Also called: Vertebrate Paleontologist, Museum Curator (Paleontology)
Digs up and studies fossils to understand ancient life, including dinosaurs.
Summers you might camp in Montana's badlands, chiseling fossil bones out of rock. The rest of the year you study specimens, teach, and write papers. Many paleontologists also work for consulting firms that check construction sites for fossils.
Varies a lot; museum and academic pay is modest.
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; museum and university jobs are scarce and competitive.
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). Growth is for geoscientists overall.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps scan fossils, but digging in badlands and site surveys stay human in a small, competitive field.
Classes: Earth science, AP Biology, 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.