Sample prep technician vs mud logger

The differences between sample prep technicians and mud loggers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a sample prep technician and a mud logger. Additionally, a mud logger has an average salary of $99,535, which is higher than the $42,504 average annual salary of a sample prep technician.

The top three skills for a sample prep technician include QC, lab equipment and AA. The most important skills for a mud logger are enhance safety, mechanical equipment, and data acquisition systems.

Sample prep technician vs mud logger overview

	Sample Prep Technician	Mud Logger
Yearly salary	$42,504	$99,535
Hourly rate	$20.43	$47.85
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	63,971	741
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	2	2

What does a sample prep technician do?

Sample Prep Technicians are responsible for carrying out sample preparation and laboratory testings. Their duties include client samples sorting and logging, conducting preliminary sample preparation, monitoring temperatures of freezers and refrigerators, cleaning of N-Evap, water baths refrigerators, and foreheads, and making sure proper procedures for sample returning, disposal, and archiving. They calibrate equipment such as pipettes, syringes, and balances, wash glassware, dispose of waste solvents, salinize liners and glass wools and sustain standard inventory. Sample Prep Technicians also perform equipment repair, assist laboratory technician, and ensure work adhere to organizations environmental, quality, health, and safety policies.

What does a mud logger do?

A mudlogger works at oil and gas companies where they are primarily in charge of supervising drilling operations to gather data from various procedures. They are responsible for maintaining accurate records of drilling activities and other processes, writing down descriptions, and producing detailed reports that companies can utilize when making decisions. Moreover, in some companies, a mudlogger may also take photos and videos, gather and analyze samples through various laboratory procedures, conduct inspections, perform risk assessments, coordinate with geologists, and implement safety policies and standards to maintain a safe and efficient workflow.

Sample prep technician vs mud logger salary

Sample prep technicians and mud loggers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sample Prep Technician	Mud Logger
Average salary	$42,504	$99,535
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $63,000	Between $74,000 And $133,000
Highest paying City	Fall River, MA	-
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	-
Best paying company	Los Alamos National Laboratory	-
Best paying industry	Automotive	-

Differences between sample prep technician and mud logger education

There are a few differences between a sample prep technician and a mud logger in terms of educational background:

	Sample Prep Technician	Mud Logger
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Most common major	Biology	Geology
Most common college	Stanford University	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Sample prep technician vs mud logger demographics

Here are the differences between sample prep technicians' and mud loggers' demographics:

	Sample Prep Technician	Mud Logger
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 67.6% Female, 32.4%	Male, 86.4% Female, 13.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 10.5% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between sample prep technician and mud logger duties and responsibilities

Sample prep technician example responsibilities.

Assist in managing technical and regulatory site visits to the laboratory and interface with QA and RA on all vendor/regulatory audits.
Maintain cleanliness of car wash.
Certify weights of shipments of grain and shipping containers according to USDA regulations.
Perform quality control (QC) testing of environmental samples within assign sample batches.
Perform calibration checks on pipettes monthly, on microwaves weekly, on scales daily.
Experience utilizing proper PPE for task, and ensuring a safe work area through housekeeping.

Mud logger example responsibilities.

Manage, design and supervise geologic investigation drilling plans relate to environmental, geotechnical and mining projects.
Work on LCM jobs gaining knowledge of down hole ECD as well as on low weight system WBM and OBM.
Oversee WBM to OBM conversions of systems or combining different weight fluids when applicable.
Insure all personnel utilize PPE.
Operate the most advance centrifuges in the industry.
Work on centrifuges, shakers, dryers and augers.

Sample prep technician vs mud logger skills

Common sample prep technician skills

QC, 12%
Lab Equipment, 10%
AA, 10%
Safety Regulations, 7%
Sample Prep, 6%
Lims, 6%

Common mud logger skills

Enhance Safety, 15%
Mechanical Equipment, 8%
Data Acquisition Systems, 7%
Laboratory Techniques, 6%
Drill Cuttings, 5%
MWD, 4%

Sample Prep Technician vs. similar jobs

Sample Prep Technician related careers

Sample Prep Technician related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Life, Physical, and Social Science Industry
Sample Prep Technician
Sample Prep Technician vs Mud Logger

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse life, physical, and social science jobs