undergradly.
Major · Physical Sciences

The chemistry catchall where the program matters more than the CIP

Chemistry, Other (CIP 40.0599) is the residual code in the federal chemistry family — the bucket for chemistry bachelor's programs that don't fit the named subspecialties. The 398 annual completions across 64 colleges include environmental, computational, materials, and cross-disciplinary chemistry programs. Five-year median earnings of $66,674 sit roughly in line with Chemistry General, but the curriculum varies widely.

Schools offering
64
Annual completions
398
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$67k

About this major

Chemistry, Other (CIP 40.0599) is the residual category in the federal classification — the bucket where the National Center for Education Statistics places chemistry bachelor's programs that don't fit any of the eight named chemistry CIPs (Chemistry General, Analytical, Inorganic, Organic, Physical and Theoretical, Polymer, Chemical Physics, Forensic, Theoretical). The federal definition is brief: any instructional program in chemistry not listed above. In practice, the 398 annual completions across 64 colleges include three categories of program: cross-disciplinary chemistry majors that span multiple subspecialties (environmental chemistry, computational chemistry, materials chemistry, sustainability and green chemistry, atmospheric chemistry); applied-emphasis programs that don't have their own CIP code; and traditional chemistry tracks that the institution simply codes to .99 rather than to a more specific named CIP. Coursework therefore varies widely — some programs maintain the standard ACS-certified four-pillar core (general, organic, analytical, physical chemistry) plus a specialty layer, while others lean heavily into the specialty at the expense of breadth.

The major fits students who already know what they want from a specific program. Strong fits read the syllabus, check faculty research areas, confirm ACS certification status, and verify undergraduate research opportunities before enrolling — the CIP code itself is a weak signal here. The major rewards students who pair the standard chemistry quantitative foundation (calculus, physics, multi-tier lab sequences) with a defined applied or computational interest. Curiosity about how chemistry connects to other disciplines (biology, environmental systems, materials science, computation) is more central than commitment to one classical subspecialty.

The scale data tells its own story. UC San Diego leads with 88 bachelor's completions, ahead of UC Davis (26), University of Chicago (26), Wayne State (24), and Washington University in St Louis (20) — a top-ranking distribution shaped by both research-university coding choices for environmental and applied chemistry concentrations and a long tail of smaller programs at liberal-arts and regional institutions. The career list shows Chemists at $84,150 as the bachelor's-entry target, with Natural Sciences Managers at $161,180 as the mid-career ceiling and postsecondary Chemistry Teachers at $86,220 requiring a doctorate.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Natural sciences managers $161k +3.7% Bachelor's degree
Chemists $84k +4.9% Bachelor's degree
Chemistry teachers, postsecondary $86k +2.2% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$67k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$61k

Bachelor's

$67k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if a specific program in this CIP — its faculty, curriculum, ACS certification, and research opportunities — already pulled you in for reasons you can articulate beyond the title; if your interest is in an applied or cross-disciplinary chemistry track (environmental, computational, materials, sustainability, atmospheric) that doesn't have its own named CIP; if you have or are willing to build the standard chemistry quantitative foundation in calculus, physics, and the four-pillar lab sequence that any rigorous chemistry program assumes; if you're targeting graduate or professional school (PhD chemistry, MD, PharmD, DDS, MS in materials or environmental science) and the program's specialty emphasis aligns with where you want to land; or if the program offers Python, cheminformatics, and machine-learning coursework alongside traditional wet-lab training, which now matters meaningfully for pharma R&D, biotech, and materials-informatics employability.

