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Chemistry research assistant skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted experts
Shelley Minteer Ph.D.,
Shelley Minteer Ph.D.
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical chemistry research assistant skills. We ranked the top skills for chemistry research assistants based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 10.3% of chemistry research assistant resumes contained lab notebook as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a chemistry research assistant needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 chemistry research assistant skills for your resume and career

1. Lab Notebook

Here's how chemistry research assistants use lab notebook:
  • Developed graphs on lab results via Microsoft Excel using data collected from daily self-recorded lab notebook.
  • Pioneered the switch from handwritten to digital lab notebooks, new territory for the Contakes research group.

2. Laboratory Equipment

Here's how chemistry research assistants use laboratory equipment:
  • Calibrated and performed maintenance of laboratory equipment.
  • Used Laboratory equipment such as the rotary device, TLC and IR.

3. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

Here's how chemistry research assistants use nuclear magnetic resonance:
  • Exhibited proficiency in working with new technologies such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and the Glove Box.
  • Achieved wet chemistry synthesis and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) identification.

4. Organic Synthesis

Here's how chemistry research assistants use organic synthesis:
  • Synthesize natural products using new procedures Work to improve global methods of organic synthesis
  • Research in organic synthesis and supervision of a Chemical Engineering thesis.

5. Column Chromatography

Here's how chemistry research assistants use column chromatography:
  • Purified products via column chromatography and crystallization.
  • Used various lab techniques including Column Chromatography and IR Spectroscopy weekly.

6. Method Development

Here's how chemistry research assistants use method development:
  • Lead operator of the Mass Spec lab and performed daily/weekly scheduling duties for method development, validation and production groups.
  • Experienced with IC/CD and IC/CD method development.

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7. Chemistry Research

Here's how chemistry research assistants use chemistry research:
  • Assisted faculty researcher in planning and conducting chemistry research projects.
  • Incorporated activities that are interactive and captivating, that are relating to the frontiers of chemistry research to the Lucid project.

8. Organic Chemistry

Here's how chemistry research assistants use organic chemistry:
  • Utilized knowledge of physical and organic chemistry to create energetically favorable systems.
  • Conducted study sessions with level 1 organic chemistry students

9. HPLC

Here's how chemistry research assistants use hplc:
  • Calibrated the peaks on HPLC of distinct herbal, synthetic drugs and fabricated charts in excel.
  • Performed mathematical calculations, dilutions and the usage of HPLC systems.

10. UV-Vis

Here's how chemistry research assistants use uv-vis:
  • Worked under a Ph.D. candidate who demonstrated proper instrument techniques for IR, UV-vis, NMR.
  • Served as research assistant focusing on nanomaterial synthesis and material characterizations via SEM, XRD, UV-Vis, and FTIR spectroscopy.

11. R

R is a free software environment and a language used by programmers for statistical computing. The R programming language is famously used for data analysis by data scientists.

Here's how chemistry research assistants use r:
  • Conducted longitudinal data analysis, logistic regression data analysis and linear regression analysis for the biological experiments using R and SAS.
  • Completed empirical analysis in R to reveal the relationship between earnings management and seasoned equity offerings in Chinese companies.

12. GC-MS

Here's how chemistry research assistants use gc-ms:
  • Experience with ICP-OES, GFAAS, XRD and GC-MS instrumentation.
  • Analysed synthesis products via GC-MS and H1NMR.

13. Gas Chromatography

Here's how chemistry research assistants use gas chromatography:
  • Worked extensively with professor of Chemistry developing a method for simplified detection of overlapping peaks in gas chromatography.
  • Measured kinetic parameters for Pd-catalyzed organic transformations using gas uptake, NMR spectroscopy and gas chromatography to generate catalytic cycle models.

14. Liquid Chromatography

Here's how chemistry research assistants use liquid chromatography:
  • Recruited and trained other students in safe lab techniques and Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (LC-MS).
  • Used a high performance liquid chromatography machine to analyze amphetamine and guanfacine.

