Geologists typically work outdoors in many kinds of weather.
Geologists study earth processes, and help the government and private companies exploit and manage its resources. Decreasing energy, mineral and water resources makes the profession important for the country's economic future, and helps drive the demand for jobs. Salaries vary by job type, experience, hiring industry and location of the job.
Basics
Geologists earn a base salary of $42,113 to $62,182 per year. However, they can also receive bonuses--for example, from locating large oil deposits--and also be granted profit sharing from the income produced by those deposits. This pushes total annual compensation to a range of $42,238 to $62,338. All information is from the PayScale Report as of January 2011.
Experience
As geologists become more experienced, they become more skilled in understanding earth processes and thus become more valuable to their employers. This increases their salary over time. For example, new employees earn $34,608 to $51,723 per year, but after one to four years of work, they make $40,103 to $54,874. At five to nine years of experience, they receive $46,554 to $62,103, and at 10 to 19 years, they get $52,550 to $74,696. Finally, at 20 years or more, they top out at $55,519 to $95,573.
Industries
The type of hiring industry determines not only compensation for geologists but also their tasks. For example, oil and gas exploration pays the highest salaries because they involve finding and exploiting high-income sources of fossil fuels. They pay $51,492 to $101,606 per year. Gold mining locates a metal that is not only valuable for jewelry but also because of its industrial uses. This industry pays $58,326 to $68,490 yearly. Environmental consulting determines the effect of industrial processes on their surroundings and pays $40,710 to $54,802.
Location
The location of the job can affect salaries, with positions in Texas showing the widest and highest ranges at $49,355 to $94,679 per year, because of the state's oil industry. California, with its high population, is next on the income scale with annual compensation at $47,205 to $67,482, followed by Pennsylvania, with its large coal deposits, at $42,931 to $59,694. As for cities, Houston, Texas, an oil-producing capital, shows the highest pay at $60,301 to $102,272. It is followed by Denver, Colorado, headquarters of the Colorado Mining Association, where compensation is at $40,023 to $80,988.
Tags: become more, annual compensation, earth processes, hiring industry