Graduate School in Chemistry

• American Chemical Society Publication: Planning for Graduate Work in Chemistry: www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/1/acsdisplay.html?DOC=education\cpt\gradwork.html
• Top Ten Graduate Schools in Chemistry (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • University of California - Berkeley: chem.berkeley.edu/grad_info
  • California Institute of Technology: www.cce.caltech.edu
  • Harvard University: www.gsas.harvard.edu/programs/degree/chem.html
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology: web.mit.edu/afs/athena.mit.edu/org/c/chemistry/www/chem-home.html
  • Stanford University: www.stanford.edu/dept/chemistry
  • Scripps Research Institute: www.scripps.edu/phd/index_external.html
  • University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign: www.scs.uiuc.edu/chem/index.html
  • Columbia University: www.columbia.edu/cu/chemistry
  • Cornell University: www.chem.cornell.edu/grad/index.asp
  • University of Wisconsin-Madison: www.wisc.edu/grad/education/mas/153.html

Graduate School in Chemical Engineering

• Top Ten Graduate Schools in Chemical Engineering (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology: web.mit.edu/cheme/research/index.html
  • University of Minnesota - Twin Cities: www.it.umn.edu/
  • California Institute of Technology: www.cce.caltech.edu/
  • University of California - Berkeley: cheme.berkeley.edu/
  • Stanford University (CA): chemeng.stanford.edu/
  • University of Wisconsin - Madison: www.engr.wisc.edu/che/
  • University of Texas - Austin: www.che.utexas.edu/
  • Princeton University (NJ): chemeng.princeton.edu/html/home.shtml
  • University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign: www.scs.uiuc.edu/chem_eng/
  • University of California - Santa Barbara: www.chemengr.ucsb.edu/

Chemists

1. New Product/Technology Development: Chemists who work in industry developing new products or technologies may be responsible for designing the synthesis of a new drug (for example) and then carrying out that synthesis to make sure it is feasible. They might be responsible for determining if a drug that is currently available in pill form would be stable if offered in and alternative form such as an I.V. solution. They may work on new material technologies like adhesives, paints, and coatings. In the petroleum industry, development chemists might work on developing new, more environmentally friendly refining methods for the production of gasoline. Product/technology development chemists use chemistry knowledge from many different disciplines (organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, biochemistry, physical chemistry, etc.) depending on the area of industry that they work in.
   
   
2. New Methods Development: Chemists working in new methods development mainly deal with analytical chemistry. These chemists develop and improve upon the analytical methods that chemists working in the quality control/quality assurance (see part d below) department use to test products to make sure they are safe for consumer use. New methods development chemists might work with liquid chromatography methods, gas chromatography methods, wet-chemistry tests, bio-assays, spectroscopy methods and so on, depending on the needs of the industry they are working in.
   
   
3. Manufacturing & Scale-Up: Chemists involved in this field of industry are responsible for transferring small-scale processes from the research laboratory over to large-scale manufacturing processes for production in plants. This area is especially important in the pharmaceutical industry for synthesizing drugs at production scale. The pH, concentration of active drug compound, and concentration of impurities are all very important when manufacturing pharmaceuticals. While it may be easy to control these factors at a laboratory scale (milligram quantities), the task may not be so simple when manufacturing large-scale amounts (kilogram quantities).
   
   
4. Quality Control/Quality Assurance: Chemists who work in quality control or quality assurance play a very crucial role in industry. These scientists are the ones that make sure that a company's products are safe to sell to consumers. Quality control chemists use a variety of analytical techniques, including HPLC, GC, bioassays, wet chemistry tests, spectroscopy, TLC etc, to check factors such as concentration, acidity, basicity, biological activity, purity, etc. Scientists working in quality control test new products to make sure they are ready for release to the consumer market and test existing products to make sure they are safe to keep on the market.
   
   
5. Management: Chemists can also work on the management side of industry. Some companies may require a certain amount of experience as a lab scientist and/or an upper level degree (master's or Ph.D.) before hiring new employees or promoting current employees into management positions. In other companies it may be possible to be promoted into a management position with a bachelor's degree. Management in industry has many levels. Managers may be in charge of a small group of scientists within a larger department, they may be in charge of a department within a larger division of the company or may be in charge of an entire division. This really depends on how a specific company is laid out. A manager's responsibilities may include keeping track of his group's work load, making sure new products get to production on time, making sure existing products are being tested at regular intervals to confirm their safety/efficacy, even taking care of his or her employees career advancement needs. Those working in management typically work on teams with other managers within a department or division to make sure that the company as a whole is running smoothly.
   
   
6. Regulatory: Every company has regulatory departments that deal directly with regulatory agencies such as the FDA. They have to be very familiar with the expectations of the regulatory agencies that their company deals with to make sure that all operations are being run within regulations. Regulatory agencies will run audits (both announced and unannounced) of companies within their jurisdiction to make sure that all rules and regulations are being followed. It is the company's regulatory division that deals most directly with the agency when this happens. Additionally, regulatory divisions are responsible for preparing approval packages for new products that a company wants to bring to market. For example, pharmaceutical companies need to get approval for new drug products from the FDA before releasing those products to market. Petroleum companies may need approval from the EPA before releasing new products on the market to make sure that the product will not cause harm to the environment.
   
