Process development chemist vs laboratory chemist

The differences between process development chemists and laboratory chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a process development chemist has an average salary of $75,273, which is higher than the $62,702 average annual salary of a laboratory chemist.

The top three skills for a process development chemist include R, HPLC and analytical techniques. The most important skills for a laboratory chemist are lab equipment, chromatography, and analytical methods.

Process development chemist vs laboratory chemist overview

	Process Development Chemist	Laboratory Chemist
Yearly salary	$75,273	$62,702
Hourly rate	$36.19	$30.15
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	70,622	41,322
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 80%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Process development chemist vs laboratory chemist salary

Process development chemists and laboratory chemists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Process Development Chemist	Laboratory Chemist
Average salary	$75,273	$62,702
Salary range	Between $54,000 And $104,000	Between $45,000 And $86,000
Highest paying City	South San Francisco, CA	Nutley, NJ
Highest paying state	Washington	Virginia
Best paying company	PerkinElmer	BASF
Best paying industry	Health Care	Manufacturing

Differences between process development chemist and laboratory chemist education

There are a few differences between a process development chemist and a laboratory chemist in terms of educational background:

	Process Development Chemist	Laboratory Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 80%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Process development chemist vs laboratory chemist demographics

Here are the differences between process development chemists' and laboratory chemists' demographics:

	Process Development Chemist	Laboratory Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 82.4% Female, 17.6%	Male, 63.9% Female, 36.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 18.2% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 18.3% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between process development chemist and laboratory chemist duties and responsibilities

Process development chemist example responsibilities.

Manage synthesis and production of specialty chemicals for carpet and textile industry.
Perform lab audits to make sure lab are in compliance with FDA regulations.
Train plant operators to run the new circuit in accordance to company's GMP.
Gain working experience with FDA, EPA, and government safety regulations and requirements.
Work also includes in QC department to analysis raw material, in-process and finish products.
Purify oligos on HPLC units that collect either manually or automatically.

Laboratory chemist example responsibilities.

Test developmental compounds to ASTM standards and manage certification submissions.
Perform testing on BioGlue components, titration - uv-vis - gel electrophoresis, and FTIR examination of incoming raw materials.
Develop and execute HPLC, UV and dissolution test methods for non-routine raw materials and finish products.
Conduct raw material analyses, perform tests using FTIR and GC instrumentation, develop policies and procedures, conduct trouble shooting.
Include GPC, GC-MS, FTIR, NMR and others
Participate in all kind of audit like ISO 17025, ISO 18001, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.

Process development chemist vs laboratory chemist skills

Common process development chemist skills

R, 14%
HPLC, 9%
Analytical Techniques, 8%
Process Support, 7%
GMP, 6%
NMR, 5%

Common laboratory chemist skills

Lab Equipment, 8%
Chromatography, 5%
Analytical Methods, 5%
Laboratory Procedures, 5%
Sample Preparation, 4%
Wet Chemistry, 4%

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Process Development Chemist
Process Development Chemist vs Laboratory Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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