2 answers
Meg
Student
Belton, South Carolina
1
Question
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What jobs would I be interested in with my field of choice?
If I were to become a chemical engineer, what jobs in that specific field would be avalible and benefit me most, and what jobs would give me the most money I could make?
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2 answers
Sean Crampton
Principal Program Manager
2
Answers
Middletown, Delaware
Updated
Sean’s Answer
Chemical Engineering is a pretty broad field, so to answer this question you'll need to know what your interests are.
There are jobs in research and academia which can be the most interesting and rewarding, but require post-graduate work and typically pay less. If you are interested in life long learning and expanding your knowledge, this is a good field for you.
Product and Material Design Engineer jobs for private companies typically pay well and provide a mix of interesting work and learning opportunity, but with the pay and benefits of a larger employer.
Process Engineering jobs tend to be the most plentiful and are well paid, but they focus much more on monitoring and optimizing chemical processes, along with equipment reliability and you won't get to flex your design creativity as much. These jobs are typically at production facilities (either food production or manufacturing) and power plants or other utilities.
If your focus is maximizing your earning potential, you will want to consider whether you would like to move into a people leader / management role at some point in your career, as these are typically accompanied by increased compensation. While not all Engineers make good managers, an engineering background is a valuable asset for managers because it teaches you an approach to problem solving and gives you the technical knowledge required to understand complex issues quickly. Leadership courses and a masters degree can help with this, but are not required by all companies.
There are jobs in research and academia which can be the most interesting and rewarding, but require post-graduate work and typically pay less. If you are interested in life long learning and expanding your knowledge, this is a good field for you.
Product and Material Design Engineer jobs for private companies typically pay well and provide a mix of interesting work and learning opportunity, but with the pay and benefits of a larger employer.
Process Engineering jobs tend to be the most plentiful and are well paid, but they focus much more on monitoring and optimizing chemical processes, along with equipment reliability and you won't get to flex your design creativity as much. These jobs are typically at production facilities (either food production or manufacturing) and power plants or other utilities.
If your focus is maximizing your earning potential, you will want to consider whether you would like to move into a people leader / management role at some point in your career, as these are typically accompanied by increased compensation. While not all Engineers make good managers, an engineering background is a valuable asset for managers because it teaches you an approach to problem solving and gives you the technical knowledge required to understand complex issues quickly. Leadership courses and a masters degree can help with this, but are not required by all companies.
Aaron Escamilla
Mining Technology Developer
62
Answers
Gilbert, Arizona
Updated
Aaron’s Answer
Definitely lots and lots of things you can do so I'll just list some things since I studied chemical engineering as well:
1) Oil and gas
2) Chemical companies (DOW Chemicals, ....almost any company that makes chemicals)
3) Food industry! Yum!!! General mills and other large food companies love chemical engineers although you may need to take some electives in that department.
4) Laboratories (almost like any chemist)
5) Mineral Resources/Metallurgy (focus on metal recovery for metal refineries and processing plants)
6) the list goes on
As far as pay, Oil and Gas can pay a ton but they also lay off a ton...Mineral resources will pay you no different than any other engineer but lots of opportunity for growth. Food probably pays the least of these...or laboratories...it's a toss up BUT...think about the benefits...General Mills gives lots of food to their employees for example...lots of vacation, volunteer days, and more...so less pay...amazing benefits.
So consider pay with benefits as well. How much vacation time, how much do that companies health benefits cost, etc. For example, I know DOW Chemicals not only pays well but they have a 40 hour policy where you work your 40 hours when you want. If you get them done all on Mon, Tue, Wed, then you're good to take the rest of the week off. Yippy!
1) Oil and gas
2) Chemical companies (DOW Chemicals, ....almost any company that makes chemicals)
3) Food industry! Yum!!! General mills and other large food companies love chemical engineers although you may need to take some electives in that department.
4) Laboratories (almost like any chemist)
5) Mineral Resources/Metallurgy (focus on metal recovery for metal refineries and processing plants)
6) the list goes on
As far as pay, Oil and Gas can pay a ton but they also lay off a ton...Mineral resources will pay you no different than any other engineer but lots of opportunity for growth. Food probably pays the least of these...or laboratories...it's a toss up BUT...think about the benefits...General Mills gives lots of food to their employees for example...lots of vacation, volunteer days, and more...so less pay...amazing benefits.
So consider pay with benefits as well. How much vacation time, how much do that companies health benefits cost, etc. For example, I know DOW Chemicals not only pays well but they have a 40 hour policy where you work your 40 hours when you want. If you get them done all on Mon, Tue, Wed, then you're good to take the rest of the week off. Yippy!