How To Become A Hazardous Material Specialist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a hazardous material specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average hazardous material specialist salary is $61,373. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes 1-2 years of experience to become a hazardous material specialist. Hazardous material specialists with a Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 0% and produce -100 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreHazardous Material SpecialistUS Average

Salary

4.8

Avg. Salary $61,373

Avg. Salary $59,228

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.22%

Asian 2.26%

Black or African American 10.33%

Hispanic or Latino 26.91%

Unknown 3.11%

White 54.17%

Gender

female 24.37%

male 75.63%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

7.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.3

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.0

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a hazardous material specialist

Explore hazardous material specialist education requirements

Most common hazardous material specialist degrees

Bachelor's

52.6 %

Associate

21.5 %

Master's

10.9 %

Start to develop specific hazardous material specialist skills

Skills	Percentages
Environmental Health	9.84%
OSHA	8.57%
DOT	8.45%
Emergency Response	7.74%
Safety Procedures	7.05%

Complete relevant hazardous material specialist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New hazardous material specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a hazardous material specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real hazardous material specialist resumes.

Research hazardous material specialist duties and responsibilities

Manage EPA compliance and documentation and insure safe handling of all hazardous waste and proper disposal of all volatile organic compounds.
Develop and manage explosive inspection and quality assurance processes and provide SME guidance for management of hazardous and non-hazardous material storage.
Classify hazardous materials under 49 CFR, IATA, IMDG, and TDG.
Review chemical containing products for OSHA regulatory compliance before sale at the retailer

Prepare your hazardous material specialist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your hazardous material specialist resume.

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Choose from 10+ customizable hazardous material specialist resume templates

Build a professional hazardous material specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your hazardous material specialist resume.