To the Students and Young Professionals
Kyle Johnson, YP-0106 College:
There are those of us who are driven by a passion for geological subjects. College is a place to explore and grow these passions. However, translating these passions into the real world economy can be challenging. The majority of earth sci- ence positions will be offered in private industry but there are also opportunities in educational, non-profit, state, and fed- eral sectors. The private sector is driven by methods that maximize profit or generate compliance. Under this model, the minimal amount of data is collected and analyzed. Positions available have been proven to generate high capital, which very well may fall outside your area of interest. In many private sector positions, you may not be challenged as a research scientist or perform the critical analysis typically associated with aca- demic studies. The challenges instead will come from the business aspects of your career and the need to analyze con- ditions with less data and information. Most of your purely scientific-based proj- ects will be hard to come by unless there is potential to generate profit, but those projects do appear from time to time.
Arizona:
I am most familiar with the economic geology job market. In the four years I have been out of college, I have already experienced a boom and bust cycle in the mining industry. Fresh out of college and through networking I was able to acquire a job as a contract geologist logging exploration core. This job turned into a fulltime position and my responsibility shifted towards mining geology. This included geological mapping, determin- ing rock characteristics, mineral assem- blages, alterations and block modeling among other tasks. I was passionate about my job because there was always something new to discover and each day I felt challenged as a geologist. This job spoke to my passion of hard rock geology.
Alaska:
After living and working in Arizona my entire life, I moved to Alaska and began to search for a new job. The market was not so good for geologists in 2011 as grass-roots exploration took a back burner and investors were starting to pull money out of mineral exploration. I was able to land a temporary job that required a schedule of two weeks on and one week off, working 12 hour days and logging core for a mine in Alaska. The job was well suited for my experi- ence but became highly monotonous. Furthermore, the rotational schedule did not suit me. Being in the heart of Interior Alaska in the middle of winter did not help. I fulfilled my contractual duties but did not continue the job. Work as a hard rock geologist in Alaska is scarce to come by, with only a handful of mines in production in the entire state. The mines that are in production are remote, and require rotating shift work.
After being disappointed in the min- ing industry in Alaska, I looked for other employment based on geological sciences. I found myself unqualified for positions that were available with companies like BP or ConocoPhillips. Unless I was willing to be a field techni- cian, positions required a long duration of experience (10 years+) or a mas- ter’s degree. Other possibilities with the state and federal agencies leaned heavily toward engineering. Although I had practiced mining engineering at my previous position, I did not have the formal requirements needed. I was able to get work within the environmental field. The work entailed tasks that were unfamiliar to me, but this proved the challenge I needed and I took it on with full gusto. Environmental consulting includes a variety of field technical tasks including monitoring groundwater and soil sampling throughout the state. The job has been great for visiting parts of Alaska that I would not have been able to see otherwise and has allowed me to
meet some interesting characters along the way. Environmental Science is not my true geologic passion and I would love to get back into the hard rock min- ing industry, but you have to diversify to be gainfully employed. My passion continues in my collecting of rocks and minerals and talking with others about geology in societies and clubs.
Some Helpful Tips to My Comrades:
1) Start networking now and join geo- logical and science societies.
2) Diversify your technical skills.
3) Get out of your comfort zone within the geoscience field and attempt something new.
4) If you end up at a job you don’t desire, keep your passion going in societies or hobbies.
5) Sharpen your knowledge within your field by reading journals, fol- lowing current news so that you can continue to establish yourself as a professional in the field.
Mr. Johnson has 5 years of experience as a geologist in the mining and envi- ronmental industry. His background includes geologic drill core logging and interpretation (both soil and hard rock); mine modeling; mineral exploration; open pit mine operations and surveying. He is an avid mineral collector and vice president of Chugach Gem and Mineral Society. He enjoys hiking, skiing, kayak- ing, Salmon fishing and tasting Alaska’s local micro-brews.
www.aipg.org
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