Chemists

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests.
• Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests.
• Evaluate laboratory safety procedures to ensure compliance with standards or to make improvements as needed.
• Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods.
• Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests.
• Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed.
• Analyze organic or inorganic compounds to determine chemical or physical properties, composition, structure, relationships, or reactions, using chromatography, spectroscopy, or spectrophotometry techniques.
• Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
• Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
• Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis.
• Conduct quality control tests.
• Direct, coordinate, or advise personnel in test procedures for analyzing components or physical properties of materials.
• Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
• Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests.
• Purchase laboratory supplies, such as chemicals, when supplies are low or near their expiration date.

Skills

• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.
• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

Abilities

• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.
• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

Knowledge

• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Education

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

×

Education and Training Opportunities

• Central Washington University
  400 East University Way, Ellensburg WA 98926
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  10,000 - 19,999

  Financial Aid 509-963-1111
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.cwu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  More than 4 years
  Award Level
  Master's degree, Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Eastern Washington University
  526 5th Street, Cheney WA 99004-2496
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  10,000 - 19,999

  Financial Aid 509-359-6200
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.ewu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Gonzaga University
  E 502 Boone Ave, Spokane WA 99258-0001
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 800-986-9585
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.gonzaga.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Heritage University
  3240 Fort Rd, Toppenish WA 98948
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  Under 1,000

  Financial Aid 888-272-6190
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.heritage.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Pacific Lutheran University
  12180 Park Ave South, Tacoma WA 98447-0003
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 253-535-7411
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.plu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Saint Martin's University
  5000 Abbey Way SE, Lacey WA 98503-7500
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 360-491-4700
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.stmartin.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Seattle Pacific University
  3307 3rd Ave W, Seattle WA 98119-1997
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 206-281-2000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://spu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Seattle University
  900 Broadway, Seattle WA 98122-4340
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 206-296-6000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.seattleu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• University of Puget Sound
  1500 N. Warner Street, Tacoma WA 98416
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 253-879-3100
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.pugetsound.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• University of Washington-Bothell Campus
  18115 Campus Way NE, Bothell WA 98011-8246
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 425-352-5000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.uwb.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• University of Washington-Seattle Campus
  1400 NE Campus Parkway, Seattle WA 98195-4550
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  20,000 and above

  Financial Aid 206-543-2100
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.washington.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree, Master's degree, Doctor's degree - research/scholarship
  Save
  Program Name
  Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry
  Length
  More than 4 years
  Award Level
  Doctor's degree - research/scholarship, Master's degree
  Save

  ---

• Walla Walla University
  204 S College Ave, College Place WA 99324-1198
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-527-2615
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.wallawalla.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Washington State University
  French Administration Building, Pullman WA 99164-5910
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  20,000 and above

  Financial Aid 509-335-3564
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://wsu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree, Doctor's degree - research/scholarship, Master's degree
  Save
  Program Name
  Environmental Chemistry
  Length
  Less than one year
  Award Level
  Postbaccalaureate certificate
  Save

  ---

• Western Washington University
  516 High Street, Bellingham WA 98225-9008
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  10,000 - 19,999

  Financial Aid 360-650-3000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://wwu.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree, Master's degree
  Save

  ---

• Whitman College
  345 Boyer Ave, Walla Walla WA 99362
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-527-5111
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.whitman.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, Other
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Whitworth University
  300 W Hawthorne Rd, Spokane WA 99251
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-777-1000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.whitworth.edu/
  Program Name
  Chemistry, General
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

Close

Pay

Washington Annual Salary

92860/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

44.64/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

2,250

Yearly Projected Openings

220

Personality

Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out. They do well at jobs that need:

• Innovation
• Achievement Orientation
• Intellectual Curiosity
• Cautiousness
• Integrity
• Attention to Detail

