Earnings
 New chemistry graduates
starting salaries' vary depending on a number of factors and one of the
most important is where they work.
 Salary
Data
According the
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, median
annual earnings of chemists is $59,870. The middle 50 percent earn
between $44,780 and $82,610. The lowest 10 percent earn less than
$35,480, and the highest 10 percent earn more than $106,310. Median
annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of
chemists is shown below:
|
Federal
executive branch |
$88,930 |
|
Scientific
research and development services |
$68,760 |
|
Basic chemical
manufacturing |
$62,340 |
|
Pharmaceutical
and medicine manufacturing |
$57,210 |
|
Testing
laboratories |
$45,730 |
Starting
Salaries
According to the
National Association of Colleges and Employers, beginning salary offers
in July 2007 for graduates with bachelor's degrees in chemistry averaged
$41,506 a year. In 2007, annual earnings of chemists in nonsupervisory,
supervisory, and managerial positions in the Federal Government averaged
$89,954.
According to the
American Chemical Society's 2006 Starting Salary Survey,
in current dollars, the median salary of inexperienced bachelor's
graduates increased from $32,500 for the 2004 class to $35,000 for 2005
and 2006
graduates. The gain for master's graduates was from $43,600 in 2004 to $45,000
in 2005 to $47,500 in 2006. For new Ph.D.s, there was a jump from $65,000
in 2004 to $72,400 in 2005, and then a decrease to $60,000 in 2006.
However, a recent falling response rate to the survey may have something
to do with the apparent gyrations in the salaries for Ph.D. chemistry
graduates. (Inexperienced is defined as having less than one year of technical work
experience prior to graduation.)
Note: Some resources in this
section were prepared as part of the Sloan Career Cornerstone
Series CD-Rom "Careers for Chemists" ©
American Chemical Society.
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