Careers in Chemistry From Old Dominion University, over half the chemistry majors go on to graduate school or to medical school. Those who seek employment at the B.S. level might begin a career in industry or government, testing products, working in quality control laboratories, assisting a research scientist in lab work, or working in chemical sales. Students with a formal training in chemistry often go on to graduate work in biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, geoscience, or other fields which rely heavily on basic chemical science. Others work with physicists of materials engineers to study the properties of ceramics, glass, metals and polymers. Those with experience in both chemistry and computer science help model chemical systems, accumulate and process data from the research laboratory, work on process control in industry, or work on the storage and retrieval of scientific information.
Some students combine a technical training with a law degree and enter patent law.
Others work in industrial hygiene or toxicology to help minimize employee exposure to hazardous substances or to study the effects of chemicals on biological systems. Other students enter the field of teaching at the secondary or tertiary level. Individuals with a strong technical background who can write lucid articles on science and technology are needed for newspapers, magazines, and journals, or to work on industrial and technical progress reports or promotional publications. With scientific knowledge doubling every ten years, there is also a need for information specialists with a strong technical background to help with literature searches, to prepare abstracts of relevant research, or to work on information storage and retrieval. Many of the chemists in industry are involved in marketing or management.