A geotechnical engineer is a civil engineer who performs analysis and assessments on earth materials prior to construction projects. They examine soil, rocks, underground water flow, and other earth materials to determine which materials should be used in the construction. This examination also enables them to provide advice on the overall design of the structure to ensure it meets required safety and quality standards.
Geotechnical engineers work on an array of structures such as tunnels, dams, roads, railways, and bridges. They work closely with structural engineers and architects in order to efficiently execute their role. They can work in engineering firms, petroleum companies, mining companies, and construction companies. A successful geotechnical engineer should have engineering skills, project management skills, analytical skills, and communication skills.
Geotechnical engineers work full time. The role involves traveling from site to site, and so they may go beyond the 40 hours a week due to travel.
How to Become a Geotechnical Engineer
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a geotechnical engineer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $36.9 an hour? That's $76,743 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 20,500 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Geotechnical Engineer Do
There are certain skills that many geotechnical engineers 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 speaking skills, math skills and writing skills.
How To Become a Geotechnical Engineer
If you're interested in becoming a geotechnical engineer, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 64.0% of geotechnical engineers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 24.8% of geotechnical engineers have master's degrees. Even though most geotechnical engineers 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 geotechnical engineer. When we researched the most common majors for a geotechnical engineer, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on geotechnical engineer resumes include doctoral degree degrees or associate degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a geotechnical engineer. In fact, many geotechnical engineer jobs require experience in a role such as engineering internship. Meanwhile, many geotechnical engineers also have previous career experience in roles such as project engineer or research assistant.
Geotechnical Engineer 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 geotechnical engineer 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 construction manager.
Average Salary for a Geotechnical Engineer
What Am I Worth?
Top Colleges for Geotechnical Engineers
1. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
2. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
3. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA • Private
4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
5. New York University
New York, NY • Private
6. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Blacksburg, VA • Private
7. Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA • Private
8. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
9. Texas Tech University
Lubbock, TX • Private
10. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Top Skills For a Geotechnical Engineer
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, 14.6% of geotechnical engineers listed civil engineering on their resume, but soft skills such as speaking skills and math skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Geotechnical Engineer Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Geotechnical Engineer templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Geotechnical Engineer resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Geotechnical Engineer Demographics
Geotechnical Engineer Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among geotechnical engineers, 17.2% of them are women, while 82.8% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among geotechnical engineers is White, which makes up 68.5% of all geotechnical engineers.
- The most common foreign language among geotechnical engineers is Spanish at 32.1%.
Online Courses For Geotechnical Engineer That You May Like
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Learn How Building is Constructed & Designed Step By step with Site Photos, Videos, Architectural & Structural Drawings...
This course ranges from the earth structure, the generation of earthquakes and seismic waves by faults to the seismic response of soils, foundations and structures as well as seismic risk. It is consequently aimed at undergraduates, graduates and professionals interested in engineering seismology, earthquake engineering or seismic risk. It investigates various technical fields: rock mechanics, soil dynamics, structural dynamics and dynamic soil-structure interaction. Various types of sessions ar...
Best States For a Geotechnical Engineer
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a geotechnical engineer. The best states for people in this position are Alaska, California, Oregon, and Washington. Geotechnical engineers make the most in Alaska with an average salary of $107,548. Whereas in California and Oregon, they would average $91,577 and $85,432, respectively. While geotechnical engineers would only make an average of $83,402 in Washington, 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. Alaska
$107,548
Avg. Salary
2. Oregon
$85,432
Avg. Salary
3. Washington
$83,402
Avg. Salary
How Do Geotechnical Engineer Rate Their Jobs?
4.0
4.0
Suitability of construction materials • September 2019What do you like the most about working as Geotechnical Engineer?
I like it because of it is the basis of development Show MoreWhat do you NOT like?
I don't like the fact that it is not well organized Show MoreTop Geotechnical Engineer Employers
Most Common Employers For Geotechnical Engineer
| Rank  | Company  | Average Salary  | Hourly Rate  | Job Openings  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black & Veatch | $80,571 | $38.74 | 28 |
| 2 | Parsons | $80,454 | $38.68 | 14 |
| 3 | Tetra Tech | $78,180 | $37.59 | 18 |
| 4 | Newmont | $77,744 | $37.38 | 14 |
| 5 | Standard Testing and Engrg Co | $77,606 | $37.31 | 12 |
| 6 | Shannon & Wilson | $77,601 | $37.31 | 17 |
| 7 | Haley & Aldrich | $77,600 | $37.31 | 16 |
| 8 | GZA GeoEnvironmental | $77,497 | $37.26 | 13 |
| 9 | Golder Associates | $77,435 | $37.23 | 48 |
| 10 | Froehling & Robertson | $77,142 | $37.09 | 20 |
Geotechnical Engineer Videos
Becoming a Geotechnical Engineer FAQs
How many years does it take to become a geotechnical engineer?
It takes four years to become a geotechnical engineer. That is the time that it takes to earn a bachelor's degree in engineering. A geotechnical engineer is a type of civil engineer with a primary focus on the topography of the land and the attributes of rocks and soils in the building process.
Is geotechnical engineering a good career?
Yes, geotechnical engineering is a good career. Geotechnical engineering is a lucrative career that is in high demand. Becoming a geotechnical engineer can open the door to a lot of different industries and very different types of jobs.
Is geotechnical engineering hard?
Yes, geotechnical engineering is hard. Compared to just civil engineering, geotechnical engineering requires greater expertise in the nature of materials. The education and training needed to become a geotechnical engineer can be difficult, but once you master the trade, working as a geotechnical engineer can be both fun and incredibly challenging.