Tools

• Ageing ovens
• Analytical balances
• Atomic absorption AA spectrometers
• Benchtop centrifuges
• Calorimeters
• Chart recorders
• Chemistry analyzers
• Chilling units or cold water circulators
• Conductivity meters
• Cryostats
• Cuvettes
• Densitometers
• Desktop computers
• Digital cameras
• Dissolved carbon dioxide analyzers
• Dissolved oxygen meters
• Distillation pipings or columns or fittings
• Dropping pipettes
• Electrogravimetry analyzers
• Electronic measuring probes
• Electronic toploading balances
• Electrophoresis system accessories
• Extracting equipment for laboratories
• Flask or retort units
• Floor centrifuges
• Flow injection analysis equipment
• Fluorescent microscopes
• Freeze dryers or lyopholizers
• Freezedryers or lyophilzers
• Fume hoods or cupboards
• Galvanometers
• Gas burners
• Gas chromatographs
• Gel documentation accessories
• Gel documentation systems
• General purpose refrigerators or refrigerator freezers
• Heating or drying equipment or accessories
• Hematology or chemistry mixers
• High pressure liquid chromatograph chromatography
• High vacuum combustion apparatus
• Homogenizers
• Hot air blowers
• Illuminators for microscopes
• Inductively coupled plasma ICP spectrometers
• Infrared spectrometers
• Injectors
• Instrumentation for capillary electrophoresis
• Inverted microscopes
• Ion selective electrode ISE meters
• Isolation glove boxes
• Laboratory balances
• Laboratory beakers
• Laboratory blenders or emulsifiers
• Laboratory box furnaces
• Laboratory burets
• Laboratory chillers
• Laboratory evaporators
• Laboratory flasks
• Laboratory funnels
• Laboratory graduated cylinders
• Laboratory heat exchange condensers
• Laboratory hotplates
• Laboratory mills
• Laboratory mixers
• Laboratory presses
• Laboratory vacuum pumps
• Laboratory washing machines
• Laser beam analyzers
• Laser printers
• Lasers
• Liquid chromatographs
• Liquid chromatography fittings
• Liquid scintillation counters
• Magnetic stirrers
• Magnetometer geophysical instruments
• Mainframe computers
• Mass spectrometers
• Melting point recorders
• Microcentrifuges
• Microplates
• Monocular microscopes
• Multipurpose or general test tubes
• Multiwell plates
• Notebook computers
• Nuclear magnetic resonance NMR spectrometers
• Optical diffraction apparatus
• Orbital shaking water baths
• Oscilloscopes
• Personal computers
• Petri plates or dishes
• Plotter printers
• Polarimeters
• Polarizing microscopes
• Potentiometers
• Pressure sensors
• Reactors or fermenters or digesters
• Refrigerated benchtop centrifuges
• Respirators
• Rheometers
• Robotic or automated liquid handling systems
• Scanning electron microscopes
• Scanning probe microscopes
• Shaking incubators
• Solvent recyclers
• Spectrofluorimeters or fluorimeters
• Spectrometers
• Spectrophotometers
• Spirit burners
• Stereo or dissecting light microscopes
• Syringe pumps
• Temperature cycling chambers or thermal cyclers
• Tension testers
• Thermal conductivity analyzers
• Thermo gravimetry analyzers
• Tissue culture coated plates or dishes or inserts
• Titration equipment
• Tube furnaces
• Ultracentrifuges
• Ultrasonic disintegrators
• Vacuum or centrifugal concentrators
• Vacuum or rotary evaporators
• Vacuum ovens
• Water baths
• X ray diffraction equipment
• pH meters

Technology

• Analytical or scientific software
• Computer aided design CAD software
• Data base user interface and query software
• Development environment software
• Document management software
• Enterprise application integration software
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software
• Graphics or photo imaging software
• Internet browser software
• Inventory management software
• Object or component oriented development software
• Office suite software
• Presentation software
• Process mapping and design software
• Spreadsheet software
• Web platform development software
• Word processing software