I've been getting a daily (DAILY!) e-mail of positions for the search term "chemist" from Monster. Most of the positions strike me as, well, pretty blah. This is one of them. From an Aerotek temp position ad in Detroit, Michigan (emphasis mine):
That said, seems to me that you could hire and train a non-B.S. chemist (like someone with an associate's degree in chemical technology) to do this, but it would take a week or three to get them up to "non-supervised" usage of these instruments/techniques.
Our client has an immediate need for an entry level Quality Control Chemist. This position will involve performing quality control tests on finished products. Instrumentation used will include, pH, titration, flash point, viscosity and FTIR. This is an entry level position. The only requirement is that you have a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. Please do not apply if you Bachelor's is in anything other then Chemistry.Is that a problem, people applying for technical positions without the degree? These days, maybe.
That said, seems to me that you could hire and train a non-B.S. chemist (like someone with an associate's degree in chemical technology) to do this, but it would take a week or three to get them up to "non-supervised" usage of these instruments/techniques.
I'm sorry, but is the typo completely cut and pasted from the original add? I don't judge typos in posts and blogs (half my mind is somewhere else more important when I check these things), I would expect a little more from an HR drone.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is. Straight from the ad. 'Twas ever thus.
ReplyDeleteHow about a ChemE? They are talking viscosity, right? All ChemE's take fluid mechanics, very few chemists do. I'm not sure I even know a chemist that could give the defining equation (or units) for viscosity.
ReplyDeleteCentipoise, right? Believe it or not, I didn't have to look that up (I did have to look up the spelling, though.)
ReplyDelete"That said, seems to me that you could hire and train a non-B.S. chemist (like someone with an associate's degree in chemical technology) to do this"
ReplyDeleteLikely, but if you can get someone with a B.S. for the same price, what's the downside?
Spelling error? Oh, I see the ad left, ',yo.' off the last sentence.
"is the typo completely cut and pasted from the original add?"
ReplyDeleteIrony?
Dr. Zoidberg: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muphry's_law
ReplyDeleteIf it's a QC viscosity method, the units might be in time (like a flow cup or flow tube) or distance (like a Bostwick).
ReplyDeleteHey Eric, let's really have fun with the chemists and talk about IV, which could be either inherent viscosity or intrinsic viscosity, but in either case, has units of dl/g - inverse concentration!
ReplyDeleteAs someone with a biology BS who works in analytical chem, I'm getting a kick out of some of these replies...
ReplyDelete