Future Tech Jobs Future Tech Jobs

Graduate Polymer Chemist

CV-Library
Oldbury, West Midlands (County)
13 months ago
Applications closed

Related Jobs

View all jobs

Senior CFD Engineer - Multiphase

PhysicsX London, United Kingdom
Posted
15 Apr 2025 (13 months ago)
Share
Save job
Create job alert

Location: West Midlands, commutable from Birmingham, Dudley, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Sandwell, Stourbridge
Salary: £25000 per annum
Hours: 36.25 hours per week, Monday to Friday
Contract: Permanent

Why join?
Launch your career with a leading UK chemical manufacturer renowned for innovation in polymers and additives.  This role offers hands-on lab work, mentorship from industry experts, and a clear path to senior chemist status, including a funded Diploma in Rubber Technology and Science.  You’ll shape products for global markets like pharmaceuticals and engineering, in a collaborative lab with a supportive team.  Enjoy work-life balance with a 36.25-hour week, generous holidays and the West Midlands’ vibrant lifestyle, from Birmingham’s buzz to affordable living.

About the role
You’ll drive polymer and rubber innovation in a cutting-edge lab, growing into a skilled chemist.

Key responsibilities include:

  • Synthesizing novel rubber accelerators and developing polymer compounds.

  • Conducting research, analysis and physical testing of materials.

  • Supporting production and quality control with analytical data.

  • Preparing technical reports and validating experimental hypotheses.

  • Ensuring compliance with safety and industry standards.

    What background, skills and experience is needed?

  • Degree in Applied Chemistry, Elastomer Technology, or related field.

  • Enthusiasm to learn; rubber experience not required as training provided.

  • Strong analytical and communication skills.

  • Ability to work independently and in teams after initial supervision.

    What’s on offer?

  • £25000 starting salary, rising with experience.

  • 25 days’ holiday plus bank holidays.

  • Funded diploma, free life assurance, paid sick scheme (post-qualifying period).

  • Stakeholder pension, voluntary benefits and medical cash plan.

    Future growth
    With training, you’ll gain expertise in rubber regulations, elastomer vulcanization and global customer support, potentially presenting at international conferences and shaping industry trends.

    How to apply
    Ready to innovate in polymer chemistry?  Apply now

Industry Insights

Discover insightful articles, industry insights, expert tips, and curated resources.

Products

Where to Advertise Materials Science Jobs in the UK (2026 Guide)

Where to advertise materials science jobs UK in 2026: specialist boards, academic channels and societies that reach physicists, chemists and metallurgists. The candidate pool spans physicists, chemists, metallurgists, ceramicists, polymer scientists and computational materials researchers — a highly multidisciplinary community with distinct professional identities, academic networks and job search behaviours. The strongest candidates are typically embedded in university research groups, national laboratories, government-funded programmes or deep tech R&D teams, and move between roles through specialist academic channels, professional societies and sector-specific networks rather than mainstream job boards. This guide, published by MaterialsScienceJobs.co.uk, covers where to advertise materials science roles in the UK in 2026, how the main platforms compare, what employers should expect to pay, and what the data says about hiring across different role types.

Jobs

Materials Science Jobs UK 2026: What to Expect Over the Next 3 Years

Materials Science Jobs UK 2026: roles, salaries and the trends shaping UK materials science hiring over the next three years — from batteries to composites. Materials science sits at the foundation of almost every technology transition that matters right now. The batteries powering the electric vehicle revolution, the semiconductors enabling artificial intelligence, the lightweight composites reducing aircraft emissions, the biomaterials replacing damaged human tissue, the thin films making solar cells more efficient — none of these advances are possible without breakthroughs in the science and engineering of materials. And breakthroughs in materials science require people. The UK materials science jobs market has historically been one of the quieter corners of the STEM hiring landscape — important, deeply technical, and consistently in demand, but rarely the subject of the breathless coverage that AI or blockchain attract. That relative obscurity is beginning to change. The convergence of the net zero transition, the semiconductor sovereignty agenda, the advanced manufacturing investment wave, and the growing role of computational and AI-driven materials discovery is elevating materials science to a strategic priority for governments, investors, and employers in a way that is directly reshaping the jobs market. For job seekers, this shift represents a genuine opportunity — but one that rewards those who understand the specific technical, commercial, and policy dynamics driving materials science hiring rather than those who simply arrive with a materials science degree and expect the market to do the rest. The roles being created now are more interdisciplinary, more computationally demanding, and more commercially oriented than the materials science jobs of even three years ago. This article breaks down what the UK materials science jobs market is likely to look like through to 2028 — covering the titles emerging right now, the technologies driving employer demand, the skills that will matter most, and how to position your career at the leading edge of a discipline that has never been more consequential.

Careers

How Many Materials Science Tools Do You Need to Know to Get a Materials Science Job?

Materials science tools for UK materials jobs in 2026: how many characterisation, simulation (DFT, FEA), microscopy and lab analytics tools you really need on your CV. If you’re navigating the materials science job market, it can feel like the list of tools, techniques and platforms you should learn grows every week. One job advert mentions electron microscopy, another mentions X-ray diffraction, yet another wants experience with thermal analysis, spectroscopy, simulation software, statistical packages, manufacturing QA systems and more. With so many specialised methods and instruments, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed — and to start thinking you need to know everything just to be considered. Here’s the honest truth most materials science hiring managers won’t tell you directly: 👉 They don’t hire you because you know every piece of equipment or software. They hire you because you can use the tools you do know to answer real questions, make reliable measurements and communicate results clearly. Tools are essential — no question — but they are secondary to problem-solving ability, scientific reasoning and experimental rigour. So the real question is: how many materials science tools do you actually need to know to get a job? The precise number depends on the role you want, but for most job seekers the answer is far fewer than you think. This article breaks down what employers really value, which tools are core, which are role-specific, and how to focus your learning so your CV and interviews stand out for the right reasons.

🍪 Basic, anonymous analytics (aggregate counts only, never shared) are always on. Accept to also enable third-party tools — Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, Mixpanel, Leadfeeder — which help us match you with relevant Materials Science roles. We never sell your data or use it for cross-site advertising. See our Cookie Policy.