Chemist job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

11

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 4 of 5

considerable preparation

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$91,240

BLS May 2025

1. Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods. importance 4.2 of 5
2. Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis. importance 4.0 of 5
3. Conduct quality control tests. importance 3.9 of 5
4. Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests. importance 3.9 of 5
5. Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed. importance 3.9 of 5
6. Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests. importance 3.9 of 5
7. Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions. importance 3.9 of 5
8. Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests. importance 3.8 of 5
9. Evaluate laboratory safety procedures to ensure compliance with standards or to make improvements as needed. importance 3.7 of 5
10. Direct, coordinate, or advise personnel in test procedures for analyzing components or physical properties of materials. importance 3.6 of 5
11. Purchase laboratory supplies, such as chemicals, when supplies are low or near their expiration date. importance 3.4 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Documenting/Recording Information, Analyzing Data or Information, Getting Information, Making Decisions and Solving Problems and Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events.

Knowledge areas: Chemistry, English Language, Mathematics, Production and Processing and Administration and Management.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft PowerPoint, Extensible markup language XML, Microsoft Visio, C. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists no typical on-the-job training once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 4 of 5 (considerable preparation). A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become a chemist.

Most chemists surveyed by O*NET (56%) name a bachelor's degree as the education the job requires.

Job title: Chemist
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Chemist to conduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or knowledge.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods.
- Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis.
- Conduct quality control tests.
- Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests.
- Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed.
- Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests.
- Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
- Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in science, reading comprehension and critical thinking
- Working knowledge of Chemistry and English Language
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Office software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

The median annual wage was $91,240 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $43.87. BLS estimates about 82,770 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of chemists to grow 6.4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 5,900 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full chemist salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real chemist posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas…”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only chemist work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (science and reading comprehension); chemist interview questions turns them into practice questions.