Chemical engineers apply the principles of chemistry, biology, mathematics, and physics to transform raw materials into valuable products. They create fuel, food, drugs, and many other substances used as ingredients for commodities.
As a chemical engineer, you will be responsible for developing and carrying out various chemical processes. You will design chemical machinery and test procedures, contribute to the construction of process plants, and plan production methods.
You might be employed in various industries, such as pharmaceutical production, consumer goods, plastics, paints, or synthetics. You can work for food manufacturers, oil companies, or water treatment. The possibilities are numerous, and the demand for the profession is increasing along with the average growth through all occupations.
Chemical engineers apply the principles of chemistry, biology, physics, and mathematics to solve problems that involve the production or use of chemicals, fuel, drugs, food, and many other products. They design processes and equipment for large-scale manufacturing, plan and test production methods and byproducts treatment, and direct facility operations.
Chemical engineers must have a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. Employers also value practical experience, so internships and cooperative engineering programs, in which students earn college credit and experience, can be helpful.
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a chemical engineer can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as process engineer, progress to a title such as project manager and then eventually end up with the title vice president of global operations.
What Am I Worth?
Mouse over a state to see the number of active chemical engineer jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where chemical engineers earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
---|---|---|---|
1 | California | 4,706 | $90,079 |
2 | Texas | 1,513 | $112,047 |
3 | Massachusetts | 1,201 | $91,611 |
4 | Florida | 1,096 | $83,615 |
5 | Virginia | 1,084 | $95,065 |
6 | Illinois | 977 | $75,255 |
7 | New York | 949 | $78,942 |
8 | Michigan | 912 | $76,578 |
9 | Ohio | 864 | $76,044 |
10 | North Carolina | 863 | $85,729 |
11 | Washington | 831 | $88,310 |
12 | Pennsylvania | 818 | $76,755 |
13 | Georgia | 795 | $76,323 |
14 | Maryland | 753 | $96,747 |
15 | Minnesota | 723 | $89,205 |
16 | Colorado | 681 | $74,305 |
17 | Arizona | 658 | $82,511 |
18 | Indiana | 628 | $76,815 |
19 | Wisconsin | 508 | $71,664 |
20 | Oregon | 468 | $78,972 |
21 | New Jersey | 453 | $91,381 |
22 | Alabama | 440 | $85,023 |
23 | Missouri | 392 | $85,671 |
24 | South Carolina | 384 | $83,050 |
25 | Tennessee | 363 | $84,652 |
26 | Utah | 352 | $67,863 |
27 | Connecticut | 326 | $66,906 |
28 | Iowa | 312 | $79,276 |
29 | Kentucky | 274 | $74,666 |
30 | Kansas | 211 | $58,768 |
31 | Arkansas | 188 | $72,894 |
32 | New Hampshire | 169 | $73,495 |
33 | Nebraska | 169 | $73,672 |
34 | Mississippi | 158 | $73,287 |
35 | Delaware | 158 | $72,192 |
36 | Idaho | 157 | $77,166 |
37 | New Mexico | 154 | $108,353 |
38 | Louisiana | 134 | $100,566 |
39 | Oklahoma | 133 | $101,222 |
40 | Nevada | 133 | $76,179 |
41 | West Virginia | 85 | $73,821 |
42 | Maine | 82 | $83,634 |
43 | Rhode Island | 76 | $72,971 |
44 | Montana | 75 | $73,569 |
45 | North Dakota | 69 | $79,966 |
46 | Vermont | 62 | $88,055 |
47 | Alaska | 49 | $72,944 |
48 | Hawaii | 48 | $94,153 |
49 | Wyoming | 41 | $60,501 |
50 | South Dakota | 40 | $66,185 |
Atlanta, GA • Private
Bethlehem, PA • Private
Villanova, PA • Private
Cleveland, OH • Private
Cambridge, MA • Private
Seattle, WA • Private
Clemson, SC • Private
Stanford, CA • Private
Hoboken, NJ • Private
Blacksburg, VA • Private
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 10.4% of chemical engineers listed chemistry on their resume, but soft skills such as analytical skills and interpersonal skills are important as well.
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Chemical Engineer templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Chemical Engineer resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
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Chemical biology is a burgeoning field that has rapidly risen to prominence. This surge of interest has been fuelled by chemical biology’s applicability to understanding critical processes in live cells or model organisms in real time. This success has arisen because chemical biology straddles a nexus between chemistry, biology, and physics. Thus, chemical biology can harness rapid chemistry to observe or perturb biological processes, that are in turn reported using physical assays, all in an...
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Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a chemical engineer. The best states for people in this position are Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. Chemical engineers make the most in Texas with an average salary of $112,047. Whereas in New Mexico and Oklahoma, they would average $108,353 and $101,222, respectively. While chemical engineers would only make an average of $100,566 in Louisiana, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Virginia
$95,065
Avg. Salary
2. Texas
$112,047
Avg. Salary
3. New Mexico
$108,353
Avg. Salary
Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Chevron | $115,968 | $55.75 | 15 |
2 | Genentech | $112,514 | $54.09 | 12 |
3 | Exxon Mobil | $110,118 | $52.94 | 13 |
4 | Air Products | $103,843 | $49.92 | 15 |
5 | Merck | $102,384 | $49.22 | 34 |
6 | General Electric | $102,305 | $49.19 | 29 |
7 | The Dow Chemical Company | $101,854 | $48.97 | 21 |
8 | Fluor Corporation | $100,379 | $48.26 | 22 |
9 | Eastman | $99,952 | $48.05 | 32 |
10 | Ecolab | $98,186 | $47.20 | 11 |
A chemist creates and develops new and original materials and devises related processes, while a chemical engineer uses these materials and processes.
A chemist investigates the background of science and focuses on developing materials and processes, analyzing substances, and measuring the physical properties of substances. They also tend to theories and focus on finding new concepts and ideas through this testing.
Yes, chemical engineers get paid well. The average salary of a chemical engineer is $89,000 a year ($42.81 an hour). Some chemical engineers make upwards of $150,000 a year. Factors such as location and company impact how much a chemical or engineer can make.
It takes four years to become a chemical engineer. This includes the time it takes to earn your bachelor's degree in chemical engineering. It is recommended to begin applying for chemical engineering internships during this time.
Yes, chemical engineering is a good career. Chemical engineering is an exciting and rewarding career path that is well-paying and needed in many different manufacturing industries. Chemical engineers, for example, working in oil and petroleum, can earn upward of $150,000 a year.
Yes, it's hard to be a chemical engineer. In terms of education, only a bachelor's degree is needed, but the material covered is very STEM (i.e., science, technology, engineering, mathematics) focused and is best suited for someone who performs well in these areas.