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Careers
Explore diverse, impactful, and in-demand career opportunities across engineering, resources, and the environment for GEOE graduates.
The versatility of a Geological Engineering degree means that our graduates are in high demand and have a wide selection of career opportunities to choose from, as well as possibilities for further post-graduate studies. Senior Geological Engineers become international experts, with many serving as CEO's or owning consulting companies.
Their work may involve a mix of field and office work, consulting, project design, computing and modelling, community and engagement with commercial and public sectors.
Skills acquired for their jobs include math, physics & geology for project design or evaluation, project management, working with teams and communicating as an expert consultant.
Fields of practice
Natural Resources
Mining is one of Canada's largest industries, with Vancouver serving as a key centre for mineral exploration, mining geotechnical and geo-environmental engineering expertise. Geological Engineers are integrally involved in the search for new mineral deposits, as well as their extraction. Environmental issues connected with mining are also being addressed by Geological Engineers.
Environmental Protection
Protection of the environment is one of the greatest challenges facing today's society. As new types of contaminants are produced, Geological Engineers are needed to develop new solutions to protect our clean water resources and safely treat toxic chemicals. Our graduates are increasingly sought after in our greening world.
Civil Infrastructure
Geological Engineering services are in great demand by Canada's construction industry. Geological Engineers make sure that the rock and soil foundations for our dams, high rises, bridges and tunnels are secure and stable. Often they interact with Civil Engineers in solving these geotechnical problems.
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Natural Hazards
Accelerated economic development in response to general population growth, has led to the increased vulnerability of our communities and infrastructure to natural hazards. Difficult decisions need to be made regarding the risks of natural hazards like earthquakes, landslides and floods. Geological Engineers play a key role in quantifying such risks and devising suitable remedial strategies.
Life Lines
Building and maintenance of roads, railways, airports, transmission lines and pipelines in the challenging terrains of Canada require an enormous amount of expert input from Geological Engineers. These needs are ever-increasing as our communities expand and standards for safety, reliability and capacity increase.
Water Quality
Clean, safe drinking water is an essential human right. Geological Engineers help evaluate, regulate and protect the quality and quantity of surface and groundwater, ensuring the reliability and sustainability of water resources. Geological Engineers are active in the design of hydroelectric and water supply dams, dikes to protect against flooding, and protective structures to prevent erosion along our shorelines.
Energy
Canada continues to strive to meet its energy needs. Energy is essential for heating, transportation, manufacturing, and most other aspects of our life. Geological Engineers are extensively involved in multibillion dollar exploration and extraction programmes to find and develop more resources. These include oil and gas, uranium, coal and geothermal energy.
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FAQs
The field of Geological Engineering has a wide scope and is relevant almost to all parts of the economy. Most of our graduates work for consulting engineering or environmental firms as specialists. Many are also employed directly by mining companies and large corporations such as BC Hydro, as well as by government agencies such as the Ministries of Transportation, Environment and Forests. They carry out site investigations for mines, dams, roads, railways, pipelines and other critical infrastructure. They interact with civil engineers to design essential parts of construction projects. They are responsible for environmental assessments, or clean-up activities where pollution has occurred. They prospect for minerals, building material resources and drinking water. They carry out hazard and risk assessments and mapping for landslides and earthquakes. No wonder that, with this wide variety of applications, that there is a high demand for our graduates.
The work of a Geological Engineer is multifaceted. Work on a typical project begins in the office by searching for existing information about the site via maps, geological reports and airphotos. Fieldwork involves mapping, helicopter reconnaissance, and supervision of drilling contractors. Core logging and a variety of laboratory tests are carried out. The data is then compiled and interpreted in the office, usually with the use of software such as GIS, mapping and logging programs, and AutoCad. Where necessary, computer analyses of slope stability, stress and deformation, groundwater flow and other aspects is carried out. A report is than issued to the client. During project construction, the Geological Engineer visits the site routinely to ensure all the recommendations are followed. The construction phase often involves installation and interpretation of field instruments to verify the design and monitor for unexpected deviations from the design.
Senior Geological Engineers, having accumulated many years of experience on a wide variety of projects, often become highly valued specialists. Many continue practicing their profession well past the retirement age, working as specialty consultants, or expert witnesses.
Geological Engineers work for both large mining/oil/civil engineering companies and smaller specialty consulting firms, with a large proportion becoming partners or owning shares in their companies in the case of the latter.
Geological engineering assignments vary widely in scope. Some may be only a short field inspection, followed by a brief technical memo. Others may involve the effort of a team of professionals and technicians, stretching over a year or more. Many projects are situated locally, others in various parts of Canada (including the North). Many Canadian consulting firms work extensively overseas and their employees travel regularly. As a Geological Engineer, you have a possibility to choose the nature of your work. Some prefer to do analytical work in the office or laboratory, others like to spend much of their time in the field. Some concentrate on local work, others enjoy frequent international travel.
How much demand is there for Geological Engineers and how is this affected by technological changes?
With ever-increasing population growth, our society demands increased safety in the face of natural hazards, improved urban infrastructure, and improved access to water, energy and mineral resources. This presents a continual series of fresh challenges to Geological Engineering professionals, as new tunnels, dams, mines, transportation corridors and energy supplies are required. Both new and existing surface and underground mines are going deeper into areas providing extreme and diverse engineering challenges. Communities and their infrastructure are exposed to a wide variety of natural hazards as they expand into rugged mountainous terrain. Energy needs are promoting the development of more complex hydrocarbon deposits, such as oil sands and gas shales, while increased energy consumption mandates new solutions to mitigate the impact of burning fossil fuels on the environment, for example CO2 sequestration. These societal challenges will continue to drive the already high demand for Geological Engineers. In parallel, technology will continue to be developed to the benefit of Geological Engineers, allowing them to better face these enormous challenges in the future. The Geological Engineering profession is constantly evolving as technological advances are introduced into practice. At the same time, the productivity of Geological Engineers is not as dependent on computers and automation as it is for other engineering disciplines. Much of our work requires human judgment, which cannot easily be supplanted by computers.
Our students say...
“I am now a practicing Geological Engineer, working mainly on projects related to mine design for a large engineering consulting company. I am involved in planning and taking part in geotechnical field investigations, data analysis and interpretation, computer modelling, conducting site inspections, and a lot of proposal and technical report writing. In general, I found myself and other Geological Engineering grads were better prepared than other junior engineering grads in my department. Geological Engineering provided me with an understanding of the natural materials found in the earth (rock, soil, groundwater) and how to design and construct infrastructure with these."
"Geological Engineering grads are keen, driven and adventurous people, and they have great perspective on the natural world around them. I was attracted to Geological Engineering because it offered an exceptional environment to study practical, meaningful and tangible problems. I now find myself working in a profession where the projects and challenges are broad, creating the opportunity for a dynamic work environment where innovation and continued learning is needed to solve practical solutions to complex problems. On any given day, I can have up to three or four different projects on the go. These can range from investigative studies to more detailed design work. Field work is an essential component of my work. I spend upwards of 20% of my time working in the field. I believe that Geological Engineering is a profession focused on the infrastructure needed to support our society, and allows me to contribute to projects that provide significant value and ongoing beneficial impacts."
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