Chemical Technicians

Also Called:

Chemical Technician,

Laboratory Analyst (Lab Analyst),

Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech),

Quality Control Technician (QC Tech)

What they do: Conduct chemical and physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative and quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, and gaseous materials for research and development of new products or processes, quality control, maintenance of environmental standards, and other work involving experimental, theoretical, or practical application of chemistry and related sciences.

Advanced Manufacturing icon

Advanced Manufacturing

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Conduct chemical or physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative or quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, or gaseous materials.
  • Maintain, clean, or sterilize laboratory instruments or equipment.
  • Monitor product quality to ensure compliance with standards and specifications.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.

Cautiousness

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Integrity

Achievement Orientation

Intellectual Curiosity

Interests

Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.

Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz

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Investigative

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Realistic

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Conventional

Abilities

Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.

Verbal

  • Read and understand what is written

  • Communicate by writing

Ideas and Logic

  • Make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information

  • Notice when problems happen

Hand and Finger Use

  • Hold or move items with your hands

  • Keep your arm or hand steady

Math

  • Choose the right type of math to solve a problem

Skills

People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.

Basic Skills

  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems

  • Reading work related information

Problem Solving

  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

People and Technology Systems

  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it

  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one

Does this sound like something you'd like to do?

1. Do some research

  • Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
  • Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
  • Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career

2. Plan your next move

  • Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
  • Visit Idaho Launch
  • Search for available Chemical Technicians jobs on Idaho Works

Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop