Geoscience
Stephen
Role: Geologist
Company: BHP Billiton
How did you find out that geology was the area that you wanted to work in?
I’ve always been interested in working outsdoors, I didn’t want a job where I was in an office doing desk work and geology was a way for me to do something different -working indoors and outdoors. It wasn’t until university that I actually understood what geology was.
I did a Bachelor of Science degree with a range of general science subjects for the first year. Towards the end of first year, geology came out on top because my marks for it were the best and I was far more interested in it. One of the lecturers came up to me and said ‘Stick with geology because it is one of the few sciences where jobs are available.’
Is it difficult to get a work as a geologist?
To get work as a geologist there are occasional low periods where there aren’t many jobs around. At the moment there are a fair few jobs in the industry on offer. But if you’re determined, it’s not hard to get a job anywhere. A lot of mines will take you on if you show up and show you’re interested.
What are the benefits of working in the Minerals Industry?
You see parts of Australia that you probably wouldn’t see if you were working in the city. There is a fair amount of freedom about you get with your job and where you work. The money is actually quite good compared to other jobs for graduates. And if you’re really interested in what you do then working in the minerals industry is great.
In the future I will probably go overseas, take the chance to see the world and use what I’ve learnt to travel. I will be in mining somewhere and there’s plenty of rocks out there to see.
What personal qualities do you need to be a geologist?
Being able to handle working in the middle of nowhere for long periods of time. Some people can't handle that. If you like the outdoors, don’t like working in the office and you’re keen to see parts of Australia, if not the world, you’ll probably enjoy geology
