Chemists vs Materials Engineers
Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index
A factual, source-backed comparison of Chemists and Materials Engineers on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”
At a glance
| Dimension | Chemists | Materials Engineers |
|---|---|---|
| Median pay | $84,150 | $108,310 |
| Employment | 83,250 | 22,770 |
| Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection | About average (+4.9%) | About average (+5.7%) |
| Annual openings · BLS projection | 6,300 | 1,500 |
| Typical education · O*NET | Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not. | Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not. |
| AI exposure · published exposure studies | High · 77th pct | Moderate · 62nd pct |
| Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk | 75th pct · 39% of tasks | 56th pct · 30% of tasks |
| Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index | Augmentation-leaning (61.8%) | — |
| Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman | No | No |
Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.
Skills
Shared: Chemistry, Science, English Language, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Oral Comprehension, Written Comprehension, Oral Expression, Written Expression, Deductive Reasoning, Inductive Reasoning, Speaking, Problem Sensitivity, Information Ordering, Category Flexibility, Near Vision, Mathematics, Active Listening, Writing, Mathematics, Mathematical Reasoning, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Monitoring, Production and Processing, Computers and Electronics, Flexibility of Closure, Judgment and Decision Making, Speech Recognition, Physics, Fluency of Ideas, Perceptual Speed, Speech Clarity.
Specific to Chemists
- Number Facility
- Administration and Management
- Administrative
- Quality Control Analysis
- Systems Analysis
- Systems Evaluation
- Visual Color Discrimination
Specific to Materials Engineers
- Engineering and Technology
- Design
- Originality
- Visualization
- Instructing
- Service Orientation
- Operations Analysis
Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).
Tools & technology
Shared: Spreadsheet software , Office suite software , Presentation software , Development environment software , Object or component oriented development software , Data base user interface and query software , Process mapping and design software , Word processing software , Enterprise resource planning ERP software , Analytical or scientific software , Computer aided design CAD software , Document management software , Graphics or photo imaging software .
Specific to Chemists
Specific to Materials Engineers
Full profiles
This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Chemists or Materials Engineers — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.
More comparisons
Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.
- Chemists vs Chemical Engineers
- Chemists vs Biochemists and Biophysicists
- Chemists vs Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists
- Chemists vs Microbiologists
- Chemists vs Materials Scientists
- Chemists vs Bioengineers and Biomedical Engineers
- Chemists vs Food Scientists and Technologists
- Chemists vs Industrial Engineers
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Chemists vs Materials Engineers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/chemists-vs-materials-engineers
Singulariki. (2026). Chemists vs Materials Engineers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/chemists-vs-materials-engineers
@misc{singulariki-chemists-vs-materials-engineers,
title = {Chemists vs Materials Engineers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/compare/chemists-vs-materials-engineers}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.