Chemical Engineer

ok, so when you hear the profession "chemical engieneer," or someone in college tells you they're going to be a chemical engineer, what hits your mind first?  usually it's that they'll be making tons of money, right?  yeah, a lot of ChemE's are in that major for the money, but not me.  i just want to help save the environment, and a ChemE major is the best way to do that.  If i end up making some money, that's fine with me. :)  so, if you're interested in the money, here goes:

    Occupational Outlook Handbook

    Chemical Engineer

3) Salary/Earnings

In 1998, chemical engineers earned an average of $64,760. 

4) Job Outlook

Chemical engineering graduates may face keen competition for jobs as the number of openings is projected to be substantially lower than the number of graduates. Employment of chemical engineers is projected to grow as fast as the average for all occupations though 2008.  Much of the projected growth in employment of chemical engineers will be in non-manufacturing industries, especially services industries.

5) Training, Other

Nature of the Work:

Chemical engineering is a hard occupation to explain, because there are so many different field to work in.  As stated in the Occupational Outlook Handbook, 
Chemical engineers apply the principles of chemistry and engineering to solve problems involving the production or use of chemicals. They design equipment and develop processes for large scale chemical manufacturing, plan and test methods of manufacturing the products and treating the by-products, and supervise production. Chemical engineers also work in a variety of manufacturing industries other than chemical manufacturing such as electronics, photographic equipment, and pulp and paper mills.

Because the knowledge and duties of chemical engineers cut across many fields, they apply principles of chemistry, physics, mathematics, and mechanical and electrical engineering. They frequently specialize in a particular operation such as oxidation or polymerization. Others specialize in a particular area such as pollution control or the production of specific products such as automotive plastics or chlorine bleach. Chemical engineers are increasingly using computer technology to optimize all phases of research and production; therefore they need to understand how to apply computer skills to process analysis, automated control systems, and statistical quality control.

Employment:

Chemical engineers held about 48,000 jobs in 1998. Manufacturing industries employed over 70 percent of all employees, primarily in the electronics, petroleum refining, paper, chemical, and related industries. Most others worked for engineering services, research and testing services, or consulting firms that design chemical plants. Some also worked on a contract basis for government agencies or as independent consultants.

6) My Education Plans

Contrary to my college page, I will be attending University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign next year.  They are currently #5 in the nation for engineering, with an outstanding history.  Although Chemical Engineering is not part of the Engineering School, they are party of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences as part of their tradition.  

7) My Dream Job 

My dream job is to work for the United States Environmental Protection Agency.  Instead of living in a big city, I want to live in the middle of nowhere, in a small cottage, without electricity.  Kind of like Thoreau.  Living like this would give me ideas of how to recycle, reuse, and reduce the products that we buy.  The US needs to reduce the amount of municipal solid waste (household trash) that we dispose of.  I would live without electricity, and only on the very basic means.