Chemists

Employers

About 29 percent of the approximately 87,200 chemists employed in the United States work in chemical manufacturing. Nineteen percent work in research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences, and 9 percent of chemists work for testing laboratories. Examples of large companies that employ many chemists are Dow Chemical Company, DuPont, Monsanto, and Campbell Soup Company.

Chemists also work for government agencies, such as the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Chemists may find positions in laboratories at institutions of higher learning that are devoted to research. In addition, some chemists work in full-time teaching positions in high schools and universities.

Starting Out

Once you have a degree in chemistry, job opportunities will begin to become available. Summer jobs may become available after your sophomore or junior year of college. You can attend chemical trade fairs and science and engineering fairs to meet and perhaps interview with prospective employers. Professors or faculty advisers may know of job openings, and you can begin breaking into the field by using these connections.

If you are a senior and are interested in pursuing an academic career at a college or university, you should apply to graduate schools. You will want to begin focusing even more on the specific type of chemistry you wish to practice and teach (for example, inorganic chemistry or analytical chemistry). Look for universities that have strong programs and eminent professors in your intended field of specialty. By getting involved with the basic research of a specific branch of chemistry while in graduate school, you can become a highly employable expert in your field.