What skills should a Chemical Engineer put on a resume?

O*NET rates Science, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, and Mathematics among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Chemical Engineer list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Absorption process simulation software, Applied Flow Technology AFT Arrow, Applied Flow Technology AFT Fathom, AspenTech aspenONE, and Autodesk AutoCAD. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Chemical Engineer work?

O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation, including Engineer, Process Engineer, Scientist, and Development Engineer. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Chemical Engineer need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 82% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Chemical Engineer role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Chemical Engineer resume example

A resume for a Chemical Engineer needs to show the work itself: design chemical plant equipment and devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products, such as gasoline, synthetic rubber, plastics, detergents, cement, paper, and pulp, by applying principles and technology of chemistry, physics, and engineering. Day to day that means work like this: monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments; develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Engineer
Process Engineer
Scientist
Development Engineer
Engineering Scientist
Process Control Engineer
Project Engineer
Refinery Process Engineer
Research Chemical Engineer
Absorption and Adsorption Engineer
Automation Engineer
Blending Coordinator
Chemical Process Engineer
Chemical Research Engineer
Chemical Test Engineer
Design Engineer
Explosives Engineer
Fuels Engineer

O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments.
Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions.
Develop processes to separate components of liquids or gases or generate electrical currents, using controlled chemical processes.
Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes.
Evaluate chemical equipment and processes to identify ways to optimize performance or to ensure compliance with safety and environmental regulations.
Conduct research to develop new and improved chemical manufacturing processes.
Perform laboratory studies of steps in manufacture of new products and test proposed processes in small-scale operation, such as a pilot plant.
Prepare estimate of production costs and production progress reports for management.
Design measurement and control systems for chemical plants based on data collected in laboratory experiments and in pilot plant operations.
Determine most effective arrangement of operations such as mixing, crushing, heat transfer, distillation, and drying.
Direct activities of workers who operate or are engaged in constructing and improving absorption, evaporation, or electromagnetic equipment.
Perform tests and monitor performance of processes throughout stages of production to determine degree of control over variables such as temperature, density, specific gravity, and pressure.

13 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Develop processes to separate components of liquids or gases or generate electrical currents, using controlled chemical processes, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Absorption process simulation software
Applied Flow Technology AFT Arrow
Applied Flow Technology AFT Fathom
AspenTech aspenONE
Autodesk AutoCAD
C
C++
CD-adapco STAR-CAD
Cerebro CerebroMix
ChemicaLogic SteamTab
Chempute Software ChemDraw
Chempute Software E-Notebook
Chempute Software Engineer's Aide SINET
Chempute Software EstPro

60 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Agitators
Atomic force microscopes
Benchtop centrifuges
Benchtop mixers
Catalytic reactors
Chromatographic scanning equipment
Distillation columns
Distillation systems
Filtration systems
Gas absorbers
Heat exchangers
Laboratory evaporaters

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

AutoCAD

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Science
02Complex Problem Solving
03Critical Thinking
04Judgment and Decision Making
05Mathematics
06Reading Comprehension
07Systems Analysis
08Active Learning
09Systems Evaluation
10Operations Analysis

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Engineering and Technology
Chemistry
Mathematics
Physics
Design
Production and Processing
English Language
Computers and Electronics

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

82%Bachelor's Degree
9%Master's Degree
9%Doctoral Degree

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. 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.

Common questions

What does a Chemical Engineer do?: Design chemical plant equipment and devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products, such as gasoline, synthetic rubber, plastics, detergents, cement, paper, and pulp, by applying principles and technology of chemistry, physics, and engineering. Day to day that includes work like monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments and Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions.
What skills should a Chemical Engineer put on a resume?: O*NET rates Science, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, and Mathematics among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Chemical Engineer list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Absorption process simulation software, Applied Flow Technology AFT Arrow, Applied Flow Technology AFT Fathom, AspenTech aspenONE, and Autodesk AutoCAD. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Chemical Engineer work?: O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation, including Engineer, Process Engineer, Scientist, and Development Engineer. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Chemical Engineer need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 82% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Chemical Engineer role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.