When you hear the word chemist, you may think bench chemistry and researcher. But being a chemist prepares you for much more than just a laboratory career. Chemistry is an art where analytical thinking, problem solving, research methodology and many other skills are learned and crafted. Those skills are highly valuable in many places outside of the laboratory. In fact, many chemists go on to have careers in a wide variety of industries and types of positions. This symposium is focused on just that. We will have a variety of chemists who have pursued non-traditional careers, i.e., careers outside of typical academic or industry research. We will discuss what their backgrounds are, what their current jobs are, how they came to choose their current careers, and how their background in chemistry provides skills useful for their current careers. The panelists have careers in the areas of business, law and legal support, press, and other areas. The speakers will each provide a brief synopsis of what they do and how they got where they are followed by open question and answers with the audience. If have considered a career outside of the laboratory or are simply interested in what other chemists have gone on to do in non-traditional careers, you won’t want to miss this symposium.

Beyond the bench: Non-traditional careers in chemistry

2019 Spring National Meeting

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