r/geologycareers

hello, a quick rundown to where I am now- I graduated with a geo BS in 2024, absolutely did not have a real start into my geo career (worked at a casino for one (not as exciting as you'd think)), moved away from home to see if that would help and only did start calling myself a real working geologist in march because I started working as a under the table paid core logger at a mine.

the mine has run out of local core for me to log and will eventually bring offsite core to the mine so in the meantime I've been out of that job since the beginning of may basically. there's not really a timeline of when that core will come in and the project manager was vague about me working full time when it does come. I can't really afford to continue to be dogged around anymore and so I've considered going back to school for my masters. on the bright side of working there is that I now have my MSHA certification though I still lack my GIT license.

so I don't know what to do where to start in terms of looking at schools, besides consider the general location of applying to southern california schools and doing a thesis related to either aggregate or economic geology. do I start cold email professors about their work and then apply to their school after? or email the school's graduate advisor first? and I know like I shouldn't work on a thesis unless it's funded and so do I find the funding for that after I get in or do I hope that the professor already has funding for it?

thank you all for any advice that you can give me!

Hi everyone, I was offered a job at a base rate of $34 from a small firm I think I would enjoy working for. I am curious if I should potentially make a counter offer. Is this too much to ask for since this is my first job? I do have a GIT and the posting did have a range where I was offered the lower end of that range.

MSC in Hydrogeology, 4 years in industry (Serbia). Done both field and office work. Technical studies, reports and environmental-hydrogeological documentation. GIS, Python, AquferTest, AutoCad...Recently started working with geo and groundwater modelling -LeapFrog,Modflow6,MT3DMS, but modelling is not really a thing in Serbia.

Regard to that, I'm planning to relocate to EU and get into consulting. Any Suggestions?

*I hold EU passport, so i dont need a visa.

I am heading into my junior year at ASU pursuing a B.S. in Astronomical and Planetary Sciences. I am a veteran using VR&E (Chapter 33), and my counselor only approved me through a Master’s degree.

(While a PhD is often standard for this field, my goal after graduating is to enter the workforce to gain solid field and research experience before deciding if I want to commit to a doctorate later down the line).

I am looking for a Master’s program that will bridge my current background with the geology side of planetary sciences.

Career wise, I’m aiming for planetary geology/analogs, field research, and astrobiology. Right now, I'm highly drawn to arctic and volcanology-based research, though I'm still early in my coursework and research experience.

Programs I am considering:

• ASU: M.S. in Geological Sciences
• Purdue University: M.S. in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (focusing on Planetary Science or Geology & Geophysics)
• University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa: M.S. in Earth and Planetary Sciences

I would love any feedback on these specific programs, especially regarding their industry/agency connections, terminal Master's placement, or analog field opportunities. I'd also welcome suggestions for other universities with strong planetary geology pipelines that set graduates up for workforce entry. Thanks in advance!

I'm 21 yrs old, living in Botswana (Southern Africa) and I'm going to school next year as my parent's have been saving up for my tuition.

I was given a choice to pick whatever course I'd like and honestly I've boiled it down to two options.

Radiography, Geology (with the intention of becoming a mining geologist) or Mining engineering. As mining is big in our country and we also lack Radiographer's (less than 100 in the entire country) so both have high demand. My mom's a Chief nursing officer at the best private hospital in the country and you can imagine what she's been pushing, I'm quite stuck because I love all 3 prospects.

Three things I value and are non negotiables:

Work/Life balance: this is primarily because I have this silly little dream of becoming a traditionally published sci fi/fantasy author to a publisher abroad in the US or UK to act as a side thing to my main job because I've always loved writing but I also recognize going full time is impractical and that's something I'm fine with really. This is a non negotiable.

Good pay (of course): I don't want to be a millionaire of course but I'd like to live comfortably enough to not have to worry about whether I can pay rent the next month. Just enough cash to be able to go on a nice holiday once a yr or be able to just go out to a nice restaurant once every month.

Freedom of travel: Even if it isn't the job itself, I'd like for it to allow me to at least travel outside of work. Though ideally i'd like the job to give me such an experience.

To anyone in the field or knows anyone in these fields, I'd like some insight into what's your experience and what you'd recommend. Of course, these three thing's are vague so maybe they differ from role to role in each. So i'd like some insight.

I just finished undergrad in Ontario (GTA) and I’m waiting to get my GIT approved. I’ve been applying to everything I could find since January and I’ve been interviewing with an exploration company since March after connecting at pdac.

Just found out that they don’t have any opportunities for me because I don’t have enough field experience/a masters, I was advised to look into geotechnical/core logging roles but I’m not having much luck there either.

Does anyone have any advice or leads? 90% of entry level roles list 1-2 years of industry experience so I’m struggling.

