Mired in Mining by Señor K
You can turn a love of rocks and digging holes into a rewarding and well-paying career…
Remember when you were a little kid and someone told you if you dig a hole deep enough you can get to China? Were you the kind of kid that tried? They say digging a hole is one of man’s most basic functions. In armies throughout history soldiers begin basic training by digging holes. Today, in the modern world, if you are good at digging holes, often with really cool big tools, then there are many awesome high paying career paths available.
What is Mining
In the adult world, digging a hole is known as mining and the process involves a few steps. First, there has to be a specific mineral that everyone needs; like copper, for example, which is used in electric wiring. Second, some mining company tries to find that mineral, again like copper, dig it out, and finally sell it for a handsome profit. Some of these companies, like Exxon Mobil or BP, are among the most valuable companies on the planet with billions of investments all over the planet extracting various minerals from the earth.
If a career in this field sounds interesting to you, check out our breakdown of some of the coolest jobs in this exploding field. As in most industries, salary goes up with experience and training, so we grouped the offerings into two categories based on salaries and required educations.
On the Top -- $100,000 a year and up
Almost all the mining jobs in the top echelon of salaries require at least a bachelor's degree in a scientific field. Students who pursue careers in mining also take coursework from a variety of fields such as mathematics, science and engineering. As you move up the corporate ladder higher level degrees, such as Master’s degrees and PhDs are quite common among the top folks at many mining firms.
Geologist and engineer are two common jobs in this category. These are the scientific employees who are the brains behind the whole operation. The geologist and their team assess samples from various sites and determine where to dig. Then the engineer and his team proceed to build a safe, functioning mine where miners can extract whatever mineral is being pursued. Both of these jobs are great for people who like science and math.
Two more great jobs are the Site Manager and Drilling Manager. The site manager runs the daily operations and schedules the staff; while the drilling manager designs and implements the drill plan. Both of these jobs pay well and are great for people who are big picture thinkers and who can manage large complex operations.
To learn more about pursuing any of these careers contact your local community college or technical school and find out what classes you need to get started. There are literally hundreds of niche jobs hiding in this industry so don’t just think of digging and hardware. Chemists and salesmen and accountants and lawyers and all sorts of other jobs are in demand by mining firms and they have nothing to do with digging holes.
Easier Entry -- $50,000 a year and up
A lot of the jobs in this category revolve around the maintenance of machinery and the every day running of the mine. Excavating rigs need to be fixed and cleaned, new holes need to be dug, and mined materials need to be safely conveyed and processed. All of these duties require manpower and that’s where a lot of these jobs come in. The Green Bush mine in Australia, for example, employs hundreds of people as it produces almost 2,000,000 tons of lithium per year; that’s a lot of rocks to crush up and turn into cell phone batteries.
If you are looking for less schooling but want to work in mining these job options may be a better fit. Many of these jobs, such as wellhead pumper and drill operator require only a high school diploma and some don’t even require that. Other jobs in this category, such as mining electrician or commercial truck driver, do demand a little more preparation by requiring both completion of a training course and passing certification exams. But the good news is that each passing score on a certification exam usually raises one’s salary.
Many companies also offer paid trading programs to their employees so even a janitor has the opportunity to move up the career ladder. Mining giant Rio Tinto, for example, offers hundreds of apprenticeships, internships and vocational training programs that, according to their website, support “ the development of critical skills needed by the mining industry into the future.” All predictions are that demand for precious minerals will do nothing but rise in the coming years so the skills needed to extract them will continue to become more valuable.
Overall, mining is a growing industry with lots of career opportunities. Whether you want to drive big drilling machines or work in a lab assaying rock samples, there is something in this field for everyone. Working in this field can also be rewarding as it offers both decent salaries and, unlike in many tech jobs, there is an actual physical end product resulting from your effort: whether it’s a cell phone battery, a diamond, or a copper penny. You can look at it and say, “I dug that out of a hole in the ground…and I didn’t even reach China.”