employment
CHEMISTS IN THE MIDDLE Multisociety survey of new Ph.D. graduates yields comparative data and insights into chemistry as a profession Michael Heylin C&EN Washington
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hemists have been known to proclaim that chemistry is the central science. By that, they mean that knowledge of chemistry is fundamental to the understanding and progress of other sciences. Newly released results from a longawaited survey of the salary and employment situation of newly graduated doctorates in a variety of physical sciences, social sciences, and engineering fields indicate that chemists and chemistry are central in other ways, too (C&EN, Aug. 10, page 11). First, the starting salaries for chemistry doctorates who graduated between July 1996 and June 1997 fall into the midrange. For instance, the median of $58,000 for chemists with jobs in industry is between the high of $73,500 for economists and $72,500 for computer scientists, and the low of $38,900 for po-
litical scientists. For chemical engineers, the median is $61,200. Second, the chemistry class shows a reasonably even balance between those taking full-time jobs, 41%, and those taking up postdoctoral positions, 52%. This is not the case for most of the other disciplines covered. For example, less than 10% of the computer science graduates took postdocs. At the other extreme, only little more than 20% of those with new Ph.D.s in biochemistry and molecular biology and in microbiology moved to full-time jobs. Third, the demographics of the chemistry class also fall into a midrange with 31% women and 33% nonwhite. The new study is the culmination of a painstaking three-year joint effort. It was coordinated by the Commission on Professionals in Science & Technology (CPST) and involved the American Chemical Society and other professional organizations. Earlier known as the Scientific Manpower Commission, CPST is a participat-
Ph.D. starting salaries vary widely with discipline, employer Education Median salary, $ thousands8
Biochemistry Chemistry Chemical engineering Computer science Earth & space sciences
Business/ Industry
9-to 10-month contracts
11-to 12-month contracts
Postdocs
67.5 47.5
$35.8 35.5 49.5 47.0 33.0
$26.5 34.0 64.0 56.5 40.0
$25.3 25.0 33.0 44.0 34.0
Government
$53.0 58.0 61.2 72.5 58.6
— $45.0
—
Economics Engineering Mathematics Microbiology Physics
73.5 63.6 60.0 44.3 62.0
54.8 60.0 57.3 47.5 63.0
48.0 50.0 36.0 33.0 33.0
51.0 55.0 49.7 26.0 45.0
42.8 35.3 37.5 26.0 36.0
Physiology Political science Psychology Sociology
45.0 38.9 54.0
52.4 42.7 43.5 53.5
33.5 37.2 31.1 37.0
27.3 37.0 38.0 39.8
24.0 30.0 22.5 31.7
—
a As of Oct. 13, 1997. Source: 1997 multisociety survey
ing organization of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The coordination task was not easy: It had to bring together societies very experienced in conducting salary and employment surveys of their members and new graduates—and each doing them their own way—and societies largely new to such data gathering. The primary goal was to gather from many disciplines timely, unambiguous, and strictly comparable career-related data on new doctoral graduates that are useful to an intended audience of students, faculty advisers, and policymakers. Another goal was to establish the multisociety survey as an annual event. Initially involved were representatives from CPST, ACS, and six other societies. They worked together to produce a common set of core questions to be used in each society's poll of its own doctoral graduates. They were also involved in a pilot study in the fall of 1996. ACS's representative throughout was Senior Research Analyst Mary W. Jordan of the society's Department of Career Services. Executive Director Catherine D. Gaddy led the CPST effort. Seven more societies joined for the latest survey that was conducted last fall. The survey questionnaires asked for data as of the week of Oct. 13,1997. As before, each society carried out its own survey and provided the data to CPST. ACS gathered the data for both chemists and chemical engineers. Each society could also ask questions specific to its own discipline. To date, the effort has been funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation with additional support from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the National Science Foundation. The societies involved in the latest survey sent questionnaires to a total of 15,000 new doctoral graduates. Of these, more than 7,300 sent them back for a respectable response rate of 49%. The highest response was from physiologists, 73%. The lowest, 34%, was from engineers in general. Chemists and chemical engineers responded to the ACS survey at rates of 63% and 60%. Judged by salary, computer scientists appear to be in very high demand. Those who took jobs in government received the highest salary, $67,500, among the 12 disciplines reporting in that category. In both education and business, they received the second highest. The few who took up postdocs got the highest stipends—a median of $44,000 compared with $25,000 for chemistry postdocs. Second among the postdocs were economists at $42,800. AUGUST 17, 1998 C&EN 41
employment
