Contract chemist vs environmental chemist

The differences between contract chemists and environmental chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a contract chemist has an average salary of $67,064, which is higher than the $56,956 average annual salary of an environmental chemist.

The top three skills for a contract chemist include laboratory equipment, method development and R. The most important skills for an environmental chemist are data validation, GC, and ms.

Contract chemist vs environmental chemist overview

	Contract Chemist	Environmental Chemist
Yearly salary	$67,064	$56,956
Hourly rate	$32.24	$27.38
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	11,286	22,234
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 84%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Contract chemist vs environmental chemist salary

Contract chemists and environmental chemists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Contract Chemist	Environmental Chemist
Average salary	$67,064	$56,956
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $100,000	Between $38,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	-	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	-	Delaware
Best paying company	-	Southern California Edison
Best paying industry	-	Internet

Differences between contract chemist and environmental chemist education

There are a few differences between a contract chemist and an environmental chemist in terms of educational background:

	Contract Chemist	Environmental Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 84%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of California, Berkeley

Contract chemist vs environmental chemist demographics

Here are the differences between contract chemists' and environmental chemists' demographics:

	Contract Chemist	Environmental Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 58.7% Female, 41.3%	Male, 62.1% Female, 37.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 18.3% White, 59.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 18.1% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between contract chemist and environmental chemist duties and responsibilities

Contract chemist example responsibilities.

Lead QA, engineering, and operations training events.
Develop HPLC methods for the analysis of drugs and relate substances in a GMP environment.
Analyze polymer materials using ASTM methods.
Review routine and validation projects under GMP guidelines.
Blend specialty carrier gases, complete GMP and safety checklists.
Log in samples into LIMS and generate reports for customers.

Environmental chemist example responsibilities.

Manage storage of hazardous waste for compliance with RCRA regulations.
Manage and operate mobile laboratories analyzing a wide range of samples utilizing USEPA SW846 GC/MS and HPLC methods.
Achieve expertise with hydrogenations and catalysts, low temp reactions, TLC, reactions done with UV and infrare lights.
Achieve expertise with organic techniques like steam distillation, recrystallization, vacuum sublimation/distillation.
Administer various laboratory safety audits with regard to OSHA rules and regulations to maintain adherence and manage necessary corrective actions.
Conduct analysis of heavy metals in environmental soil and water samples using ICP-OES and ICP-MS

Contract chemist vs environmental chemist skills

Common contract chemist skills

Laboratory Equipment, 17%
Method Development, 13%
R, 10%
Analytical Data, 7%
HPLC, 7%
Ms, 4%

Common environmental chemist skills

Data Validation, 8%
GC, 6%
Ms, 6%
Laboratory Equipment, 6%
ICP-MS, 5%
Environmental Samples, 5%

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Contract Chemist
Contract Chemist vs Environmental Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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