15. FDA

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a division of the US Department of Health and Human Services that regulates the production and sale of food, pharmaceutical products, medical equipment, and other consumer goods, as well as veterinary medicine. The FDA is now in charge of overseeing the manufacture of products like vaccines, allergy treatments, and beauty products.

Here's how chemistry research assistants use fda:
  • Improved FDA standard protocol drug-drug interaction studies and obtained a unique result.
  • Analyzed patient samples using supercritical fluid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry for an FDA pre-clinical trial of a novel post-surgical anesthetic.
top-skills

What skills help Chemistry Research Assistants find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on chemistry research assistant resumes?

Shelley Minteer Ph.D.

Dale and Susan Poulter Endowed Chair in Biological Chemistry, Associate Chair of Chemistry, University of Utah

The skills that stand out are research experience, characterization instrumentation experience, and more recently, data science experience and coding experience, as machine learning and AI become more and more important in chemistry.

What soft skills should all chemistry research assistants possess?

Shelley Minteer Ph.D.

Dale and Susan Poulter Endowed Chair in Biological Chemistry, Associate Chair of Chemistry, University of Utah

The most important soft skills are communication and people management skills. It is critical to be strong in both oral and written communication.

What chemistry research assistant skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Alan Chen Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Dept of Chemistry & the RNA Institute, University at Albany, SUNY at Albany

Our most successful students start research no later than sophomore year and many opt for our 5-year combined BS/MS track. These students outcompete BS-level applicants for entry-level jobs, and start at higher salary and responsibility levels as many companies will count time in graduate school as "prior experience". The MS degree is particularly versatile as it can also be earned part-time by current employees looking to advance, and unlike the PhD does not over-qualify you for the vast majority of entry level chemist positions. MS degrees typically enable early-career chemists to move up the ranks into management or team-leader positions after a few years. They are also a possible way for recent grads who were unable to get a job due to lack of research experience in undergrad, to get that crucial research experience during their MS thesis, and possibly even upgrade-in-place to our PhD program if they are doing really well. Basically, there seems to be no drawback to getting an MS in Chemistry at a research-intensive university for the vast majority of scientific career tracks.

What type of skills will young chemistry research assistants need?

Dr. Brian Augustine Ph.D.Dr. Brian Augustine Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Professor of Chemistry and Chair, High Point University

Students always need foundational technical skills. In addition to skills specific to chemistry and biochemistry, strong communication and interpersonal skills such as writing, speaking, and collaboration are vital, as are quantitative reasoning skills such as data analytics, statistical analysis, and programming.

What hard/technical skills are most important for chemistry research assistants?

Dunwei Wang Ph.D.

Margaret A & Thomas A Vanderslice Chair in Chemistry, Professor of Chemistry, Chairperson of Chemistry Department, Boston College

Chemistry is a diverse field. As a foundational discipline, it enables several sub-fields and supports emerging new fields. As one example, our graduates become experts in medical research, health care, and scientists and engineers in many other fields. Depending on the different career goals, what is important can be drastically different. Generally speaking, doing bench work (either in the lab or on a computer) should be a good skill to have at graduation.

List of chemistry research assistant skills to add to your resume

Chemistry research assistant skills

The most important skills for a chemistry research assistant resume and required skills for a chemistry research assistant to have include:

  • Lab Notebook
  • Laboratory Equipment
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
  • Organic Synthesis
  • Column Chromatography
  • Method Development
  • Chemistry Research
  • Organic Chemistry
  • HPLC
  • UV-Vis
  • R
  • GC-MS
  • Gas Chromatography
  • Liquid Chromatography
  • FDA
  • Laboratory Notebook
  • Computational Chemistry
  • Independent Research
  • Nanoparticles
  • Data Analysis
  • GLP
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Symposium
  • Data Collection
  • Distillation
  • LC/MS
  • Organic Compounds
  • Analytical Techniques
  • Electrophoresis
  • Infrared Spectroscopy
  • Nmr Spectroscopy
  • Absorption
  • SEM
  • DNA
  • PowerPoint
  • Lab Equipment
  • Titration
  • Sample Preparation
  • Cell Culture
  • American Chemical Society
  • Chemical Reactions
  • Research Findings
  • Experimental Design

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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