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Geologist vs mineralogist

The differences between geologists and mineralogists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a geologist and a mineralogist. Additionally, a geologist has an average salary of $111,878, which is higher than the $61,609 average annual salary of a mineralogist.

The top three skills for a geologist include oversight, OSHA and data collection. The most important skills for a mineralogist are XRD, scanning electron microscopy, and XRF.

Geologist vs mineralogist overview

GeologistMineralogist
Yearly salary$111,878$61,609
Hourly rate$53.79$29.62
Growth rate5%5%
Number of jobs869201
Job satisfaction3.5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 79%Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Average age4545
Years of experience1212

Geologist vs mineralogist salary

Geologists and mineralogists have different pay scales, as shown below.

GeologistMineralogist
Average salary$111,878$61,609
Salary rangeBetween $63,000 And $196,000Between $29,000 And $128,000
Highest paying CityEl Paso, TX-
Highest paying stateTexas-
Best paying companyDevon Energy-
Best paying industryEnergy-

Differences between geologist and mineralogist education

There are a few differences between a geologist and a mineralogist in terms of educational background:

GeologistMineralogist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 79%Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Most common majorGeologyGeology
Most common collegeUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel HillUniversity of Southern California

Geologist vs mineralogist demographics

Here are the differences between geologists' and mineralogists' demographics:

GeologistMineralogist
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 78.7% Female, 21.3%Male, 68.2% Female, 31.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 1.0% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 6.7% Asian, 4.9% White, 81.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Black or African American, 0.5% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 5.3% Asian, 2.7% White, 86.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between geologist and mineralogist duties and responsibilities

Geologist example responsibilities.

  • Manage leach pad ore delivery to maximize and predict Au recovery.
  • Establish an LLC and learned the fundamentals of running and managing a small business.
  • Manage the installation of geophones, tiltmeters, inclinometers, passive vent wells, gas caps, and ORWs.
  • Manage task training and laboratory/field safety according to MSHA standards.
  • Manage, design and supervise geologic investigation drilling plans relate to environmental, geotechnical and mining projects.
  • Assist with geochemical and geophysical programs evaluating precious- and base-metal mineral exploration projects in Colorado, Arizona, and Wisconsin.
  • Show more

Mineralogist example responsibilities.

  • Develop and/or lead short courses and seminars on eolian sedimentology, the characterization of heterogeneous reservoirs and reservoir management.
  • Thin section and SEM descriptions of rocks relate to oil and gas exploration.
  • Recommend changes to concentrator operating procedures base on mineral liberation and composition, grind size, and historical MLA database.
  • Develop and/or lead short courses and seminars on eolian sedimentology, the characterization of heterogeneous reservoirs and reservoir management.
  • Receive introductory block modeling course from Vulcan.

Geologist vs mineralogist skills

Common geologist skills
  • Oversight, 24%
  • OSHA, 7%
  • Data Collection, 6%
  • GIS, 5%
  • Surface Water, 4%
  • Data Analysis, 4%
Common mineralogist skills
  • XRD, 35%
  • Scanning Electron Microscopy, 24%
  • XRF, 24%
  • Core Analysis, 17%

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