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Mineralogist vs research geologist

The differences between mineralogists and research geologists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a mineralogist and a research geologist. Additionally, a research geologist has an average salary of $116,391, which is higher than the $61,609 average annual salary of a mineralogist.

The top three skills for a mineralogist include XRD, scanning electron microscopy and XRF. The most important skills for a research geologist are GIS, geological survey, and R.

Mineralogist vs research geologist overview

MineralogistResearch Geologist
Yearly salary$61,609$116,391
Hourly rate$29.62$55.96
Growth rate5%5%
Number of jobs20145,501
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age4545
Years of experience1212

Mineralogist vs research geologist salary

Mineralogists and research geologists have different pay scales, as shown below.

MineralogistResearch Geologist
Average salary$61,609$116,391
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $128,000Between $81,000 And $166,000
Highest paying City-Midland, TX
Highest paying state-Texas
Best paying company-Exxon Mobil
Best paying industry--

Differences between mineralogist and research geologist education

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

MineralogistResearch Geologist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common majorGeologyGeology
Most common collegeUniversity of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Mineralogist vs research geologist demographics

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

MineralogistResearch Geologist
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 68.2% Female, 31.8%Male, 77.9% Female, 22.1%
Race ratioBlack 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%Black or African American, 0.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 6.4% Asian, 5.6% White, 81.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between mineralogist and research geologist duties and responsibilities

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.

Research geologist example responsibilities.

  • Foster cross laboratory collaboration between physics labs and between engineering, biology, and chemistry departments to accomplish share goals.
  • Synthesize and characterize colloidal room-temperature ferromagnetic CoFe2O4 nanoparticles.
  • Conduct research by administering quantitative and qualitative surveys to low income fathers and entering and analyzing the data using SPSS

Mineralogist vs research geologist skills

Common mineralogist skills
  • XRD, 35%
  • Scanning Electron Microscopy, 24%
  • XRF, 24%
  • Core Analysis, 17%
Common research geologist skills
  • GIS, 40%
  • Geological Survey, 18%
  • R, 15%
  • Geological Data, 12%
  • Research Projects, 8%
  • Sedimentology, 8%

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