7 Ways to Use Degree in Chemistry

If you’re one of the many people who get excited about stoichiometry and chemical reactions, then you have the start of a great career. If you think that a chemistry degree only qualifies you for a life of research or working as a medical doctor, there are countless other careers you can pursue. Some of these might require additional or concurrent education to go along with your chemistry degree. It’s possible to have a thriving career doing what you love. Here’s how to use your degree in chemistry to get it.

Food Science

Did you know there is a whole field of study around the science of food? It’s how we get light and flaky layers in a croissant, and dense, melt in your mouth goodness in a wedding cake. Food science is all about the science of food. Why does this ingredient make the food behave this way? What are the best, food-safe preservatives to use? How much preservative do I need in a batch? What happens if we take out one ingredient and substitute something else?

All these questions are answered by food scientists. They spend their time creating new recipes and producing foods for various companies. They also help in the research and development of new flavors.

Soap Making

A simple saponification reaction can be used to create harsh soaps to clean the bathroom and one’s gentle enough for your face and body. Soap makers use their chemistry skills to determine the right amount of lye and fats to use to get the intended hardness after the soap has cured. Soap makers know how long to let a soap rest before cutting and before using for the first time. Soap makers can also use their skills to create new perfumes and scents, mix new blends, and create soaps that improve skin health and that kill off the harshest bacteria.

Teaching

Take what you know and teach someone else. Whether you use your chemistry skills to also pursue a career as a schoolteacher, or you use it to teach independent classes through a local homeschool co-op, there are plenty of places to teach chemistry. You are qualified because you know important facts about chemistry, and you can create a fun and exciting class using what you know. There are some online platforms where you can also create an online course.

Developing New Materials

Have you ever wondered where new plastics come from and new metal materials? Chemists work with engineers and other scientists to develop new materials that have many industrial uses. From storing chemicals without leaks to creating products that are biodegradable, there are numerous options.

Beer Making

What does chemistry have to do with making beer? Everything! Making beer is an art and a science and creating brews with the right blend of flavors takes some finesse. Use your chemistry degree to start your own brewing company or just create some home brew beer. You’d be amazed at how taking an approach using you understanding of chemistry can help you get your beer just right.

Technical Writer

People who spent their time doing organic chemistry prep, studied for science tests, and wrote all about their experiments in lab are uniquely qualified to write. Technical writers know how to put their thoughts in writing in a calculated and concise way. They can create manuals, how-to articles, and even use their knowledge to talk specifically about science topics. Science writers are in high demand to help explain topics and communicate scientific information outside of the scientific community.

Wastewater Management

Managing the wastes that come in is a critical role. Chemists understand what needs to happen to filter out and purify toxic and contaminated water. They understand that this water will be recycled to go back out to the community and needs to be safe to drink, safe for watering plants, and more. Chemists know what can happen if they don’t get the concentrations of chemicals right in the purification process.

Conclusion

There are many career paths for a person with a chemistry degree. While advanced degrees can be useful, it’s possible to pursue entrepreneurship and to start your own company with just a bachelor’s degree. You gain valuable skills and knowledge about chemistry that you can share with others through teaching, writing, and even making soap.

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In-Demand Jobs Around the World in the Digital Era

Since the industrial revolution, we wake up daily to career fields that didn’t exist the day before. Most of these follow scientific and technological discovery trends, like the emergence of new forms of psychology, and social media.

These technical fields have developed out of necessity for companies to keep up in an ever- changing world. Even traffic management training has become necessary in a world that’s dependent on electricity to guide us where we need to go. This means more job opportunities for everyone, but also the loss of some traditional and long-held jobs.

Keep reading to learn about other relatively new career fields that have great entry level programs for those looking to begin a new career:

 

Medicine 

While medicine has existed for hundreds of years, the development of new technology in the medical field has made new these jobs even more important and lucrative. Nurses are in high demand, with experts believing that soon there will be a 23% increase in the demand for nurses.

Anyone wanting to start out in medicine should take note, as the average nurse makes $85,200 a year. Other fields like practitioners and anesthetists can make more than 6 figures. The medical industry is always expanding and creating new opportunities for scientific minds, which allows those who practice medicine now to have unlimited future potential.

 

Technology

Information Technology is arguably the most rapidly growing sector, and it’s expected to continue as the number one field for the next decade in job growth. A system engineer, who works to develop technological infrastructure, averages a salary of $87,100 a year. This industry is expected to see a 45% job growth in the next 10 years.

Software architect is considered among the most up-and-coming tech careers today. With a job growth rate of 34% and a base salary of $120,000, it is easy to see why training in this sector is attractive for those in tech.

A great entry level job opportunity into the IT field is technology analyst. While data analysts usually begin out as simple number crunchers, the potential to turn this entry level job into a software career is possible. By simply analyzing and organizing data, these workers can expect to make $60,000 with a job growth rate of 30% over the next decade.

 

Programming & Design

With an increasingly large student debt bubble, jobs that require little to no college education have become a new route for those looking to get out of the traditional college trajectory.

Computer programmers are some of the most in-demand employees of the 21st century thus far, and they can learn without ever achieving a degree. It’s possible now more than ever for a budding computer programmer to be self-taught, startup their own business, and work closely with clients that they select for themselves.

Web designers are also currently in high demand, another trade that can be self-taught. Through branding on social media, web designers can advertise their own interfaces, and work with clients to design custom websites for their companies.

 

App Development

With the development of smart phones, new apps are added to the market every day. There’s practically an app for every conceivable thing you can think of using your phone for. It is no surprise that smart phone app developers experience increased job growth year on year. With a median salary of $101,000 and a projected job growth rate of 30%, the need for professional app developers won’t be waning for a while yet.

While there is no educational requirement for this job, the typical app development hopeful has a college degree in computer science or a software development field.

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