Studies & Degrees in Chemical Technology

Choose where you would like to study Chemical Technology:

Simply defined, chemical technology is the technology that involves chemicals or chemical substances, or is a study of technology that aids in doing chemistry, focusing on the instruments used rather than the chemistry itself. This conforms to the meaning of technology which pertains to the knowledge and usage of tools, systems or methods for a specific purpose or to solve a specific problem. As a program of study, it is offered in many institutions, especially community colleges, in a 2-year course either for employment purposes or as a path to university education.

In the United States, numerous community and technical colleges offer chemical technology programs usually for an Associate of Applied Science degree or certificate. One is the Texas State Technical College which prepares its graduates for state employment in Texas in chemical and petrochemical companies or in plastics, environmental, food, semi-conductors and consulting firms. Students desiring to pursue a 4-year baccalaureate degree in chemical technology take other core courses such as Material Science, Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, Environmental Chemistry, Biochemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, and Pharmaceutical Chemistry. The Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana offers a chemical technology program in 64 credit hours, concentrating on the application of the principles of mathematics, science and technology in sample preparation and analysis. The Jefferson Community and Technical College in Kentucky offers a program in industrial chemical technology leading to a 2-year Associate in Applied Science degree with core courses of Statistics for Quality, General Chemistry, General Chemistry Laboratory, Introduction to Industrial Chemical Technology, Chemical Engineering Fundamentals, and Fluid Mechanics. The Northampton Community College in Pennsylvania also offers a 2-year program in chemical technology for a degree of Associate in Applied Science for students who have interest in problem-solving, science, chemistry and laboratory work for training as chemical technicians for employment in various facilities, especially hospitals and clinics and industrial plants.

Students of a 2-year chemical technology program at the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology in Saskatchewan, Canada are trained in the following areas: (a) Basic organic, analytical, physical and environmental chemistry, (b) Recording, processing and reporting data, (c) Analytical Instrumentation, (d) Chemical engineering, (e) Quality assessment, (f) Handling and manipulating chemicals, (g) Communication of results, and (h) Servicing and maintaining scientific instruments. Authorities of the institute say that their graduates face bright job opportunities as chemical technologists, laboratory analysts, laboratory technologists, research technical assistants, and sales managers. The graduates of the 2-year chemical technology program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology also in Canada, are prepared to work as skilled laboratory technologists in government, industrial and commercial laboratories, or organizations in forensics, biochemistry, food and agricultural analysis, metallurgy, and petroleum and petrochemical analysis.