Chemists
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics > Science and MathematicsProjected Growth: Average
Projected Job Openings
Considerable Preparation Needed
Job Description
Your job is to Conduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or knowledge.
Common job titles of Chemists include:
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Experience and Education
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for this occupation. For example, a person in this occupation must complete four years of college and work for several years in industry to be considered qualified.
85.77% said they needed a Bachelor's Degree.
6.67% said they needed a Master's Degree.
Tasks
Conduct quality control tests.
Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed.
Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
Analyze organic or inorganic compounds to determine chemical or physical properties, composition, structure, relationships, or reactions, using chromatography, spectroscopy, or spectrophotometry techniques.
Direct, coordinate, or advise personnel in test procedures for analyzing components or physical properties of materials.
Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests.
Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests.
Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis.
Purchase laboratory supplies, such as chemicals, when supplies are low or near their expiration date.
Evaluate laboratory safety procedures to ensure compliance with standards or to make improvements as needed.
Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests.
Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods.
Study effects of various methods of processing, preserving, or packaging on composition or properties of foods.
Tools
X ray diffraction equipment
Well tissue culture plates
Water baths
Vacuum ovens
Ultraviolet-visible spectrometers
Ultracentrifuges
Tubular furnaces
All ToolsTube magnetic mixers
Top-loading electronic balances
Titrators
Tissue culture plates
Thistle tubes
Thermal gravimetric analyzers
Thermal cyclers
Test tubes
Tensile testers
Tabletop centrifuges
Syringe pumps
Stripping analyzers
Strip chart recorders
Stereo zoom microscopes
Split-hinge furnaces
Speed-vac concentrators
Spectrophotometers
Spectrometers
Spectrofluorimeters
Sonicators
Solvent recyclers
Solar simulators
Single crystal x ray diffractometers
Signal average storage scopes
Shaking waterbaths
Shaking incubators
Scanning tunneling microscopes STM
Scanning electron microscopes SEM
Rotary evaporators
Respirometers
Respirators
Refrigerated high-speed centrifuges
Refrigerated circulators
Reagent pumps
Pressure sensors
Potentiostats
Polarographic analyzers
Polarizing microscopes
Polarimeters
Plasticorders
Pipetting stations
Pipettes
Picosecond lasers
Photochemical reactors
pH meters
Petri dishes
Personal computers
Particle size analyzers
Oxygen bomb calorimeters
Oscilloscopes
Oscillating disc rheometers
Nuclear magnetic resonance NMR spectrometers
Nitrogen lasers
Neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet Nd:YAG lasers
Nanoscopes
Multiwell microplates
Monocular microscopes
Mini synthesizers
Microwave digestion systems
Microplate spectrophotometers
Micropipettes
Microinjectors
Microdistillation ovens
Microcentrifuges
Micro electrobalances
Mercury lamp photolysis systems
Melting point apparatus
Mass spectrometers
Mainframe computers
Magnetometers
Magnetic susceptibility balances
Luminescence spectrometers
Liquid scintillation counters
Liquid chromatographs LC
Laser printers
Laser power meters
Large-format plotters
Laptop computers
Laboratory vacuum pumps
Laboratory presses
Lab heat exchangers
Karl Fischer titrators
Ion selective electrode ISE meters
Ion analyzers
Inverted microscopes
Infrared IR spectrometers
Inert atmosphere glove boxes
Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometers ICP-MS
Immersion probes
Hydrogenation apparatus
Hot plates with magnetic stirrers
Homogenizers
High-speed centrifuges
High-pressure liquid chromatography systems
High-pressure high-temperature reactors
High-performance liquid chromatographs
Helium-cadmium lasers
Grinder mills
Graduated cylinders
Glassware washers
Gas chromatographs GC
Gas chromatograph mass spectrometers GC-MS
Galvanostats
Funnels
Fume hoods
Freeze dryers
Fraction collectors
Fourier transform infrared FTIR spectrometers
Fluorescence microscopes
Flow injection analyzers
Floor centrifuges
Erlenmeyer flasks
Electronic toploading balances
Electrochemical analyzers
Dye lasers
Distilling units
Distillation ovens
Dissolved oxygen meters
Diode lasers
Digital gel analyzer systems
Digital electrophoresis documentation and analysis systems
Digital cameras
Differential scanning calorimeters
Desktop computers
Densitometers
Deflagration spoons
Cuvettes
Cryostats
Cryogenic refrigerators
Conductivity meters
Conductivity detectors
Conductance meters
Combustion furnaces
Cold trap evaporators
Closed cycle refrigerators
Chemical centrifuges
Centrifugal evaporator concentrators
Carbon hydrogen nitrogen CHN elemental analyzers
Capillary electrophoresis systems
Burets
Bunsen burners
Box furnace ovens
Benchtop lyophilizers
Beakers
Autotitrators
Automatic peptide synthesizers
Atomic absorption AA spectrometers
Annealing ovens
Analytical balances
Alcohol lamps
Airfree/waterfree solvent purification systems
Air dryers
Technologies
ChemInnovation Software Chem 4-D
ChemSW Molecular Modeling Pro
Hypercube HyperChem
National Instruments LabVIEW
Accelrys Cerius2
Accelrys DeCipher
Advanced Chemistry Development ACD/1D nuclear magnetic resonance NMR processor
All TechnologiesAgilent ChemStation
Apple iWork
Apple iWork Keynote
Apple iWork Numbers
Apple iWork Pages
Bruker BioSpin TopSpin
CambridgeSoft ChemOffice Ultra
Chem2Pac
Chemical kinetics software
ChemSW Buffer Maker
ChemSW Calibration Pro
ChemSW Chemical Inventory System CIS
ChemSW Laboratory Document Control System LDCS
ChemSW Mass Spec Tools
ChemSW Uncertainty Pro
Conversion tools software
Crystallography software
CrystalMaker
Density functional theory DFT software
Digital imaging software
Gas chromatograph GS software
Gaussian software
Internet browser software
ItemTracker
JDA Arthur KnowledgeBase database
Laboratory information management system LIMS
LabTrack Electronic Lab Notebook
Logger software
Modeling software
MolDraw
Molecular simulation software
Molsearch Pro
MSI Insight/Discover
Multi-functional calculators
NeoOffice
Network Science IR Mentor Pro
Organic synthesis planning software
Q-Chem
SAS JMP
SciQuest PE TurboChrom
Siemens SHELXTL
Surface modeling software
Synthematix StructureSearch
UBI Biotracker
Vogel Scientific Software Group CALACO
Waters Empower Chromatography Data Software
Waters Millennium32
Wavefunction Spartan
Skills
Science
Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Mathematics
Using mathematics to solve problems.
Complex Problem Solving
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Writing
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Quality Control Analysis
Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Systems Evaluation
Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Judgment and Decision Making
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Systems Analysis
Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Coordination
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Instructing
Teaching others how to do something.
Operation Monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Equipment Maintenance
Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Abilities
Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Comprehension
Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Written Comprehension
Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Deductive Reasoning
Combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Inductive Reasoning
Tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Problem Sensitivity
Choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
Cognitive Abilities › Quantitative Abilities › Mathematical Reasoning
See details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Sensory Abilities › Visual Abilities › Near Vision
Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Expression
Communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Written Expression
Arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Information Ordering
Generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Category Flexibility
Add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
Cognitive Abilities › Quantitative Abilities › Number Facility