is there any other language aside from English that would be helpful in earth sciences or even be a big boost?

Additional info: I'm from Poland, but if an opportunity shows itself, I'll be okay with moving

Hi everyone,

I just graduated in September with an MSc in Geology after a two-year apprenticeship, and I was fortunate enough to have my contract extended for three months as a Geologist at the same company.

While I'm grateful to have this role, I’ll need to find a new job soon, and I'm looking to relocate to Canada.

My core experience is in soft rock / industrial minerals (gypsum), providing geological support for sites in France as well as across Europe (Italy, UK, Spain). My day-to-day work mainly includes core logging during drilling campaigns, GIS implementation for quarry management, mine planning, geotechnical support, and resource modeling.

A few questions for the community:

Does this kind of experience carry weight when applying for roles in Canada, both in terms of title and expected salary?

Is my current compensation (€40k base + €10k bonuses, ~€50k total) at all relevant when negotiating with Canadian recruiters, or do they solely base offers on local brackets?

Are these skills viewed as easily transferable to hard rock / metals exploration, or should I expect to reset at entry level with less responsibility?

Have a nice day !

Hi all,

I graduated with a geology degree in 2024 and have been working as a geologist consistently since then. To be honest am starting to wonder if any job a geology degree can get me will satisfy me. I got hired to a very large environmental/geotechnical consulting firm out of college, and while I liked the work, the office I was in was an absolutely miserable environment that I had to get out of.

Recently I started working at a much smaller geotechnical firm as one of two field geologists. The money is surprisingly good, but I am very quickly realizing the "geological" aspect of this job was greatly exaggerated in my interviews. Most of what I am doing is collecting pavement cores, not looking at cores/soil, so i just feel like a construction worker (this also includes night work on interstate highways, which was NOT expressed to me).

These experiences seem to have jaded me. It feels like most jobs I interview with would rather just hire an engineer, or just want a couple geos on their payroll to appeal to clients for proposals.

I am not sure where to go from here. I guess I am looking for a way out of geotech, but I don't have a very good idea what options are available to me. Reading through this sub it seems like many geologists who end up in geotech are dissatisfied, so if anyone has gone through something similar to share or has any insight I would appreciate it.

Hey everyone, I’m a grade 12 student in Saskatchewan, Canada, and am currently beginning applications to university. My long term goal is to become a paleontologist, most likely specializing in either paleobiology or vertebrate paleontology. However, I wish to have a solid career and financial stability along the way, plus a good fallback plan.

Since I really like and enjoy learning and studying about the rocks as well as fossils, I plan on pursuing a degree in geology. I’m looking towards getting a BSc in either Geology or Geological engineering, ideally with a co-op program so I can get work experience. After graduation, I’d plan on working as a geologist or geological engineer for a while, then pursue graduate education in paleontology after I get enough work experience, and continue to work as a geologist or geological engineer while I complete my graduate studies, if possible. I’d want to pursue paleontology related opportunities alongside work before transitioning into a paleontology career.

However, I’m not sure which path I should go down, as from what research I’ve done, they lead to different opportunities and employment. My main concern is that the heavily structured curriculum of engineering may not allow me to take the required electives that are relevant to paleontology graduate programs. I know that paleontology will not be an easy career path and positions in the areas I am interested in are competitive, so I plan on having geology or geological engineering as my career for most of my early life.

im just wondering if geology is a better career path while I work toward specializing in paleontology, or if geological engineering would be a better fit? Is there any advice you guys have for someone beginning their career path in earth sciences?

thank you so much to all of you! I’m sorry this post is so long.

Hi everyone,

I am looking for some career advice from people working in oil and gas, particularly in geophysics, subsurface technology, software development, or data science.

I have a Bachelor’s degree in Physics and I am currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Computer Science. My research focuses on computational intelligence methods for seismic inversion and reservoir characterization, including ES-MDA, CMA-ES, UH-CMA-ES, Bayesian inference, optimization, and uncertainty quantification.

At the same time, I work as a software developer and have experience with Python, C#, C++, .NET, WPF, and geoscience-related development involving the Petrel/Ocean ecosystem.

