How do chemists’ salaries stack up?

Hello,

Do you have stats on how long after receiving a degree? For example,PhD, industry, 5 years, vs. 10/20 years.

While it is a positive outlook that unemployment is down, are the salaries published average salaries,average starting salaries,etc?

Thank you.

The data misrepresents the profession of Chemistry. Survey only represents the elite of the industry and deceives students to get into a profession that is oversturated with job applicants. I recall past ACS data showed that only 2 of 10 graduates will become employed as chemists. Employers have all the leverage with the hiring decision often made based upon who accepts the lowest pay.

There are 2 sizable shortfalls for this study. 1) Survey only includes salary data from ACS members who can access the survey. The survey is biased for chemists who can afford to pay dues or have funding to pay membership dues. This excludes the majority of American chemists, who are employed as lab technicians. Chemists with low pay cannot afford ACS dues. Thus, for low paid chemists their salary and job details are excluded from the survey pool.

2) Many chemists who have strong skills move out of chemistry work due to better income in other jobs. When not in chemistry-related job the survey is likely to be passed up. These individuals also may no longer associate themselves as chemists and are not paying membership dues to ACS.

I continue to ask ACS to make a lower level of membership so Chemistry technicians can have affiliation, and the survey should be sent out to entire profession of chemistry.

I disagree with the findings of this article in my own personal experience as a chemist. Our lab is staffed with highly competent BS, MS, and PhD level chemists. A fresh BS chemist is typically making low 30's, an experienced MS or PhD may make mid to high 40's. We are located in the South East and are a government institution.

I also believe the national market for chemist, at least in the analytical realm, is saturated. I've had many talented colleagues, alongside myself, unsuccessfully find opportunities paying anywhere close to the salaries depicted in this article.

where can you take the next survey?

20+ year chemist and I have seen my salary reduce year after year after year. Moved from the Midwest to the SE and there is a HUGE pay gap, not to mention almost all of the jobs being contract positions. I am currently making what I was 15 years ago when I was classified as a technician and I am performing GC/MS work. I guess I am lucky to even have a job but the above survey is completely out of touch with reality.

As chemists, we are competing against an international pool of candidates, since employers try to fill positions with H1B candidates, who are willing to work for less. This has pushed our salaries down, and perversely, created the lack of chemists that allows the companies and universities to regularly solicit congress for increases in the H1B visa cap. I was always proud that I went into Chemistry, completing my Masters, and several years of PhD research, but I had to leave the bench when I had kids.

I'm with Bob on this one, although I think the numbers are painted with such a broad brush as to be pretty much useless. The chemical industry is dying a slow death. Any jobs and products that can be off-shored economically will be eventually. This, coupled with the constant supply of fresh graduates, keeps salaries low. We hire B.S. chemists to do jobs that anybody could do and have Masters level people (and at least 1 PhD) working as technicians! The U.S. will eventually be the lowest-cost labor source and we will become the new Vietnam.

I graduated with a Bachelor's in chemistry in 2011, and I have to agree with the majority of comments above that this data is inflated. I've had many conversations with colleagues about how shocked we were by the low pay of the field, especially considering chemistry is often rated one of the hardest degrees to complete. What I've come to realize is that businesspeople are the ones who determine people's pay in the company, so of course they're going to value themselves higher and not give chemists what they deserve. Market saturation also influences this, the old rule of supply and demand. There are many with a Bachelor's in biology or even exercise science or marginally related degrees that are getting chemist jobs. The reality is that many chemist technician jobs out there can be taught to people who have a limited understanding of chemistry. They may not have the best understanding of what they're doing, but they can do it, and for less pay.

My colleagues and I have been looking for alternate career routes to take, preferably still using our chemistry degrees that we worked so hard to obtain, and which we are still passionate about. It seems like this takes some creativity, and being at the right place at the right time. Going back to school doesn't seem like the most cost-effective idea, as the cost of a Master's doesn't necessarily get counterbalanced with that much higher of a salary. I think there are a lot of chemists out there, especially those who graduated in the last 10 years, who are in need of some guidance and ideas for how to shape their careers in a way that will engage their passion for chemistry but provide a decent salary.

I know ACS has done some articles and webinars on nontraditional careers in chemistry, but the examples given are not accessible to the majority of chemists who just have a Bachelor's. If ACS were to do articles, especially regarding creative career options, catering more to the average chemist with a Bachelor's, that would be a great service to our field.