Ohio·Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations·SOC 19-2031

Best Chemist programs in Ohio, ranked by enrollment

Conduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or.

48 schools in Ohio run programs that feed this job, graduating 939 people a year. The job pays a median of $85,270 in Ohio across about 4,010 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledChemistScientistResearch ChemistAnalytical ChemistOil ExpertMix ChemistAstrochemistCoal Chemist
Graduates / yr
939
in Ohio
Median pay · Ohio
$85,270
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
4,010
people employed
Schools
48
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
58%
across those schools
Median net price
$21,785
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Ohio that lead to this job

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

8 programs in Ohio that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Ohio (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 Ohio page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 40.0501In Ohio
809
86.2%
47$42,620$23,900
2
CIP 40.0510In Ohio
45
4.8%
1$42,620$23,900
3
CIP 51.2004In Ohio
34
3.6%
4$48,728$23,761
4
Chemistry, Othermain feeder
CIP 40.0599In Ohio
22
2.3%
2$42,620$23,900
5
CIP 40.0507In Ohio
18
1.9%
1$42,620$23,900
6
CIP 40.0502In Ohio
4
0.4%
2$42,620$23,900
7
Chemical Physicsmain feeder
CIP 40.0508In Ohio
4
0.4%
2$42,620$23,900
8
CIP 40.0511In Ohio
3
0.3%
1$42,620$23,900

Top 25 schools in Ohio

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 8 of the 48 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Ohio State University - Main Campus
Columbus, OH Public · 2 feeder programs
251Chemistry, General$42,69888%61%
2Ohio University - Main Campus
Athens, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
138Chemistry, General$43,34965%85%
3Bowling Green State University - Main Campus
Bowling Green, OH Public · 3 feeder programs
57Forensic Chemistry$43,84064%81%
4University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Cincinnati, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
57Chemistry, General$47,38775%85%
5Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
51Chemistry, General87%$27,97637%
6Miami University - Oxford
Oxford, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
51Chemistry, General80%75%
7Kent State University at Kent
Kent, OH Public · 2 feeder programs
42Chemistry, General$39,79064%86%
8Cleveland State University
Cleveland, OH Public · 2 feeder programs
38Chemistry, General$48,14751%91%
9University of Toledo
Toledo, OH Public · 3 feeder programs
30Chemistry, General57%92%
10University of Akron Main Campus
Akron, OH Public · 2 feeder programs
26Polymer Chemistry$44,97052%60%
11Wright State University - Main Campus
Dayton, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
19Chemistry, General42%96%
12The College of Wooster
Wooster, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
17Chemistry, General74%$22,49160%
13John Carroll University
University Heights, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
15Chemistry, General$30,08779%$25,70581%
14Stark State College
North Canton, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
13Chemistry, General23%
15Denison University
Granville, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
11Chemistry, General79%$23,86417%
16Xavier University
Cincinnati, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
11Chemistry, General69%$31,11986%
17Baldwin Wallace University
Berea, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
10Chemistry, General67%$25,10476%
18University of Dayton
Dayton, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
10Chemistry, General80%$28,56065%
19Kenyon College
Gambier, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
9Chemistry, General82%$20,47531%
20University of Cincinnati - Blue Ash College
Blue Ash, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
9Chemistry, General16%
21Youngstown State University
Youngstown, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
7Chemistry, General50%84%
22Otterbein University
Westerville, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
6Chemistry, General68%$20,15085%
23Sinclair Community College
Dayton, OH Public · 1 feeder programs
6Chemistry, General41%
24Muskingum University
New Concord, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
5Chemistry, General56%$19,37282%
25Marietta College
Marietta, OH Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
4Chemistry, General61%$18,56179%

All 48 schools in Ohio

Every school in Ohio 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 Ohio that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Ohio State University - Main CampusColumbusPublic2512
Ohio University - Main CampusAthensPublic1381
Bowling Green State University - Main CampusBowling GreenPublic573
University of Cincinnati - Main CampusCincinnatiPublic571
Case Western Reserve UniversityClevelandPrivate not-for-profit512
Miami University - OxfordOxfordPublic511
Kent State University at KentKentPublic422
Cleveland State UniversityClevelandPublic382
University of ToledoToledoPublic303
University of Akron Main CampusAkronPublic262
Wright State University - Main CampusDaytonPublic191
The College of WoosterWoosterPrivate not-for-profit172
John Carroll UniversityUniversity HeightsPrivate not-for-profit151
Stark State CollegeNorth CantonPublic131
Denison UniversityGranvillePrivate not-for-profit111

What chemists earn in Ohio

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

Median annual in Ohio
$85,270
Mean annual
$94,470
Jobs in state
4,010
What the range looks like
10th pct$59,010Median$85,27090th pct$134,820
Versus the national median
-6.5%

U.S. median $91,240. Ohio pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
1.36×

Concentrated here: Ohio employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.

Metro areas in Ohio

Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH
$104,510median
230 jobs
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
$96,170median
930 jobs
Columbus, OH
$94,170median
1,170 jobs
Cleveland, OH
$82,020median
680 jobs
Akron, OH
$78,990median
200 jobs
Toledo, OH
$78,250median
150 jobs
Canton-Massillon, OH
$76,660median
50 jobs
Lima, OH
$72,570median
100 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+4.9%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
6,300
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
4,300
86,800 → 91,000
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

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 Chemists page.

How to become a Chemist

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Top skills

ScienceCritical ThinkingReading ComprehensionSpeakingWritingActive Listening

The same job in other states

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

Related careers in Ohio

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 14 majors mapped to Chemists13 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
  • 40.0506Physical Chemistry
  • 40.0507Polymer Chemistry
  • 40.0508Chemical Physics
  • 40.0509Environmental Chemistry
  • 40.0510Forensic Chemistry
  • 40.0511Theoretical Chemistry
  • 40.0512Cheminformatics/Chemistry Informatics(no graduates reported)
  • 40.0599Chemistry, Other
  • 40.1002Materials Chemistry
  • 51.2004Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry

Common questions

Answers for people weighing chemists programs in Ohio.

What degree do you need to become a Chemist?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Chemistry, General, which awarded 809 degrees in Ohio in 2024-25, 86.2% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Chemist?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 8 programs to this occupation. The largest are Chemistry, Pharmacy. Together they graduate about 939 people a year in Ohio.

How much do chemists earn in Ohio?+

The median is $85,270 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 6.5% below the U.S. median of $91,240. 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 chemists growing?+

BLS projects a +4.9% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 6,300 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

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

48 institutions in Ohio reported graduates from at least one of the 8 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 chemists work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Chemist, Scientist, Research Chemist, Analytical Chemist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-2031.

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

All Clema data sources and release dates →

Explore every U.S. college in one conversation

Clema turns plain-language questions into sourced answers across every U.S. institution — earnings, aid, acceptance, graduation, safety, and athletics from IPEDS, College Scorecard, and 10+ federal datasets, built in.

Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card