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The Alumni Association of The University of Western Ontario is proud to serve and represent more than a quarter million alumni around the world.

We are committed to delivering the finest alumni experience, in keeping with our continued number one ranking as "Canada's best student experience”.

Student Success Centre

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The Student Success Centre is here to help with each step of your journey to a successful future. Our mission is to facilitate the development of career, educational, and life competencies for students and alumni through programs and services that guide successful transitions, foster local and global citizenship, promote leadership opportunities, encourage personal growth, deliver career resources, and ignite active engagement.

Description

Chemistry

Chemistry is the study of the elemental composition, structure, properties and reactivity of atoms and molecules. From the simplest gaseous element to complex structures such as proteins, chemistry impacts all aspects of everyday life. Chemists strive to understand and control the fundamental structure-property relationships of molecules. From this knowledge they develop new materials for applications in areas such as life and health sciences, pharmaceuticals, nanoscience, electronics and next generation environmental initiatives (fuel cell and solar panel technology for example).

BAn undergraduate degree in chemistry is highly versatile and will provide a solid foundation for a wide variety of exciting careers. Chemistry graduates have found intellectually stimulating opportunities in industry, government, and the private sector. Graduates have also pursued advanced degrees, including medicine, law, business, education, and of course, research-based MSc and PhD programs in chemistry.

The chemistry program at Western is instructed by enthusiastic, award-winning faculty in an environment that is conducive to learning. With small classes, a friendly atmosphere, and state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, chemistry students also acquire important talents that are crucial in the today’s competitive job marketplace: problem-solving, critical- and creative-thinking, organizational, communications, and interpersonal skills.

Skills

Discipline specific knowledge is only one of the many benefits of pursuing an undergraduate degree. However, this knowledge alone is not enough to prepare you for entering the world of work. You will discover that the content of your degree does not restrict your job opportunities.

Being aware of the transferable skills you've developed throughout your studies will better prepare you for entering the job market and allow you to articulate the skills that are so valued by employers.

Knowledge Skills

  • Comprehensive knowledge of the structure and properties of matter, including the energy changes that accompany chemical reactions

Communication Skills

  • The capacity to critically analyze problems, think creatively and make sound decisions while considering different sides of an argument

Organization Skills

  • The skills to collect various types of information, assess them, analyze and incorporate potential linkages from different fields, put them into writing

Management Skills

  • The ability to debate, persuade, mediate and present your thoughts and opinions clearly to others, as well as the capacity to recognize and incorporate other potential solutions


For a more complete list of transferable skills click here.


Introduction

Did you know that there are over 2 million job titles and over 900 industries in Canada? That is a lot of possible career options! Understanding the Canadian economy and the types of jobs that are available is one of the best ways to begin your career search.

Students often report feeling limited by their degree choice and worry that they may not have many viable career options. Although your degree can point you in a career direction, it will not necessarily determine the type of job you can pursue. Unlike many college programs, your undergraduate degree is not intended to train you for one specific job. Some students may feel frustrated by this, but the great news is that your degree opens up many more opportunities than you may think!

Employers today are looking for graduates with transferable skills and people who have a sense of where they fit into the world of work. Because of this, it is really important to think beyond your degree when making a career decision. You want to consider all of your interests, the skills you would like to use, what fits with your personality, and the values that you have.

Determining your career path requires a lot of research, both personal and occupational. It's almost impossible to make a career decision if you haven't invested time in both of these things. This section will get you started and will showcase some popular industries and occupational areas related to your degree.

Educational Services

The Educational Services sector comprises establishments that provide instruction and training in a wide variety of subjects. This instruction and training is provided by specialized establishments, such as schools, colleges, universities, and training centers. These establishments may be privately owned and operated for profit or not for profit, or they may be publicly owned and operated. They may also offer food and/or accommodation services to their students.