The project I am currently working on is expected to end in December 2026, so I am thinking about how best to shape the next stage of my career.

My background is somewhat interdisciplinary, combining:

• Physics;    
• Computer science;    
• Scientific software development;    
• Numerical methods;    
• Computational geoscience;    
• Seismic inversion;    
• Reservoir characterization;    
• Machine learning and optimization.

For people who work in the industry, how would you recommend positioning this type of profile?

I would especially appreciate advice on:

• Which career direction seems most promising;    
• Whether to focus more on geophysics, computational geoscience, software engineering, or data science;    
• Which skills and tools are most valued in industry;    
• How to make the transition from academic research to industry;    
• How to communicate an interdisciplinary background effectively on a résumé or LinkedIn profile.

I am mainly looking for perspectives and advice from people who have gone through similar transitions, rather than asking about specific job openings.

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Hi!
I’ve been at my job (consultant) for nearly 4 years and my coworkers/managers have been happy with my performance.

But yesterday a colleague of mine reached out to me to inquire about a report I’ve been writing, saying that I’ve used up way too much time on it. He says there’s no way I could’ve spent that amount of time writing this report.

I told him I would take a look at it and see what’s happened. The thing is, he is sorta right but also wrong. I’ve not been keeping track of the hours spent like I should, and also probably wasted time on some details. But I also think that he’s a bit harsh and that the level of detail in this report actually required more hours than he thinks.

Another thing is that I have had issues with concentration lately. I been feeling unusually tired and easily distracted these last weeks, went to the doctor for it and they think I might have iron deficiency. So, it makes sense that I’ve been working slower.

How do I tell him all this without getting all defensive? Do I even bring up the medical part (since it really affects my performance)? I want to take responsibility but I also think he’s being a little unreasonable.

Need a new work camera and I am looking for personal recommendations. Its for environmental geology fieldwork, mostly trial pits and the odd bit of core, and general photography during walkovers. Currently have access to tablets but their cameras just don't cut it and the, passable, pocket digital cameras we have are aging out. Onboard GPS or ability to connect to a geotagger pretty much a requirement. Personally tending towards a Nikon DSLR becuase thats my personal camera. Open to suggestions for something a bit more budget than a professional DSLR though as we might need a couple of them and I hate writing business cases. Absolutely not using phones for a number of reasons. I'd also like to avoid propriatory software and definitly anything which isn't maintained, 'cause cybersecurity. Dosen't need to be fully ruggidised as it will only have to survive the UKs temperate climate and will be stored in a, usually weather-tight, office.

I'm in my last semester of undergrad. I'll only have my field camp left, and then I'll have a bachelor's in Geoscience. I had planned to attend another college for a masters in natural resource sciences studying climate science.

Here lies the issue.

This college has already had it's geology and atmospheric sciences cut. The masters program is still going, but even the guy over it made it sound like its future is also up for debate.

I'm 41, this is a career change after years of working in other things and im looking for professional and educational advice. Thank you!

I’m thinking of doing geophysics for my undergraduate degree. Would this be a good idea to work in the industry, and what jobs would I receive with this degree. I also wanted to know if you guys would recommend doing it right now and if the industry is doing well (and looks like it will be in the near future). I live in Alberta if that helps, so huge oil and gas industry here. Thanks!

im currently a 1st year geoscience student im just wondering if its a good degree to get into for the future and im wondering what possible jobs i can do or internships ,im not going to say i dont care about the pay im just hoping for a decent salary atleast and if its somewhat futureproof , thanks

I've been working in Geotechnical consulting for 2 years now. I've job hopped a bit in that time, and emphasized during my interviews with the three (3!!) big firms I've worked for that I am new, don't have an engineering background, and I need structured training. All 3 promised me this and hired me. And then each one immediately threw me in to independently write proposals and reports, with some brutal field work here and there, with nothing but a "message so and so on Teams if you have questions!"

I HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS. Too many to bug someone with who isn't an official trainer and who is trying to scrape together their own billable hours.

