Also called: Fault Analyst
Studies how rocks bend, fold and crack to find oil, minerals and earthquake faults.
You hike a canyon measuring the tilt of rock layers with a compass, then build a 3D computer model of the folds underground. Your results guide where to drill or how risky a site is for a dam.
Highest pay in energy and mining.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Master's or PhD in geology.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Geology.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years). Geoscientists overall.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI builds 3D fold models from data; fieldwork mapping rock layers and judging risk stay human.
Classes: Earth science, AP Physics, Geometry.
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.