Think twice if you chose this CIP because it sounded chemistry-adjacent without checking what the specific program actually teaches — Chemistry General (40.0501, 12,173 completions) is the standard ACS-certified bachelor's with broader employer recognition and may serve you better. Reconsider if the program is not ACS-certified and you're targeting federal Chemist (GS-1320) hiring or pharma R&D, since both pathways often expect or prefer ACS-certified credentials. Reconsider if your real interest is biochemistry or molecular biology rather than chemistry per se, since Biochemistry (CIP 26.0202, in the biological sciences family) offers a more direct pre-health and life-sciences pipeline. Reconsider if your goal is high direct-to-career earnings without graduate school — the five-year median of $66,674 is honest, and entry bachelor's-only chemistry roles cluster at $45-58K rather than the $84,150 BLS median for established chemists; Chemical Engineering (CIP 14.0701) typically produces meaningfully higher direct-to-career outcomes. Finally, reconsider if the program skips physical chemistry, analytical chemistry, or independent research — those are the components that determine whether the degree opens graduate school and federal-agency doors, and a specialty-only curriculum without them weakens both pathways.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Chemistry, Other

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA 0 88 88
University of California-Davis Davis, CA 0 26 26
University of Chicago Chicago, IL 0 26 26
Wayne State University Detroit, MI 0 24 24
Washington University in St Louis St. Louis, MO 0 20 20
Mercer University Macon, GA 0 20 20
Beloit College Beloit, WI 0 16 16
University of Puerto Rico-Humacao Humacao, PR 0 15 15
Lake Superior State University Sault Ste Marie, MI 1 12 13
CUNY New York City College of Technology Brooklyn, NY 0 13 13
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Chemistry, General

