Chemistry Majors, what's the job market like for a person who has a B.S in Chemistry?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Santa Barbara
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<ol>
<li>What kind of jobs are there for people who have a B.S in Chemistry?</li>
<li>How hard it is to find a job? Is it as bad as people say?</li>
<li>Is it really worth going to graduate school at this point?</li>
<li>What's more suggested? Masters or PHD in Chemistry?</li>
<li>What internships would you suggest that would look good on resumes?</li>
</ol>

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<p>the “union card” for a job in the sciences is a PhD. Even though a BS in the sciences takes a lot of work, it just isn’t valued in the job market. </p>

<p>Unfortunately things don’t become wonderful if you spend another 3-7 years and get a PhD because there’s a glut of them too. See for example <a href=“The Ph.D Bust: America's Awful Market for Young Scientists&mdash;in 7 Charts - The Atlantic”>The Ph.D Bust: America's Awful Market for Young Scientists&mdash;in 7 Charts - The Atlantic;

<p>You can find all this discussed at greater length online. </p>

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<p>UCSB is really really good at Chemistry and in many science areas has research centers on campus I don’t specifically know about chemistry, but given how stellar their Chem E program is and how dedicated they are campus wide to multidisciplinary approaches I would think they likely would have. These give avenues to industry sometimes. If I were you I would call or email someone in the Chem department (more than the career center) and ask where they go from UCSB. </p>

<p>From an article today about awards for graduating seniors:</p>

<p>"Levy has worked closely with science faculty members and graduate students in her time at UCSB. Her role in applied research into light-activated gas release from donor molecules as a therapeutic agent resulted in co-authorship of a paper that became a 2013 cover feature in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Her subsequent inquiry into synthesizing nanoparticles for drug delivery included eight weeks of collaborative study at China’s Fudan University, where she helped develop a new class of nanocarriers.</p>

<p>Described as a “truly excellent student with a genuine future in research science,” Levy was also cited for her leadership role in UCSB outreach efforts to expose local schoolkids to science."

<p>UCSB has a STELLAR nanotechnology program.</p>

<p>In fact, UCSB is world class in science research, and that is a definite future avenue for a scholar if you are interested in that.</p>

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<p><em>snort</em></p>

<p>about whether they have chem research centers on campus:</p>

<p>

</p>

<p><a href=“UC Santa Barbara General Catalog - Chemistry and Biochemistry”>http://my.sa.ucsb.edu/catalog/current/CollegesDepartments/ls-intro/chem.aspx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Ahem. With regards to a comment on your other thread, I guess that student’s award does show at least one undergraduate’s research opportunity…</p>

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<p>UCSB has a Pharmacology major, something you might want to consider if you are leaning toward medial applications. Another job market is in agricultural research. Many pesticides have been taken off the market due to toxicity, so there’s tremendous need for new compounds. PhD isn’t always needed, but a Masters with specialization in agricultural applications would be helpful. Do what you can to start working in a research lab as soon as you get to campus, you will learn more from grad students and postdocs than anyone else.</p>