.

I'm not sure if politician would be a bad job in every case. I understand that an Aspie would be more prone to a fatal blunder but that same Aspie could have an advantage in public speaking.

Aspies often have enhanced verbal abilities and for me those talents got me on student council. I'm a great public speaker and I know other Aspies may have a similar talent.

The disadvantages of being an aspie have the potential to make a career in politics a dissaster but if those holes are patched up the person with Asperger's could also have some very significant advantages.

L

I disagree about several of these. I think it wouldn't be impossible to be an actor or politician, because I can tell you from personal experience that speaking to an audience is much different than speaking to an individual (you don't have to look it in the eye, for one), and I, personally have always felt quite at home doing it. Also, I don't see why one couldn't be a doctor. Most doctors, especially specialists, don't really have to make much conversations with their patients. There are also careers in psychology, law, and law enforcement that don't require lots of social interaction. Furthermore, having an Aspergian special interest in something, and the intense focus that comes with that, can make up for deficits in other areasto a degree, so I think with hard work, people with ASDs can succeed in unexpected fields. I wouldn't imagine a lot of us would be good at customer service, though.

Um, no you watch way too much TV.

Ummmm the only career i can see myself doing is being a doctor (neurologist) i can't see why i should be excluded from being a doctor if I'm aspie

Indeed. In my experience (I know a few and worked for one) most lawyers spend most of their time writing letters (or possibly dictating while having coffee and biscuits), speaking on the phone (OK so some aspies struggle with that) and, as they like to say, "perusing" documents.

I said that it's questionable, and you would have to be up for some social interactions (depending on the position). In some cases, I would prefer a doctor with Asperger's Syndrome since a lot of them would be gifted in this subject and could point out a disease spot on. It's questionable for folks with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as well since we're known to have issues in academic classrooms and in medical schools. However, the ones who would make it through tend to be exceptional doctors.

I know an autistic lawyer. Does family law, divorce, child custody cases.

A waitress or waiter or a fast food worker. It's faced paced , requires coordination in carrying things and not spilling, requires social interaction and customer service (must not offend customers) and requires a lot of organization and multi-tasking.

I have a friend with moderate Autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder who actually does quite well as a waitress since she enjoys multitasking more than anything. She's still awkward while greeting people, but this has taught her some social interactions and a bit non-verbal social cues since people with Asperger's Syndrome or Autism often learn them through doing jobs or tasks like this that require them to socialize.