   

1. Bachelor's degree: $32,500
2. Master's degree: $43,600
3. Ph.D. degree: $65,000

• ACS Careers and Jobs: www.acs.org/portal/Chemistry?PID=acsdisplay.html&DOC=chemjobs\index.html
• ACS Publication: Planning for a Career in Industry: http://www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/1/acsdisplay.html?DOC=education\cpt\01open.html
• ACS Publication: Class of 2004 Starting Salaries: http://pubs.acs.org/cen/acsnews/83/pdf/8316startingsalary.pdf
• The Professional Chemist: www.chemsoc.org/careers/pchome.htm
• Careers for Chemists: www.careercornerstone.org/chemistry/chemistry.htm

Chemical Engineers

1. Bachelor's degree: $52,000
2. Master's degree: $59,000
3. Ph.D. degree: $78,600

• American Institute of Chemical Engineers: www.aiche.org
• Salaries of Scientists: www.jupiterscientific.org/sciinfo/sciencesalaries.html
• ACS Publication: Class of 2004 Starting Salaries: http://pubs.acs.org/cen/acsnews/83/pdf/8316startingsalary.pdf

Careers with the U.S. Government

1. a. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): Chemists working for the EPA are involved in areas such as hazardous wastes, water quality, air quality, waste clean-up, human health, pesticides, pollutants and toxics and pollution prevention. They use a variety of analytical methods to conduct testing such as mass spectroscopy (MS), gas chromatography (GC), liquid chromatography (HPLC), Ion chromatography (IC), ultra-violet spectroscopy (UV), atomic absorption spectroscopy (AA) and various wet chemical tests.
   
   
2. b. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Chemists working for the FBI work in the arena of forensic science. They are responsible for analyzing evidence from crime scenes using many different analytical techniques. These can be separated into five categories: physical tests, crystal tests, chemical spot tests, chromatographic tests and spectrophotometric tests.
   
   
3. c. Center for Disease Control (CDC): The CDC's main concern is with maintaining the health and safety of U.S. citizens both here and abroad. Chemists may conduct research in one of the CDC's 11 institutes that deal with birth defects and developmental disabilities, chronic disease prevention, environmental health, health statistics, HIV, STD and TB prevention, injury prevention and control, immunization, occupational health and safety, epidemiology, and public health practice.
   
   

• Opportunities in Government: www.firstgov.gov
• USA Jobs: www.usajobs.opm.gov

Medical Related Careers

1. Medical Doctor: Some chemistry majors choose to go on to medical school after getting their undergraduate degree. There are two options to consider when applying to medical school. For those who wish to work mainly with patients in a hospital or medical clinic there are M.D. programs. For those who would rather do medical research there are M.D./Ph.D. programs.
   
   
2. Nursing: Another option for those interested in both chemistry and medicine is a career in nursing. There are four different types of nursing degrees; a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), a Master of Nursing (MS), a Master of Science in Nursing (MS), and a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (Ph.D.). It is typical for students who wish to pursue a graduate degree in nursing to earn a BSN degree as an undergraduate. However, it is not a requirement. Many schools offer an extended program where students with bachelor degrees in other areas can complete the necessary coursework to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree first.
   
   
3. Pharmacy: Pharmacists do a lot more than simply dispense prescription drugs, although this is a major part of their job. Pharmacists must have knowledge of the uses, hazards and side effects caused by pharmaceuticals. They are also actively involved with patients. Pharmacists who work in community pharmacies not only dispense drugs prescribed by doctors, they are also in charge of hiring and firing pharmacy technicians, they supervise employees, determine what non-medical merchandise is purchased for sale at the pharmacy, and also take on administrative duties. Pharmacists employed by hospitals or at medical clinics dispense and prescribe medication, work as consultants on a medical team with doctors, nurses, etc., make sterile solutions for use in the ER or in surgery and keep detailed records of patients' medical profiles and drug history in order to prevent allergic reaction or drug interaction from the medications that they dispense.
   
   

1. Medical Doctor: The general medical school program is four years. After those four years medical students then do a residency. The length of the residency depends on the specialty chosen. The shortest residency is three years for specialties such as internal medicine, family practice and pediatrics. Specialties like anesthesiology, dermatology, ophthalmology and psychiatry have 5-year residencies. Surgical residencies are 5-7 years, depending on whether or not a research project is involved. When the residency is done some doctors choose to specialize instead of practicing in their general fields. Possible fields of specialization include infectious disease, oncology (cancer), cardiology, pulmonary and cardio thoracic surgery. If doctors wish to specialize then they must complete a three-year fellowship after their residency.
   
