MORE JOBS, BETTER PAY FOR 1998 CHEMISTRY GRADS

This year's version of the American Chemical Society's annual survey of the salaries and employment status of newly graduated chemists and chemical engineers at all degree levels brings a lot of good news. Data from the survey indicate a continuation of the sharp upturn in the career prospects and salaries of newly graduated chemists that began the previous year after several years of stagnation. For instance, the survey indicates that the median full-time starting salary for inexperienced Ph.D. chemists graduating during the 1997-98 academic year was $59,300. This was 10% higher than the $54,000 median for those graduating a year earlier. For the year before that, 1995-96, the median was $45,000. That was only $1,000 higher than it was for 1989-90 graduates. For inexperienced Ph.D. chemical engineering graduates, the latest year-toyear gain for those with full-time jobs was from $60,000 to $65,000, or 8%. Salary gains for chemists and chemical engineers with new bachelor's and ...