Job title and description:
I work as a Technical Specialist for Sigma-Aldrich, which is company specialising in chemical and life science products for Research and Development. I am based at two locations, - Gillingham in North Dorset and Poole on the Dorset Coast. We provide over 100,000 chemicals ranging from antibodies and cell culture media to analytical chemistry equipment and techware.

What degree did you study?
BSc (Hons) Environmental Chemistry from Plymouth University.

What are your main duties of work?
Myself and the team provide technical support for all the products we supply. We offer this support to Europe along with technical teams in other countries. About 60% of our work is spent replying to emails and 40% answering phone calls. We are individually split up in areas of expertise, and specialise on providing technical support in those areas.  

What are your favourite aspects of the job?
There are 2 main aspects of the job I really enjoy, firstly it is the variety of questions and really helping people understand applications of chemistry and secondly the knowledge I gain from researching answers for customers. I genuinely learn something new everyday and that is very satisfying.  When a new call or email comes in you have no idea what the question is going to be. Science is such a broad field and everyday I learn and understand new aspects of a different area of Science. I also get to go to universities and chat with students and staff about their specialist areas within chemistry which is always a good way of learning more about the subject area and what people require from our services.

What kind of salary can a graduate expect to earn in this job?
A starting salary of £18,000 - £22,000.

How has your degree helped you?
In more ways than I probably realise. Not only has it enabled me to understand the main aspects of any scientific inquiry, but also to accurately and professionally communicate with my customers. A large proportion of my work involves verbalising and writing opinions and information clearly and concisely, which is a skill I undoubtedly learned though my degree. Through Environmental Chemistry I also covered many other subjects including microbiology, botany, geology, environmental law, sociology, economics, etc.; this gave me a very good grounding for work within the scientific field. I most definitely would not have been employed in my position if it wasn't for the education and experience I gained through my degree.