Florida·Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations·SOC 19-4031

Best Chemical Technician programs in Florida, ranked by enrollment

Conduct chemical and physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative and quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, and gaseous materials for research and development of new products or processes, quality control,.

32 schools in Florida run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,471 people a year. The job pays a median of $54,050 in Florida across about 1,840 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledChemical TechnicianLaboratory Analyst (Lab Analyst)Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech)Quality Control Technician (QC Tech)AssayerColoristPerfumerDye Expert
Graduates / yr
1,471
in Florida
Median pay · Florida
$54,050
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
1,840
people employed
Schools
32
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
59%
across those schools
Median net price
$26,589
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Florida that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

2 programs in Florida that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Florida (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Florida page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 41.0301In Florida
773
52.5%
8$51,860$11,959
2
CIP 40.0501In Florida
698
47.5%
24$42,620$23,900

Top 25 schools in Florida

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 8 of the 32 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Florida SouthWestern State College
Fort Myers, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
357Chemical Technology/Technician39%
2University of Florida
Gainesville, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
222Chemistry, General$25,41891%24%
3Eastern Florida State College
Melbourne, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
189Chemical Technology/Technician52%
4University of South Florida
Tampa, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
83Chemistry, General$29,39977%43%
5Florida International University
Miami, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
77Chemistry, General$28,66074%55%
6Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
77Chemistry, General$40,62986%24%
7Florida State College at Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
76Chemical Technology/Technician$47,82037%
8University of Central Florida
Orlando, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
65Chemistry, General$43,63478%40%
9Lake - Sumter State College
Leesburg, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
62Chemical Technology/Technician48%
10Valencia College
Orlando, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
39Chemical Technology/Technician48%
11College of Central Florida
Ocala, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
29Chemical Technology/Technician44%
12Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
29Chemistry, General$35,01563%66%
13University of Miami
Coral Gables, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
23Chemistry, General84%$26,58919%
14University of West Florida
Pensacola, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
22Chemistry, General59%58%
15Seminole State College of Florida
Sanford, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
20Chemical Technology/Technician41%
16University of North Florida
Jacksonville, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
18Chemistry, General$31,66369%53%
17The University of Tampa
Tampa, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
16Chemistry, General64%$33,07040%
18Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
Tallahassee, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
9Chemistry, General53%21%
19Florida Institute of Technology
Melbourne, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
7Chemistry, General64%$33,58558%
20Florida Southern College
Lakeland, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
7Chemistry, General71%$28,32564%
21Jacksonville University
Jacksonville, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
7Chemistry, General51%$25,81357%
22Nova Southeastern University
Fort Lauderdale, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
7Chemistry, General63%$31,67273%
23Eckerd College
Saint Petersburg, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
5Chemistry, General66%$31,02276%
24Florida Gulf Coast University
Fort Myers, FL Public · 1 feeder programs
5Chemistry, General57%63%
25Stetson University
DeLand, FL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
5Chemistry, General62%$21,94872%

All 32 schools in Florida

Every school in Florida with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Florida that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Florida SouthWestern State CollegeFort MyersPublic3571
University of FloridaGainesvillePublic2221
Eastern Florida State CollegeMelbournePublic1891
University of South FloridaTampaPublic831
Florida International UniversityMiamiPublic771
Florida State UniversityTallahasseePublic771
Florida State College at JacksonvilleJacksonvillePublic761
University of Central FloridaOrlandoPublic651
Lake - Sumter State CollegeLeesburgPublic621
Valencia CollegeOrlandoPublic391
College of Central FloridaOcalaPublic291
Florida Atlantic UniversityBoca RatonPublic291
University of MiamiCoral GablesPrivate not-for-profit231
University of West FloridaPensacolaPublic221
Seminole State College of FloridaSanfordPublic201

What chemical technicians earn in Florida

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Florida
$54,050
Mean annual
$56,340
Jobs in state
1,840
What the range looks like
10th pct$39,200Median$54,05090th pct$75,560
Versus the national median
-10.5%

U.S. median $60,390. Florida pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.50×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Florida

Tallahassee, FL
$65,430median
40 jobs
North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL
$60,860median
30 jobs
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL
$57,420median
50 jobs
Jacksonville, FL
$49,930median
140 jobs
Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL
$57,400median
40 jobs
Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
$57,670median
80 jobs
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
$54,750median
510 jobs
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL
$58,040median
40 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+3.7%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
6,700
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
2,100
57,000 → 59,000
Typical entry education
Associate's degree
Plus moderate-term on-the-job training

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Chemical Technicians page.

How to become a Chemical Technician

Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0
Typical entry education
Associate's degree
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training

Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Top skills

ScienceReading ComprehensionCritical ThinkingWritingActive ListeningMonitoring

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Florida

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 7 majors mapped to Chemical Technicians7 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 40.0501Chemistry, General
  • 40.0502Analytical Chemistry
  • 40.0503Inorganic Chemistry
  • 40.0504Organic Chemistry
  • 40.0509Environmental Chemistry
  • 41.0301Chemical Technology/Technician
  • 41.0303Chemical Process Technology

Common questions

Answers for people weighing chemical technicians programs in Florida.

What degree do you need to become a Chemical Technician?+

Associate's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Chemical Technology/Technician, which awarded 773 degrees in Florida in 2024-25, 52.5% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Chemical Technician?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Physical Science Technologies/Technicians, Chemistry. Together they graduate about 1,471 people a year in Florida.

How much do chemical technicians earn in Florida?+

The median is $54,050 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 10.5% below the U.S. median of $60,390. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for chemical technicians growing?+

BLS projects a +3.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 6,700 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Florida?+

32 institutions in Florida reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do chemical technicians work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Chemical Technician, Laboratory Analyst (Lab Analyst), Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech), Quality Control Technician (QC Tech) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-4031.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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