You’re a scientist and a storyteller. Half the job is finding out where to drill and the other half is constructing a story to convince company leaders and investors to follow your reasoning. The geologist is at the front end of projects, figuring out where to drill, how and why. Geologists can come in many forms.
These geoscience professionals look at the structural and sedimentary aspects of the rock deep underground to identify possible oil and natural gas traps. They determine the origin, amount, maturity and movement of resources underground, as well as any obstacles that impede the movement of these resources. Geologists use a variety of techniques to discover this information, such as petro-physical analysis, geochemical analysis and seismic interpretation.
Geologists may specialize in fields such as coal geology, environmental geology, geochronology, hydrogeology, mineral deposits or mining, petroleum geology, stratigraphy, tectonics or volcanology. Petroleum geologists are responsible for the discovery and identification of oil and natural gas deposits. In addition to determining locations to drill, they envision, strategize, coordinate and execute drilling programs.
I'm interested in a career in
- Sub-sector Exploration and production, Oil and gas services, Offshore, Oil sands
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary $89,000 to $176,000
- Education Post-secondary degree
- Career Demand Growing
When you start in this occupation activities may include:
- Analyzing and interpreting geological, geochemical or geophysical information from sources such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, public well files or aerial photos
- Recording notes from daily activities and inputting data either in bulk form or individually into software.
- Participating in team meetings to discuss ongoing and upcoming drilling programs and projects
- Managing and understanding the database of well tops, porosity, permeability thickness, lithology, clay content, mineralogy, petrophysical properties, pressures and geochemical data
As you advance in this career, you may take on additional tasks including:
- Working on multidisciplinary teams to design exploration and/or development drilling programs
- Mentoring junior geologists
- Liaising with well site personnel and managers and regularly updating them on current interpretations and recommendations
Education
- A post-secondary degree in geology, geochemistry or geophysics is required.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
Licensing
- Licensing with a provincial or territorial association of professional engineers, geologists, geophysicists or geoscientists is required for employment and is mandatory to practice in Newfoundland and Labrador, Alberta, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
- Geologists and geophysicists are eligible for registration following graduation from an accredited educational program and after several years of supervised work experience and, in some provinces, after passing a Professional Practice examination.
Nature of work and environment condition specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Work not physically demanding
You have the skill to take concepts from your head to the page or computer screen and from there to reality. That means you apply conceptual thinking using your strong grasp of math, chemistry and physics.
- Computer use
- Critical thinking
- Attention to detail
- Complex problem solving
- Geography
- Judgment and decision making
- Planning and organizing
- Engineering and technology
- Quality control analysis
- Physics
- Sub-sector Carbon capture, utilization and storage
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary Equal to oil and gas
- Education Post-secondary degree
- Career Demand Growing
- Skills Upgrading None
-
Refocus
The skills gained as a geologist in oil and natural gas are transferable to the CCUS sub-sector of cleantech with minor upgrading.
In addition to the activities below, other activities in the cleantech sector may include:
- Evaluating legacy/existing wells and mapping reservoirs for suitability for carbon storage. (CCUS)
- Completing fault seal analysis. (CCUS)
When you start in this occupation activities may include:
- Analyzing and interpreting geological, geochemical or geophysical information from sources such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, public well files or aerial photos
- Recording notes from daily activities and inputting data either in bulk form or individually into software.
- Participating in team meetings to discuss ongoing and upcoming drilling programs and projects
- Managing and understanding the database of well tops, porosity, permeability thickness, lithology, clay content, mineralogy, petrophysical properties, pressures and geochemical data
As you advance in this career, you may take on additional tasks including:
- Working on multidisciplinary teams to design exploration and/or development drilling programs
- Mentoring junior geologists
- Liaising with well site personnel and managers and regularly updating them on current interpretations and recommendations
Education
- A post-secondary degree in geology, geochemistry or geophysics is required.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
Licensing
- Licensing with a provincial or territorial association of professional engineers, geologists, geophysicists or geoscientists is required for employment and is mandatory to practice in Newfoundland and Labrador, Alberta, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
- Geologists and geophysicists are eligible for registration following graduation from an accredited educational program and after several years of supervised work experience and, in some provinces, after passing a Professional Practice examination.
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to cleantech include:
- Primarily indoor/office work (CCUS)
- Transition to a similar level (CCUS)
- Urban location (CCUS)
- Safety-sensitive environment (CCUS)
- Lower-tolerance for risk (CCUS)
Nature of work and environment condition specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Work not physically demanding
You have the skill to take concepts from your head to the page or computer screen and from there to reality. That means you apply conceptual thinking using your strong grasp of math, chemistry and physics.
- Computer use
- Critical thinking
- Attention to detail
- Complex problem solving
- Geography
- Judgment and decision making
- Planning and organizing
- Engineering and technology
- Quality control analysis
- Physics
- Sub-sector Geothermal
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary Equal to oil and gas
- Education Post-secondary degree
- Career Demand Growing
- Skills Upgrading Minor
-
Refocus
A geologist considering a career change from oil and natural gas to the geothermal sub-sector of renewables may need to complete some minor upskilling to successfully transition.
In addition to the activities below, other activities in renewables may include:
- Analyzing fluids and geochemistry. (geothermal)
- Assessing the properties of underground water and geothermal reservoirs. (geothermal)
- Developing exploration and development drilling plans. (geothermal)
When you start in this occupation activities may include:
- Analyzing and interpreting geological, geochemical or geophysical information from sources such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, public well files or aerial photos
- Recording notes from daily activities and inputting data either in bulk form or individually into software.
- Participating in team meetings to discuss ongoing and upcoming drilling programs and projects
- Managing and understanding the database of well tops, porosity, permeability thickness, lithology, clay content, mineralogy, petrophysical properties, pressures and geochemical data
As you advance in this career, you may take on additional tasks including:
- Working on multidisciplinary teams to design exploration and/or development drilling programs
- Mentoring junior geologists
- Liaising with well site personnel and managers and regularly updating them on current interpretations and recommendations
Education
- A post-secondary degree in geology, geochemistry or geophysics is required.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
Licensing
- Licensing with a provincial or territorial association of professional engineers, geologists, geophysicists or geoscientists is required for employment and is mandatory to practice in Newfoundland and Labrador, Alberta, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
- Geologists and geophysicists are eligible for registration following graduation from an accredited educational program and after several years of supervised work experience and, in some provinces, after passing a Professional Practice examination.
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to renewables include:
- Travel required (geothermal)
- Primarily indoor/office work (geothermal)
- Less formal organizational structure (geothermal)
- Lower-risk tolerant culture (geothermal)
- Safety-sensitive environment (geothermal)
- Transition to a lower level (geothermal)
- Urban location (geothermal)
Nature of work and environment condition specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Work not physically demanding
You have the skill to take concepts from your head to the page or computer screen and from there to reality. That means you apply conceptual thinking using your strong grasp of math, chemistry and physics.
- Computer use
- Critical thinking
- Attention to detail
- Complex problem solving
- Geography
- Judgment and decision making
- Planning and organizing
- Engineering and technology
- Quality control analysis
- Physics
