School of Chemistry and Materials Science Resources

Cooperative education (co-op) provides an opportunity to put classroom lectures, textbook theories, laboratory research, and your personal initiative to the ultimate test—performance in the workplace. The Office of Career Services and Cooperative Education at RIT provides a variety of workshops, webinars and panels on a wide range of career and job search strategy topics.

Cooperative education provides our students with a competitive advantage over science graduates from other colleges and universities. In some programs, co-op can begin as early as the summer after freshman year, but it typically takes place during third and fourth years. Students can alternate semesters of academic study with co-op work periods—full-time, paid work experiences in positions related to their major.

What kind of jobs can I get with a degree in chemistry? What do job titles for a chemist look like? What does a physical chemist do and where can I find jobs? The American Chemical Society offers an ACS Career Navigator to help you explore career options while discovering networking opportunities to help you develop and grow in your career.

The American Chemical Society's Career Planning Tool is an individual development planning tool designed to help graduate students and postdoctoral scholars in the chemical sciences plan and prepare for rewarding careers. This tool helps you identify your skills and values by assessing yourself. It helps you strengthen your skills so you can set goals and explore career options.