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those currently employed or on a postdoc but ac Computer scientists apparently tively looking for another don't need postdocs Professional groups involved in the job. This reaches a high of multisociety salary and employment 45% for earth and space study coordinated by the Commission Microbiology sciences. The low of 20% on Professionals in Science & Technol Biochemistry ogy are as follows: is for computer scientists. Physiology It's high for chemists, American Chemical Society American Economic Association 43%, lower for chemical Chemistry American Geological Institute engineers at 28%. Physics American Geophysical Union In an effort to assess Earth & space American Institute of Physics sciences American Mathematical Society job satisfaction, the sur Mathematics American Physiological Society vey asked respondents to American Political Science Association Chemical answer four questions on engineering American Psychological Association a scale from 1 (strongly American Society for Biochemistry Engineering & Molecular Biology disagree) to 5 (strongly Psychology American Society for Engineering agree). For three of the Political Education science questions, the average re American Society for Microbiology Computer American Sociological Society sponse from the different science Association for Computing Machinery fields clustered quite Economics closely around 4.2. These Ο 20 40 60 80 Percent8 were: "Is my position a Percent of 1996-97 doctoral graduates on postdocs as of Oct. 13, 1997. An analysis of the data on employment professionally challeng Source: 1997 multisociety survey status confirms the fields in which a post- ing?" "Is my position re doc is, or is not, essential to full profession lated to my field?" and al acceptance in a field. For instance, only "Is my position commensurate with my magazines, or journals" was third overall. 4% of economists, 8% of computer scien training?" The response by chemists to "Computer resources" ranked second for tists, and 8% of political science graduates these questions were 4.3, 4.5, and 4.3. computer scientists and was third or fourth The survey average response to "Is my for economists, engineers, physicists, and took up postdocs last fall. At the other end of the scale, 73% of position similar to what I expected to be biochemists. microbiologists and 70% of biochemists doing when I began my doctoral program?" For chemists, the top four methods and molecular biologists responding to was 3-6. It was 3.6 for chemists too. were faculty advisers, informal channels, the survey took the postdoc route. This The field that had the highest scores magazines, and the sending of unsolicited presumably reflects the need for such on these questions was earth and space resumes. Chemistry was one of only two further training in these highly research- sciences. The lowest was physics. fields—the other was physiology—in which oriented fields. The survey also explored the job search faculty adviser ranked number one. However, in the microbiologists' case, methods used. Topping the list for almost As to the demographics of the new the very high percentage of postdocs may all fields was "informal channels." Second Ph.D.s, 35% of all respondents were wom also reflect, to some extent, a lack of oth overall was "faculty advisers." "Newsletters, en. The range in the number of women er opportunities. Of those was from 68% of the psy reporting they had tempo chology graduates and 56% rary jobs—almost all post of the microbiologists to Few biosciences Ph.D. graduates move docs—42% also indicated lows of 14% of computer directly to full-time employment they were in their position scientists and physicists. Unemployed involuntarily because a suit This puts chemistry, with but seeking Full-time Part-time Employment status employment employment Postdoc employment able permanent job was not 31% women, about in the available. For the biochem middle again. Biochemistry 1% 70% 3% 25% ists and molecular biolo By race, 77.4% of all Chemistry 41 2 52 5 gists, this involuntary score those who responded in all 1 Chemical engineering 23 73 3 was only 17%. fields were white and 17.0% Computer science 1 2 89 8 Asian. The remainder con Among chemist respon 7 4 Earth & space sciences 38 50 sisted of 2.6% black, 0.3% dents, 58% reported they Economics 4 2 89 5 Native American, and 2.7% were in temporary posi 2 Engineering 17 78 3 "other." tions—again almost all post Mathematics 67 5 26 2 docs. Of these, 57% said they The fields showing the 1 2 Microbiology 23 73 were there involuntarily. most diversity were physiol Physics 3 48 2 48 ogy (58% white) and com Another indicator of dis 2 Physiology 65 3 30 puter science (64% white). quiet in what looks like a rea Political science 7 72 13 8 The least diverse field was sonably good job market 64 19 1 Psychology 16 physics (90% white). The overall—with only about Sociology 7 14 2 76 chemistry class was 67% 2.5% of all respondents in the white with an unusually workforce actually unem a As of Oct. 13, 1997. Source: 1997 multisociety survey high 28% Asians.^ ployed—is the percentage of
Survey participants
8
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AUGUST 17, 1998 C&EN
