Best degree programs for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders, ranked by enrollment
2 college programs and 70 schools train Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $58,040 median wage, 139,630 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
2 college programs at 70 schools train chemical equipment operators and tenders, graduating 2,964 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Chemical Technology/Technician. The job pays a median of $58,040 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About chemical equipment operators and tenders
Operate or tend equipment to control chemical changes or reactions in the processing of industrial or consumer products. Equipment used includes devulcanizers, steam-jacketed kettles, and reactor vessels.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
2 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 41.0301 | 2,879 | 97.1% | 61 | $51,860 | $11,959 |
| 2 | CIP 41.0303 | 85 | 2.9% | 10 | $51,860 | $11,959 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What chemical equipment operators and tenders earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | $60,150 | 20,880 | 1.65× | 16 | 1,669 |
| Florida | $44,360 | 4,270 | 0.48× | 8 | 773 |
| Kentuckymoderate | $57,530 | 3,590 | 2.00× | 3 | 71 |
| California | $58,300 | 5,670 | 0.35× | 7 | 68 |
| Utahlimited | $39,020 | 2,610 | 1.68× | 1 | 63 |
| Washingtonlimited | $67,300 | 1,720 | 0.54× | 2 | 54 |
| Arkansaslimited | $64,440 | 1,160 | 0.99× | 1 | 49 |
| Louisianalimited | $78,580 | 6,430 | 3.70× | 1 | 33 |
| North Carolinalimited | $49,650 | 5,260 | 1.19× | 1 | 25 |
| Michiganmoderate | $50,060 | 5,210 | 1.32× | 3 | 23 |
| Pennsylvanialimited | $56,630 | 6,230 | 1.14× | 2 | 19 |
| West Virginiamoderate | $66,060 | 1,190 | 1.89× | 3 | 15 |
| Kansaslimited | $54,890 | 1,920 | 1.49× | 2 | 11 |
| New Yorklimited | $49,640 | 4,270 | 0.49× | 2 | 11 |
| Alabamalimited | $80,330 | 3,280 | 1.73× | 1 | 10 |
| Rhode Islandlimited | $69,630 | 430 | 0.96× | 1 | 10 |
| Illinoislimited | $61,940 | 5,580 | 1.02× | 2 | 9 |
| Tennesseelimited | $60,960 | 3,860 | 1.31× | 2 | 9 |
| New Mexicolimited | $60,910 | 170 | 0.22× | 1 | 8 |
| Indianalimited | $56,800 | 6,240 | 2.17× | 2 | 7 |
| Delawarelimited | $63,200 | 1,160 | 2.66× | 1 | 6 |
| Ohiolimited | $60,550 | 7,830 | 1.57× | 2 | 5 |
| Georgialimited | $49,660 | 4,330 | 0.99× | 1 | 1 |
| New Jerseylimited | $56,500 | 8,560 | 2.23× | 1 | 1 |
| Wisconsinlimited | $50,870 | 2,730 | 1.03× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Observe safety precautions to prevent fires or explosions.
- Record operational data, such as temperatures, pressures, ingredients used, processing times, or test results.
- Control or operate equipment in which chemical changes or reactions take place during the processing of industrial or consumer products.
- Patrol work areas to detect leaks or equipment malfunctions or to monitor operating conditions.
- Draw samples of products at specified stages so that analyses can be performed.
- Adjust controls to regulate temperature, pressure, feed, or flow of liquids or gases and times of prescribed reactions, according to knowledge of equipment and processes.
- Monitor gauges, recording instruments, flowmeters, or products to ensure that specified conditions are maintained.
- Test product samples for specific gravity, chemical characteristics, pH levels, concentrations, or viscosities, or send them to laboratories for testing.
Skills
- Monitoring3.8
- Active Listening3.4
- Critical Thinking3.4
- Reading Comprehension3.4
- Speaking3.1
- Writing3.0
- Active Learning3.0
- Mathematics2.9
Knowledge areas
- Production and Processing4.5
- Chemistry4.4
- Mechanical4.1
- Computers and Electronics3.7
- English Language3.7
- Mathematics3.5
Abilities
- Oral Expression3.8
- Problem Sensitivity3.8
- Control Precision3.8
- Oral Comprehension3.8
- Near Vision3.8
- Written Comprehension3.6
Core activities
- Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings4.5
- Getting Information4.3
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems4.3
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials4.2
- Controlling Machines and Processes4.2
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates4.1
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Chemical Equipment Operator
Job zone 2 of 5 · SVP Below 6.0- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 2 majors mapped to Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders2 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 41.0301Chemical Technology/Technician
- 41.0303Chemical Process Technology
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a Chemical Equipment Operator?+
High school diploma or equivalent 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 2,879 degrees in 2024-25, 97.1% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Chemical Equipment Operator?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Physical Science Technologies/Technicians. Together they graduate about 2,964 people a year.
How much do chemical equipment operators and tenders earn?+
The median is $58,040 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $37,440 at the 10th percentile to $92,250 at the 90th. 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 equipment operators and tenders growing?+
BLS projects a +3.3% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 14,400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
70 institutions 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 equipment operators and tenders work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Vessel Operator, Outside Operator, Chemical Operator, Multiskill Operator among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 51-9011.
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 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected 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 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, 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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