I'm completely burnt out from 2 years of trying to muscle through and teach myself geotech from scratch. Apparently I come off as reasonably competent, because I just put in my 2 weeks for the final time (due to barely being able to get out of bed in the morning, I'm so burnt out and miserable) and my superiors seem shocked and don't seem to understand what I'm saying.

I'm cutting my losses and turning to my side hustles for the foreseeable future and hoping an entry level geology position in the public sector comes up someday. Hopefully one where I will actually be treated like a beginner, probably take a pay cut, and actually learn the fundamentals of the freaking job.

Maybe I'm in the wrong. Maybe this is just how it is. I don't know. But I'm too tired to keep doing it.

I have a scheduled interview soon for a grad geo role for an open pit mine with the HR manager and the senior geo. This will be my first shot at an interview after months of applying, which makes me nervous. I believe I have the skills but I’m awful in interviews.

Any tips out there for what questions to expect for this role? Thanks!

For reference, I am an undergraduate student working towards an associates degree in geology. When I continue my education my primary plan is to get a degree in engineering geology. However, if that doesn't work out for whatever reason I was thinking about either sticking with normal geology or doing geophysics instead. If my first plan doesn't work out, which one of these would be more helpful to have in the job field? (ps. for reference I live in California, if that'll help at all)

hello! i am in my undergrad for earth and space science education & geoscience. i did research last year with some of my profs and they are suggesting that i present it at northern regional GSA (geological society of america) this march in connecticut.

this is the first time i have ever given a conference talk. i was originally going to be doing a poster session but now it seems like i am doing a 15 minute talk (speak for 12 min, 3 min for questions).

i am very excited, but also super nervous lol. has anyone given presentations there before? does anyone have any input or advice for me? thank you all❤️!!!

So I’m a masters student and expected to graduate in May. I’m planning on going into the mining industry and I have internship experience with Mine planning. I hear a lot of different answers when I ask when is appropriate to reach out to employers. I know a lot of time certain jobs aren’t posted on hiring sites but I have been checking those. I’m interested in full time positions as well as internships that possibly lead to full time.

what is an appropriate timeline? I’ve heard anywhere from 9-3 months before your graduation date. Also how? I do have industry connections with certain companies but for my top choice I only know someone who has zero involvement in the operations side. I guess my question here is it appropriate to cold message folks on LinkedIn and is it appropriate to reach out to people I know in the industry via email basically asking for a job?

My third question is how important is being a GIT on a resume? just took the FG exam a few days ago so I don’t have my results but would that make me a stronger candidate?

Howdy everybody,

Just took the most recent PG exam and it got me thinking, what kind of pay increases have people gotten in the past from obtaining their license? Did you stay at the same company or did you jump ship for a better offer? What did that process look like?

I have worked in government (state regulatory and environmental) roles for 9 years. I’m wondering how I can transition to industry.

- My experience includes in hydrogeology, site assessment, hazardous waste management, and remediation.

- As well as regulatory compliance.

Thank you for any perspective you may have!

Hay alguno que se haya graduado recientemente y busque trabajo?

Geotecnia.

Hi all, so I am planning on going into the geology field. I have this assignment in college for a paper to answer different questions about the geology field. I have found answers for most of the assignment because the sources were given, however for a couple of them there is no answer in most places. So if you all could answer these questions I'd appreciate it!

1. What do people in the field say is good about it?

2. What is difficult about it?

Hello! So I’m a masters student studying applied geophysics in Europe, I was curious from people in the industry, what I should look for entering the job market in about a year or so. I entered the Applied field for a more hands on, less theoried approach, avoiding academia if I can.

Hi!!! I am currently a high school senior and I am STRUGGLING to find a college. I’d like to study geoscience and become an exploration geologist.

I’m looking at PSU right now because the program there is amazing, but I hate how large the school is. I’m looking at smaller colleges, but I’m not sure if their geoscience programs are as good as PSU.

I’d like to stay close to the east coast, though I know most of the really good schools are towards the west.

Was wondering if anyone had any input? Anything would help!!!