Educational services are usually delivered by teachers or instructors that explain, tell, demonstrate, supervise, and direct learning. Instruction is imparted in diverse settings, such as educational institutions, the workplace, or the home, and through diverse means, such as correspondence, television, the Internet, or other electronic and distance-learning methods.

Sample Job Titles:

Archivist

Career and Technical Education Teacher

High School Teacher

Instructional Coordinator

Instructor

Librarian

Postsecondary Teacher

Preschool Teacher

Supply Teacher

Engineering

The engineering sector encompasses a bewildering array of possible roles, and touches virtually all other industry segments. The discipline of engineering is generally subdivided into mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering on the macro scale. However, with its connotations of pragmatic manipulation, as in using a body of skill and techniques to achieve a designated impact in the real world, engineering as a term is now readily applied to fields as diverse as software, genetics, and finance.

Chemical and biochemical engineering techs help engineers design and operate equipment and processes that bring about a change to physical matter.

Sample Job Titles:

Electro-mechanical Technician

Health and Safety Engineers

Industrial Engineering Technician

Materials Engineer

Mechanical Engineer

Mining and Geological Engineer

Human Resources

Human resources (HR) professionals develop, implement and evaluate human resources and labour relations policies, programs and procedures and advise managers and employers on human resources matters. Human resources professionals are employed throughout the private and public sectors, or they may be self-employed.

The Human Resources Industry is increasingly important to the business world. For a long time corporations have been able to track the productivity and output of machines. Recently evaluating human capital has become an accepted concept. Various psychometric assessments have been able to place employees in more appropriate roles. The costs of employee turnover have also become a greater focus of upper level management.

Sample Job Titles:

Compensation & Benefits Manager

Human Resources Specialist

Information Clerk

Relocation Counsellor

Staffing Analyst

Training & Development Officer

Marketing

Marketing is the process of communicating the value of a product or service to customers. Marketing might sometimes be interpreted as the art of selling products, but sales is only one part of marketing. As the term "Marketing" may replace "Advertising" it is the overall strategy and function of promoting a product or service to the customer.

From a societal point of view, marketing is the link between a society’s material requirements and its economic patterns of response. Marketing satisfies these needs and wants through exchange processes and building long term relationships. The process of communicating the value of a product or service through positioning to customers. Marketing can be looked at as an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, delivering and communicating value to customers, and managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its shareholders.

Sample Job Titles:

Advertising Analyst

Advertising Manager

Commerce Officer

E-commerce Manager

Market Research Analysts

Marketing Manager

Research & Development

In an industry that is changing fast, firms must continually revise their design and range of products. This is necessary due to continuous technology change and development as well as other competitors and the changing preference of customers.

The term R&D or research and development (also RnD or RD especially in domain names; or Research and Technical Development; or Research and Technological Development or RTD in Europe) refers to a specific group of activities within a business. The activities that are classified as R&D differ from company to company, but there are two primary models. In one model, the primary function of an R&D group is to develop new products; in the other model, the primary function of an R&D group is to discover and create new knowledge about scientific and technological topics for the purpose of uncovering and enabling development of valuable new products, processes, and services.

Sample Job Titles:

Biochemist

Chemical Technician

Chemist

Epidemiologist

Forensic Scientist

Materials Scientist

Other Industries

This section has highlighted a number of popular industries and job titles that align with your academic program; however, it was by no means an exhaustive list of all the possible options available to you with the degree you possess. Access the resources below to learn about other industries and job titles that are a fit for you.

Canadian Industries: Browse through over 900 Canadian Industries.

LinkedIn: Search through thousands of Western Alumni by degree.

National Occupational Classification (NOC): The national reference on occupations - organizes over 40,000 job titles.

Informational Interviews: Find out about jobs and career paths you never knew existed.

CareerCruising: Peruse career & further educational options (visit the "Resources" section of CareerCentral for the username & password).

Working in Canada: The leading source for labour market information in Canada.

US Occupational Outlook Handbook: Browse hundreds of occupational profiles.

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