The O*NET-SOC Taxonomy

Evolution of the O*NET-SOC Taxonomy

The initial O*NET database release (O*NET 98) was based on the occupational classification used by the BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program. This OES-based taxonomy was developed and released prior to the update of the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) .

O*NET-SOC 2000

As required by the mandate from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) , the O*NET taxonomy was converted to one that was SOC-based in 2000 (O*NET-SOC 2000). For more information about the SOC transition, see our Transitioning O*NET to the Standard Occupational Classification report.

O*NET-SOC 2006

The June 2006 release of the O*NET 10.0 database (O*NET-SOC 2006) incorporated the second major change to the taxonomy. Details of this update and implementation of the O*NET-SOC taxonomy can be found in our Updating the O*NET-SOC Taxonomy report. The O*NET-SOC 2006 taxonomy includes 949 occupational titles, 812 of which represent data-level occupations.

O*NET-SOC 2009

The June 2009 release of the O*NET 14.0 database (O*NET-SOC 2009) represents the third major change to the taxonomy. As a product and result of the New and Emerging Occupations research (see below), 153 new and emerging (N&E) occupations identified within 17 in-demand industry clusters have been added to the O*NET-SOC taxonomy. The revised taxonomy includes 1102 occupational titles, 965 of which represent O*NET data-level occupations. Details of this update and implementation of the O*NET-SOC taxonomy can be found in our New and Emerging Occupations of the 21st Century: Updating the O*NET-SOC Taxonomy report.

Beyond 2009

New and Emerging Occupations

New workforce requirements, including changes in technology, society, law or business practices, are leading to new and emerging (N&E) occupations in the United States. Such N&E occupations were identified within high growth industries identified by the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative and administered by the Department of Labor's Employment Training Administration (DOL/ETA) .

In order to reflect these changes, the O*NET system is adapting by incorporating N&E occupations into the O*NET-SOC taxonomy. A detailed description of the N&E effort is available in the New and Emerging (N&E) Occupations Methodology Development report. The O*NET-SOC 2009 taxonomy includes a total of 159 N&E occupations identified using this process.

Occupational Code Assistance

The established Occupational Code Assignment (OCA) process enables users to submit occupational information, and request assistance in identifying a matching O*NET-SOC code and title. In cases where an existing occupational code and title can not be identified, the submitted information is reviewed and utilized in identifying occupations that might be added to the O*NET-SOC system. For more information, see Understanding the Occupational Code Assignment (OCA) Process.

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Occupational Listings and Files

Taxonomies:
O*NET-SOC 2000 occupations
O*NET-SOC 2006 occupations
O*NET-SOC 2009 occupations

Crosswalks:
Crosswalk 2000 to 2006
Crosswalk 2006 to 2009

O*NET-SOC 2009 — Occupations by type of change:
Added to the taxonomy
Code changes only
Title changes only

Other:
Occupations in the Data Collection Plan
Occupations with updated data
Occupations with second update
New & Emerging occupations

Download:
All listings — Excel (ZIP - 506 KB)

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