   
2. Nursing: A BSN degree requires four years of coursework to complete. The MN degree is an additional one to two years of schooling that includes coursework as well as clinical work. The MS degree on average takes one and a half additional years of schooling and requires thesis work. The above three degrees are for students who wish to work with patients in the medical field. For nursing students who would rather do research and teach, a Ph.D. degree in nursing is what is required. A Ph.D. program takes an additional four years of work beyond the completion of the BSN degree. There is a thesis requirement to earn a Ph.D. in nursing as well.
   
   
3. Pharmacy: Obtaining a Doctor of Pharmacy degree requires four to five years of additional schooling beyond undergraduate work. An undergraduate degree in pharmacy, physical science, biological science or engineering is usually required. Pharmacy graduate students complete coursework as well as clinical rotations as part of their training. Areas of specialization include toxicology (the study of poisons and toxins and their isolation, detection and effects on the human body), pharmacoeconomics (the application of health economics to disease management outcomes and the optimization of drug therapy), pharmacokinetics (the study of the kinetics of drug therapies), pharmacy administration, pharmacology (the study of changes produced in living animals by chemical substances that are used to treat disease), or pharmacognosy (natural products chemistry, the study of bioactive substances found in organisms).
   
   

1. General Internist (M.D.): $158,200
2. Dentist $132,850
3. Registered Nurse: $54,210
4. Pharmacist: $84,370

• Top Five Medical Schools (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • Harvard University: www.hms.harvard.edu
  • Johns Hopkins University: www.hopkinsmedicine.org/
  • Washington University: medschool.wustl.edu
  • University of Pennsylvania: www.med.upenn.edu
  • University of California - San Francisco: medschool.ucsf.edu


• Top Five Nursing Programs (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • University of Washington: www.son.washington.edu
  • University of California-San Francisco: nurseweb.ucsf.edu/
  • University of Michigan-Ann Arbor: www.nursing.umich.edu
  • University of Pennsylvania: www.nursing.upenn.edu
  • University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill: nursing.unc.edu


• Top Five Pharmacy Programs (According to the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, AACP):
  • University of Washington: depts.washington.edu/pha/
  • University of California-San Francisco: pharmacy.ucsf.edu/
  • Howard University: www.cpnahs.howard.edu/Pharmacy/
  • University of Montana: www.spahs.umt.edu/
  • University of Kansas: pharm.ku.edu

Education Related Careers

1. Middle School Teacher: Chemistry majors who are interested in teaching can teach physical and/or general science in a middle school or junior high school.
   
   
2. High School Teacher: Chemistry majors who are interested in teaching may also decide to teach high school chemistry or physical science.
   
   
3. College/University Professor: A third option in the teaching field is to become a college or university chemistry professor. Depending on the area of interest, a professor may teach general chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, biochemistry, analytical chemistry, etc. Typically, universities require chemistry professors to do research, but some universities do hire professors strictly for teaching, usually, general chemistry courses. If a chemist is interested only in teaching, employment at a small college may be the way to go.
   
   

1. Middle School Teacher: Some colleges and universities offer science-teaching degrees which require less science coursework than for a science major. Along with the science courses, education courses in middle and secondary, general and science education are required. However, many education colleges are moving away from separate education majors and are requiring education students to get a degree in the subject matter they wish to teach. Therefore, for chemistry majors, the required coursework for a degree in chemistry would have to be completed along with the required teacher certification courses.
   
   
2. High School Teacher: Some colleges and universities offer science-teaching degrees which require less science coursework than for a science major. Along with the science courses, education courses in middle and secondary, general and science education are required. However, many education colleges are moving away from separate education majors and are requiring education students to get a degree in the subject matter they wish to teach. Therefore, for chemistry majors, the required coursework for a degree in chemistry would have to be completed along with the required teacher certification courses.
   
   
3. College/University Professor: To teach chemistry at the college or university level a Ph.D. is required. (See above for information on a graduate work in chemistry or chemical engineering.) Some smaller colleges do hire people with master's degrees to teach.
   
   

1. Middle School Teacher: $45,771 (source: American Federation of Teachers)
2. High School Teacher: $45,771 (source: American Federation of Teachers)
3. College/University Professor: $64,455 (source: American Association for University Professors)

• Top Five Schools of Education (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • Harvard University: www.gse.harvard.edu
  • University of California-Los Angeles: www.gseis.ucla.edu
  • Columbia University Teacher's College: www.tc.columbia.edu
  • Vanderbilt University: peabody.vanderbilt.edu/

Law Related Careers

• Top Five Law Schools for Patent Law (According to U.S. News-2002 Rankings):
  • University of California - Berkeley: www.law.berkeley.edu/
  • Stanford University (CA): lawschool.stanford.edu
  • George Washington University (DC): law.gwu.edu
  • University of Houston: www.law.uh.edu
  • Cardozo-Yeshiva University (NY): www.cardozo.yu.edu/

Business Related Careers

• Top Five Business Schools (source: U.S. News & World Report):
  • Harvard University: www.hbs.edu
  • Stanford University: www-gsb.stanford.edu/
  • University of Pennsylvania: www.wharton.upenn.edu
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): mitsloan.mit.edu/
  • Northwestern University: www.kellogg.northwestern.edu