Chemists` Vision of Chemistry-Related Profession

Chemistry is one of the important disciplines for Hi-Tech and other advanced industries. These industries need passionate, educated and skilled personnel. For years, there has been a shortage of chemists in Israel and this lack is likely to grow in the coming years. Therefore, there is a continuously growing number of studies related to promoting a career in chemistry.

Our research is based on the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), which provides explanations on how career and academic interests mature, how career choices are made, and how these choices are turned into action. The goal of this study is to explore chemists` vision of the chemistry profession and their perception toward chemical education. We identify factors that influenced chemists to pursue a chemistry–related career by analyzing their self-reported experiences while they were students, as well as in their chemistry industrial profession. Data collection is conducted by (a) individual semi-structured interviews and (b) questionnaires with open- and close-ended questions. The research participants are about 30 professionals in chemical and pharmaceutical industries in Israel. Our sample is diverse, as it includes men and women in high- and intermediate-level positions. The Research questions include: (a) What are the main factors for choosing one`s chemistry-related career? (b) What are the differences, if any, between men and women in choosing a chemistry-related career? Preliminary results will be presented and discussed. This research is expected to provide recommendations for encouraging high school students to choose chemistry as a major, and undergraduate students to choose chemistry-related career.