Forensic Chemist

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Forensic Chemist tests and analyzes physical evidence and drug samples gathered from crime scenes. Completes tests on samples collected by law enforcement or other government agencies or employers. Documents and reports test findings; may be required to provide court testimony on test findings.

Job Outlook

There were 24 Forensic Chemist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 1018 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Chemist industry, which includes the Forensic Chemist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2016:

Salary

Many new Forensic Chemist jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.

National

The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $83,012.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $83,012.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Forensic Chemist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $72,163.

Education and Experience

Posted Forensic Chemist jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.

Education Level	Percentage
Associate's Degree	0%
Bachelor's Degree	66.5%
Master's Degree	44.3%
Doctoral Degree	19.06%
Other	2.36%

Posted Forensic Chemist jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.

Years of Experience	Percentage
0 to 2 years	27.22%
3 to 5 years	31%
6 to 8 years	11.53%
9+ years	30.25%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Forensic Chemist positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.

Baseline Skills

A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.

Quality Assurance (46.07%)
Research (30.16%)
Detail Oriented (28.68%)
Confidentiality (27.01%)
Microsoft Office (26.52%)
Communication (24.36%)
Consulting (22.89%)
Data Interpretation (22.79%)
Sales (22%)
Safety Assurance (21.81%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) (21.38%)
Usability (21.18%)
Statistics (38.39%)
Safety Training (21.08%)
SAP Applications (22.61%)
Population Genetics (7.33%)
Project Accounting (22.71%)
Project Management (23.22%)
Marketing (22.2%)
Forensic Toxicology (7.33%)
Standard Operating Procedure (30.96%)
Expert Witness (23.63%)
Fingerprint Identification And Classification (13.44%)
Forensic Chemistry (9.37%)
European Quality Improvement Systems (20.77%)
DNA Profiling (8.35%)
Ecology (23.52%)
Economics (22.61%)
Corporate Data Management (20.77%)
Forensic Sciences (54.48%)
Data Validation (22%)
Data Collection (22.3%)
Data Integrity (22.51%)
Data Management (23.32%)
Continuous Improvement Process (20.88%)
Client Services (21.08%)
Social Work (21.08%)
Automation (21.69%)
Reconciliation (22.71%)
Biochemistry (30.35%)
Biology (50.1%)
Business Development (22.71%)
Analytical Chemistry (36.05%)
Analytical Techniques (32.38%)
Data Analysis (28.82%)
Chemistry (82.59%)
Auditing (27.8%)
Accounting (23.42%)
Data-Driven Decision Making (22.61%)
Program Development (22.61%)
Quality Management Systems (24.03%)
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software (22.71%)
Environmental Data Management (22.71%)
Site Assessment (22.71%)
Technical Presentations (20.88%)
Laboratory Experience (36.97%)
Software Strategy (22.51%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

Toxicology (14.56%)
Software Technical Review (7.74%)
Scientific Methods (7.43%)
Scientific Literature (7.43%)
Physics (14.87%)
Nuclear Power (5.6%)
Mass Spectrometry (13.24%)
Laboratory Information Management Systems (5.7%)
Laboratory Testing (11.2%)
Law Enforcement (15.58%)
Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (4.68%)
Life Sciences (3.36%)
Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (11.3%)
Genetics (14.05%)
Instrumentation (4.58%)
Curriculum Development (1.83%)
Molecular Biology (14.26%)
Chromatography (9.37%)
Chain Of Custody (12.93%)
Laboratory Equipment (17.62%)
Laboratory Procedures (9.98%)
Physical Science (11.2%)
Laboratory Safety (9.78%)
Sample Preparation (2.75%)

Distinguishing Skills

A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.

Forensic Biology (6.72%)
Tandem Mass Spectrometry (5.7%)

Salary Boosting Skills

A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.

Site Assessment (25.66%)
Technical Presentations (23.59%)
Laboratory Experience (41.77%)
Environmental Data Management (25.66%)
Tandem Mass Spectrometry (6.44%)
Data-Driven Decision Making (25.55%)
Program Development (25.55%)
Analytical Chemistry (40.74%)
Automation (24.51%)
Biology (56.62%)
Corporate Data Management (23.48%)
Data Collection (25.2%)
European Quality Improvement Systems (23.48%)
Forensic Chemistry (10.59%)
Standard Operating Procedure (34.98%)
Project Management (26.24%)
Population Genetics (8.29%)
Statistics (43.38%)
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) (24.17%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Forensic Chemist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

Forensic Scientist
Environmental Chemist
Chemist
Forensic Toxicologist
Laboratory Scientist
Latent Print Examiner
Forensic Biologist
Section Supervisor
Postdoctoral Fellow

Similar Occupations

If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Forensic Chemist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

Montrose Environmental Group (222)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (43)
State Of Texas (27)
Department Of Forensic Science (19)
State of Minnesota (18)
Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania (15)
Nms Labs (14)
State of Arizona (14)
State of Michigan (12)
Pennsylvania State University (11)

North Carolina

State of North Carolina (7)
N.C Department Of Transportation (4)
North Carolina Department Of Health And Human Services (3)
Montrose Environmental Group (2)
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (1)
Western Carolina University (1)
North Carolina Department Of Justice (1)

NC State Programs Relevant to this Career

If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!

Textile Chemistry Master's Degrees

All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.

Science and Research