Also called: Vertebrate Paleontologist
Digs up and studies fossils to learn about dinosaurs and ancient life.
Spends summer weeks in the badlands brushing dirt off a dinosaur bone, wraps it in plaster, then spends winter CT-scanning it in the museum lab.
Estimate; museum and university pay.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Doctorate (PhD), about 10 years after high school. PhD in paleontology, geology, or biology.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Geology, Biology, Paleontology.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years). Estimate; very small field.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps read CT scans, but digging in badlands and describing fossils stay human, in a tiny field.
Classes: AP Biology, Earth science, Chemistry.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-2042.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.