Hello, I am a masters student just after my first year. I mostly do work in economic geology. This summer, I was wanting to possibly study for the Field Geologist license, but wasn't sure the best way of doing it or if this is the best time to do so. I know ASBOG covers many US states, including half of the states I would be hopeful to work in, but as I don't have a job lined up for after graduation, I don't know if it is worth paying for the study materials until I know where I will end up working as not every state accepts every license.

I have been accepted for an MSc in geotechnical engineering while my bsc was in geology with physical geography. I am considering a switch to geological engineering, as I am mainly interested in bedrock rather than soils. Would it be beneficial to swap or would having a geology background with a geotechnical masters open up more doors. I am very early in my career and I do not want to pigeon hole myself into one route, but I do want to become a chartered geologist. Currently I am thinking that the geotech route will still allow me to do work in bedrocks and hazards. I would love some advice on this subject!

I'm a early-career geologist in South Korea working at an underground limestone mine site.

Recently i feel stuck lately because of Mining in South Korea is a pretty limited field with not many opportunities to grow. all we have is carbonate, carbonate, carbonate... And most of the industry doesn't really need a geologist at all(many company threat us as an unnecessary cost).

I'm still junior so maybe this kind of worrying is too early, but i've been thinking about my next move to grow and stay as a mining geologist.

So just curious, is the geologist role in mining still a thing out there (especially australia/canada)?

Hi all. Excuse the wall of text, I never seem to be able to format things properly on Reddit lol. I'm looking for advice and your stories about transitioning out of field work to more office-based work. I have 8 years of industry experience with plenty of field work under my belt but now I'm 100% office based in government. I won't have this job for much longer and looking at going back to industry. However, I'm not willing to go back to 100% field rotations or moving to small isolated towns. It's not for me and my family anymore. I've been applying to more senior roles or more GIS focused roles but I'm not getting anywhere. I think for the GIS roles I'd need to take some courses. Any recommendations? What about resource estimation, are there practical courses for that? What other paths have you all taken?

Ciao a tutti,

Sono uno studente di Scienze della Terra/Geologiche di Pisa e sto per finire la mia laurea Triennale con una tesi su una mineralizzazione ad oro in Ecuador. Molto probabilmente continuerò il mio percorso qua a Pisa con una Magistrale nel Curriculum di Georisorse diventando un Geologo a tutti gli effetti.

Quello che vorrei fare è o specializzarmi nell'industria mineraria, cioè estrazione/lavorazione, o nella geotermia e quindi il suo sfruttamento.

Da qui nasce il mio dubbio, devo continuare la magistrale qua? Esistono università con Magistrali più improntate su quello che voglio fare io? So che ce ne sono anche all'estero ma non le ho mai sentite e sopratutto a seconda di dove è non so se ho disponibilità economica per affrontare lo stare e vivere in quel paese.

Dopo questo passaggio della Magistrale, mentre magari cerco già lavoro improntato sulla geologia le mie idee erano o andare sulle piattaforme petrolifere o cercare un lavoro tipo Enel/altra azienda (anche all'estero), iniziare una laurea in Ingegneria Ambientale o Ingegneria Mineraria a Torino, essendo che è l'unica in Italia un po' più specializzata, sapendo che però dovrò comunque riaffrontare altri 5 anni.

Che cosa mi consigliate, sono disponibile anche ad andare all'estero per lavorare e nel frattempo studiare, ma finché non trovo lavoro non credo di avere disponibilità economica tale da fare questo passaggio.

Grazie mille in Anticipo a tutti quelli che risponderanno

Hey folks. I’m in my early thirties and looking to do a career change. I have some college but would be pretty much starting from scratch (I was a paramedic the last decade). Geology has always been very interesting to me and I’m considering going to school for it.

I have a wife and three kids and from what I’ve seen a lot of geology jobs require you to travel a lot. Is that typically the case for your entire career, or could you grind a couple years and get a job that has more normal hours with some travel?

Also does this seem like a crazy idea?

• For those doing prospect evaluation — where do you pull your public well data from and how painful is the process?                                                                          
• What's your workflow for pulling completion and production data across multiple states? Is everyone just copy-pasting from state websites?

I currently work in UST remediation, a career path that benefits from a PG. Planning on getting a MS in geology online which would check my states box for exam eligibility. I’m wondering if anybody has managed to pass the FG in a similar situation? My undergrad is in envi sci.

Hey guys, I recently got an offer which seems below any market rate I can find (aus, QLD, csg). It's 70-75k, 1 year exp, no roster just in outback qld whenever required, no paid OT. Is this normal?

After graduating last year (even though I'm 32) I've been with my company working compliance for a little over a year. It is in environmental consulting. You are expected to be on nonstop with each hour of every day being logged. I am driving 400+ miles a week driving company vehicles to sites over a major metropolitan area. We do very low level projects so you are expected to be working on dozens at a time. I frequently have to shovel out drain ditches and clean clogged baskets. 55k a year. How can I improve my situation and escape this? Do things get better elsewhere? Is it too early to leave and will i find somewhere else? The driving alone is driving me insane.