Chemical engineer
Design and operate the processes that produce chemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, fuels and materials.
Salary
Cited figures only: median full-time weekly earnings for the ANZSCO unit group Chemical and Materials Engineers (2331) from Your Career (Jobs and Skills Australia), and where available the QILT graduate starting salary for the matching study area.
| Figure | AUD | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate starting salary | $82,500 | QILT (2026-08-31) |
Jobs, demand and who does this work
Figures for the ANZSCO occupation Chemical Engineer (233111), the closest official match for chemical engineer, from Your Career (Jobs and Skills Australia data, sourced 2026-09-23).
- People employed
- 3,100
- Future demand
- Strong
- Work full-time
- 87%
- Average full-time hours
- 43 a week
- Women
- 23%
- Median age
- 38
Where the jobs are (share of workers)
| NSW | 22.4% |
| VIC | 24.5% |
| QLD | 19.6% |
| WA | 26.5% |
| SA | 5.2% |
| TAS | 0.9% |
| ACT | 0.4% |
| NT | 0.5% |
Highest qualification held by workers
| Postgraduate qualification | 30.9% |
| Bachelor degree | 61.5% |
| Diploma or advanced diploma | 2.1% |
| Certificate I-IV | 1.7% |
| Year 12 | 1.9% |
| Below Year 12 | 0.3% |
What a chemical engineer actually does
Chemical engineers split between an engineering office and a processing plant. Office days involve running mass and energy balances, sizing equipment using Aspen HYSYS or similar process simulators, drafting piping and instrumentation diagrams, and writing safety case material. Plant days involve walking the unit, checking control valve performance, leading HAZOP studies and signing off on management of change. The Australian industry is heavy on LNG, mining and metals processing, pharmaceuticals, food manufacturing and increasingly hydrogen and battery materials. Hours sit around 38-45 in design and consulting roles. Operations roles can be longer with shutdowns, turnarounds and call-outs. Field rotations and fly-in fly-out work are common in the resources sector.
Typical tasks
- Design unit operations such as distillation and heat exchange.
- Manage process safety and hazard reviews.
- Optimise plant throughput and yield.
Skills you'll use
- Process simulation in Aspen HYSYS or similar
- Mass and energy balances and unit operations design
- HAZOP and process safety management
- Piping and instrumentation diagrams (P and IDs)
- Australian Standards for pressure equipment, hazardous areas and dangerous goods
- Project economics and CAPEX estimation
- Coordinating with mechanical, electrical and control engineers
How to become one
- 1Finish Year 12 with English, Maths Methods or Specialist, Chemistry and ideally Physics
- 2Complete a 4-year Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) with a chemical major accredited by Engineers Australia
- 3Apply for graduate programmes at LNG operators, mining houses, refineries, pharma manufacturers or consulting firms in your final year
- 4Spend your first 2-3 years on plant rotations covering process, project and operations functions
- 5Work toward Chartered Engineer status with Engineers Australia or IChemE, usually 3-5 years after graduation
- 6Specialise in a sector such as LNG, hydrogen, minerals processing, pharma or food. Some engineers add an MBA or process safety qualification later
Where you can work
- LNG, oil and gas operators on the North West Shelf and Bass Strait
- Mining and metals processors such as alumina refineries
- Pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturers
- Food and beverage processing plants
- Hydrogen, battery materials and clean energy developers
- Engineering consulting and EPCM firms
- Federal research bodies including CSIRO
Career progression
Typical stages and roles. Years of experience are a rough guide; pay at each stage depends on the employer, award or agreement.
- Graduate0-2 yearsTypical roles: Graduate process engineer, Production engineer, Project engineer
- Engineer3-6 yearsTypical roles: Process engineer, Reliability engineer, Project engineer
- Senior7-12 yearsTypical roles: Senior process engineer, Lead process engineer, Operations superintendent
- Principal or Manager12+ yearsTypical roles: Principal process engineer, Engineering manager, Plant manager
Is this for you?
You might love this if
- You enjoyed chemistry, physics and maths together at school
- You like understanding how a whole plant fits together
- You can stay calm reading a P and ID at 2am during a shutdown
- You are willing to spend time on rural and remote sites
- You enjoy applying safety thinking to complex systems
This might not suit you if
- You want office-only work with no PPE or site rotations
- You dislike highly regulated environments with formal sign-offs
- You want a low-stakes job where errors stay small
Ways in
Uni and TAFE routes for chemical engineer. We only list pathways that actually lead to this occupation.
University
Bachelor degrees that lead to this career.
TAFE / VET
Nationally accredited Certificate and Diploma qualifications.
No direct TAFE pathway to this career.
Sources
ExamExplained does not publish predictive salary figures. For current Australian earnings data check Your Career (yourcareer.gov.au) directly. Career classifications follow the ABS ANZSCO 2022 release.