Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary
Teach courses pertaining to the chemical and physical properties and compositional changes of substances. Work may include providing instruction in the methods of qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching, and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
Most important skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Speaking
- Active Listening
- Science
- Critical Thinking
- Active Learning
- Learning Strategies
Key knowledge
- Chemistry
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Education and Training
- Biology
- Physics
- Engineering and Technology
- Computers and Electronics
What the work involves
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, and chemical separation.
- Supervise students' laboratory work.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, laboratory performance, assignments, and papers.
- Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
- Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.
- Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
- Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students.
- Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, and course materials and methods of instruction.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Investigative, Social, Realistic.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Master's Degree (35.3% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years (22.8%)
- On-the-job training
- None or short demonstration (42.2%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 5: Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Lower on contact with others than 57% of occupations compared | 52% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very low | Lower on dealing with the public than 80% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly important” |
| Teamwork | Low | Lower on teamwork than 66% of occupations compared | 45% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 92% of occupations compared | 79% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Moderate | Lower on time pressure than 56% of occupations compared | 33% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Conflict situations | Moderate | Higher on conflict situations than 53% of occupations compared | 38% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Moderate | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 58% of occupations compared | 58% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | Moderate | Lower on consequence of error than 51% of occupations compared | 46% of surveyed respondents chose “Serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: moderate
- Conflict situations: moderate
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: moderate
- Consequence of error: moderate
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 0%
- Contact with others about half the time: 22.41%
- Contact with others most of the time: 25.37%
- Constant contact with others: 52.22%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 26.72%
- Fairly important: 33.65%
- Important: 3.9%
- Very important: 27.22%
- Extremely important: 8.51%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 10.62%
- Important: 18.36%
- Very important: 25.65%
- Extremely important: 45.37%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 2.69%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 0%
- Some freedom: 18.44%
- A lot of freedom: 78.87%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 8.44%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 32.8%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 31.43%
- Every day: 27.34%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Conflict situations
- Never: 7.31%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 35.13%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 19.96%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 37.6%
- Every day: 0%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 0.24%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 57.72%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 23.91%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 15.44%
- Every day: 2.69%
n = 33, Incumbent 08/2019
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 16.68%
- Fairly serious: 13.48%
- Serious: 46.27%
- Very serious: 6.23%
- Extremely serious: 17.35%
n = 31, Incumbent 08/2019
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O*NET-SOC 25-1052.00 · SOC 25-1052 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8