12,173 completions/yr

Forensic Chemistry

330 completions/yr

Chemical Physics

23 completions/yr

Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry

13 completions/yr

Geochemistry

12 completions/yr

Analytical Chemistry

11 completions/yr

Environmental Chemistry

7 completions/yr

Theoretical Chemistry

4 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Chemistry, Other field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Chemistry, Other worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What does the "Other" in this CIP actually cover?
The .99 code in any CIP family is the residual bucket — chemistry programs that don't fit any of the eight named CIPs (40.0501 Chemistry General, 40.0502 Analytical, 40.0503 Inorganic, 40.0504 Organic, 40.0506 Physical and Theoretical, 40.0507 Polymer, 40.0508 Chemical Physics, 40.0510 Forensic, 40.0511 Theoretical). The 398 annual completions in 40.0599 land here for three reasons: cross-disciplinary chemistry majors that span multiple subspecialties (environmental, computational, materials, sustainability, atmospheric chemistry); programs structured around an applied theme that doesn't have its own CIP; and programs the institution simply codes to .99 rather than to a more specific named CIP. The federal definition is brief — "any instructional program in chemistry not listed above" — and the data packet ships with no example terms, which is itself the signal: this bucket is loose.
Why do UC San Diego and UC Davis lead this CIP?
UC San Diego (88 bachelor's completions) and UC Davis (26) account for 114 of the 398 completions in this CIP — about 29% of the entire national pipeline at just two institutions. That concentration reflects coding choices, not market share: both universities offer chemistry concentrations (environmental chemistry at UCSD, agricultural and environmental chemistry at UC Davis) that the institutions code to 40.0599 rather than 40.0501 General. The remaining top-ten — Chicago, Wayne State, Washington University in St Louis, Mercer, Beloit, UPR-Humacao, Lake Superior State, CUNY City Tech — are smaller (12-26 completions each) and more representative of the bucket's diversity: liberal-arts chemistry programs, applied-chemistry programs, and a community-college-affiliated bachelor's. Read this top-institutions list as a coding-shape, not a quality ranking. Curriculum, ACS certification status, and faculty research areas matter more than the .99 code itself.
How does this compare to Chemistry General (40.0501) and the other named chemistry CIPs?
Chemistry General (40.0501, 12,173 annual completions) is the dominant code by a factor of 30x — the standard ACS-certified bachelor's curriculum with the four-pillar core (general, organic, analytical, physical chemistry) plus inorganic and biochemistry. Forensic Chemistry (40.0510, 330 completions) is the only other named code with meaningful pipeline; the rest (Analytical 40.0502, Chemical Physics 40.0508, Theoretical 40.0511) post fewer than 25 completions a year combined and are mostly graduate-level codes. Chemistry, Other (40.0599) sits between General and the technical subspecialties in scale and content. The signal for prospective students: if you want the standard ACS-certified credential with broad acceptance at federal agencies and pharma R&D, choose 40.0501. Choose 40.0599 only when the specific program — usually environmental, computational, materials, or sustainability chemistry — at the specific school is what you want. Verify ACS certification status before enrolling.
Does ACS certification matter, and do programs in this CIP have it?
Yes, it matters. The American Chemical Society certifies chemistry bachelor's programs that meet curriculum and laboratory requirements covering the five core areas (analytical, biological, inorganic, organic, physical). ACS-certified bachelor's graduates qualify for the federal "Chemist" GS-1320 series and are preferred by many industrial R&D employers (pharma, specialty chemicals, materials). Programs coded to 40.0599 vary on this dimension — research-university programs like UC San Diego, UC Davis, Chicago, and Washington University in St Louis typically maintain ACS certification on their general chemistry track and may also cover the .99 concentration; smaller liberal-arts and applied programs vary. Before enrolling in any program coded to this CIP, check the chemistry department's website for the explicit ACS-certified program statement, and confirm whether the specific concentration you want (environmental, computational, materials) qualifies. Non-certified programs are still valid degrees, but they limit federal-agency hiring access and are sometimes treated differently by industrial recruiters.
What are realistic earnings paths after a bachelor's in this CIP?
The five-year median of $66,674 (about $66,702 for bachelor's completers, $60,787 for associate's) reflects what graduates who enter the workforce directly actually earn — not the wages of those who continue to PhD, MD, PharmD, or DDS programs. Bachelor's-only entry typically lands at lab-tech, QC chemist, or chemist-I positions in the $45-58K range — pharma, biotech, specialty chemicals, food and beverage, cosmetics, semiconductors, or environmental consulting. The Chemists role (SOC 19-2031, $84,150 BLS median) reflects mid-career or experienced titles, not entry. The high-ceiling roles in the data packet — Natural Sciences Managers at $161,180 and postsecondary Chemistry Teachers at $86,220 — require either years of experience plus often a graduate degree (managers) or a doctorate (faculty). Chemistry is heavily graduate-school-dependent for top-quartile outcomes; the bachelor's is a floor and a credential, not a ceiling.
Is this a good pre-PhD or pre-med major?
Chemistry, including programs coded to 40.0599, is one of the most common pre-PhD, pre-med, pre-pharm, and pre-dental majors. The four-pillar core (general, organic, analytical, physical chemistry) plus biochemistry covers the prerequisite stack for medical school, dental school, pharmacy school, and PhD admission across chemistry, biochemistry, materials science, and chemical biology. PhD admits to top programs (MIT, Berkeley, Caltech, Harvard, Stanford, Northwestern, Wisconsin, UIUC, Michigan, Penn, Princeton, Yale, Columbia) typically expect ACS-certified coursework plus 1-2 years of undergraduate research experience and strong physical-chemistry grades. Programs coded to 40.0599 with environmental, computational, or materials emphases can serve students well for graduate admission in those subfields, but verify two things: (1) the program covers the standard chemistry core in addition to the specialty emphasis, and (2) undergraduate research opportunities exist in the specialty area. A 40.0599 program that skips physical chemistry or analytical chemistry weakens PhD and pre-health applications.
How is AI changing the wage trajectory for chemistry bachelor's grads?
AI is creating a clearer divide between routine wet-lab work and computationally-augmented chemistry. Routine analytical chemistry, QC, and high-throughput synthesis are increasingly automated through robotics platforms (Tecan, Hamilton, Beckman) and ML-driven instrument analysis, which compresses entry-level wages in those lanes. The wage-growth lane is computational chemistry — protein and small-molecule structure prediction (AlphaFold, ESMFold, RoseTTAFold), machine-learning-driven drug discovery (Schrodinger, Recursion, Isomorphic Labs, Atomic AI), and materials informatics. Chemistry bachelor's grads who pair the chemistry core with Python, basic deep-learning workflows, and cheminformatics libraries (RDKit, OpenMM, ASE) have meaningfully better trajectories than peers limited to wet-lab skills. Programs coded to 40.0599 with computational or materials-chemistry emphases may already include this coursework — verify the specific curriculum, not the CIP code. Pharma R&D titles increasingly expect bachelor's-level computational literacy alongside lab skills.