A geologist is a trained professional who studies the composition, structure, and history of the earth in order to provide an understanding of the history of the earth and to predict future occurrences. They study rocks, minerals, and the sequences of earth processes, then use their knowledge of chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, and geology to explain certain phenomena.
Their job is also useful in locating minerals, petroleum deposits, and underground water resources. A geologist may decide to focus on a specific field within geology. Popular fields include marine geology, environmental geology, economic geology, petroleum geology, and engineering geology.
Employment opportunities for geologists can be found in the oil and gas industry, civil engineering, construction companies, government agencies and the underground water industry. The job of a geologist may involve a lot of travel because they do a lot of site visits. Therefore, they have flexible work schedules and may work late evenings and even during the weekends.
How to Become a Geologist
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a geologist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $37.28 an hour? That's $77,551 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 1,800 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Geologist Do
There are certain skills that many geologists have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed physical stamina, communication skills and problem-solving skills.
How To Become a Geologist
If you're interested in becoming a geologist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 79.3% of geologists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 14.3% of geologists have master's degrees. Even though most geologists have a college degree, it's impossible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a geologist. When we researched the most common majors for a geologist, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on geologist resumes include associate degree degrees or doctoral degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a geologist. In fact, many geologist jobs require experience in a role such as internship. Meanwhile, many geologists also have previous career experience in roles such as research assistant or teaching assistant.
Geologist Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a geologist can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as project manager, progress to a title such as general manager and then eventually end up with the title operations vice president.
Average Salary for a Geologist
What Am I Worth?
Top Colleges for Geologists
1. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
2. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA • Private
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
4. University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX • Private
5. University of California - Davis
Davis, CA • Private
6. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
7. San Jose State University
San Jose, CA • Private
8. Texas A&M University
College Station, TX • Private
9. University of Massachusetts Amherst
Amherst, MA • Private
10. San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA • Private
Top Skills For a Geologist
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 23.4% of geologists listed oversight on their resume, but soft skills such as physical stamina and communication skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Geologist Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Geologist templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Geologist resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Geologist Demographics
Geologist Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among geologists, 21.3% of them are women, while 78.7% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among geologists is White, which makes up 82.7% of all geologists.
- The most common foreign language among geologists is Spanish at 51.5%.
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Best States For a Geologist
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a geologist. The best states for people in this position are Texas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Maine. Geologists make the most in Texas with an average salary of $115,949. Whereas in Oklahoma and South Carolina, they would average $96,472 and $78,564, respectively. While geologists would only make an average of $77,418 in Maine, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. West Virginia
$72,177
Avg. Salary
2. Texas
$115,949
Avg. Salary
3. Oklahoma
$96,472
Avg. Salary
How Do Geologist Rate Their Jobs?
Top Geologist Employers
Most Common Employers For Geologist
| Rank  | Company  | Average Salary  | Hourly Rate  | Job Openings  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Devon Energy | $135,447 | $65.12 | 10 |
| 2 | Exxon Mobil | $121,827 | $58.57 | 20 |
| 3 | Chevron | $119,792 | $57.59 | 36 |
| 4 | ConocoPhillips | $119,467 | $57.44 | 91 |
| 5 | Marathon Oil | $115,946 | $55.74 | 36 |
| 6 | Hess | $95,813 | $46.06 | 26 |
| 7 | Schlumberger | $91,266 | $43.88 | 11 |
| 8 | Weatherford International | $87,725 | $42.18 | 12 |
| 9 | Core Laboratories | $84,091 | $40.43 | 20 |
| 10 | BHP | $82,338 | $39.59 | 10 |
What are the best companies to work for a Geologist?
Dr. Adam Woods Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, California State University, Fullerton
Most of our graduates work for environmental or engineering companies that range from regional to international scale.Show more
Geologist Videos
Becoming a Geologist FAQs
Do geologists get paid well?
Yes, some geologists get paid well. A person's pay in geology roles can range from $30,000 to $120,000 in a year.
The pay a person makes as a geologist depends on various factors. These include education, experience, industry, company, and location. While some of these factors have more influence than others, the five work together to determine a person's salary.
How many years does it take to become a geologist?
It takes three to five years of field experience to become a geologist. To become a geologist, a person needs their bachelor's degree, field experience, and a license depending on the state they work in.
Is being a geologist hard?
No, working as a geologist is not hard. However, this field can be challenging to break into as a new graduate without extensive work experience. This is because the job market tends to be cyclical, and networking is essential.