[8] Following his PhD, Pawliszyn joined the faculty at Utah State University where he attempted to get funding for research on polymer-coated optical fibers that could extract both volatile and nonvolatile analytes from complex media in the liquid or gas phase.

[9] Through this support, he invented the Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) technique which "uses a solid coating on a sample probe to selectively extract chemical substances from blood, saliva, urine, and even plasma.

"[10] As such, the SPME technique began to be used in a large range of chromatographic methods, including environmental, forensic, bioanalytical, as well as clinical studies.

In 2008, Pawliszyn was honoured for his invention of SPME with the EnCana Principal Award as someone who has made a significant impact in the world outside the lab.

[15] Through the same year, Pawliszyn was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada for "developing state-of-the-art, integrated and automated analytical methods and instruments for on-site analysis and monitoring of living and environmental systems.