Geoscience Careers A-Z

Archaeologist The study of past cultures; a scientist who studies prehistoric peoples and their past cultures by what they leave behind. Archaeologists may preform a combination of fieldwork and labwork when analyzing artifacts.

Anthropologist The study of humans; a scientist who studies humankind on a macroscopic scale. They study a combination of human behavior, culture, societies of the current age, and past human evolution.

Climatologist The study of climate; a geographer or geologist who studies the changing climate and weather over deep geological time. This study helps us understand the Earth's climatic fluxuation in the past to help us understand the present climate change.

Historical Geology The branch of geology that studies on the understanding of our Earth in regards to geological time.

Paleontologist The study of past life on Earth; a geologist who studies the fossilized remains of ancient life that once lived on Earth. This study researches the evolution of past life, the species that once thrived, and the distribution of those species on Earth.

Cultural geographer A subdiscipline of human geography; a geographer who studies different cultures around the world and how their geographical location and environment shapes their societal identity.

Children's geographies a subdicipline of human geography; The study of how the culture, society, places and spaces (school and homelife) affect children's lives in certain regions.

Economic geographer subfield of human geography; the study of economic activities and the factors surrounding them in a given region. This career might lead to political, industrial, or economic opportunities.

Feminist Geography A subdicipline of human geography; a geographer who looks into social differences around the world with the application of gender, race, class, ethnicity, age, ability, and sexuality.

Medical geography A subdicipline of human geography; Health geography is the application of geographical information, perspectives, and methods to the study of health, disease, and health care.

Music geography the geographical study of music; a geographer who studies how the landscape and geographical space effects the production of music and how societal factors consume it.

Urban geographer a subdicipline of human geography; a geographer who studies the effects of cities and their aspects. This could include their political and institutions, environment and resources, the system of cities.

Biogeographer The study of where living things live; a geographer who studies the geographical distribution of flora and fauna across a geographical space and time.

Environmental Geographer The study of environmental impact; a geographer who studies the environmental impacts and changes on our Earth in a global scale. This career tackles climate change factors and how humans interact with the environment.

Environmental Geologist a geologist who pairs their knowledge of Earth’s natural processes to resolving issues within the world around us. This could be climatic factors, human involvement, habitat loss, etc.

Geobiologist The study of geology with an emphasis in biology; a geologist who studies the relationship between the natural processes of the Earth and the biological organisms that live on it.

Hydrogeologist The study of groundwater geology; A geologist who studies the groundwater, and the ability for it to move through porous rocks. This study researches large underground caverns filled with fresh water, known as aquifers.

Hydrologist The study of water; A geoscioentist who studies the understanding of water movement and composition of fresh or salt water.

Speleologist/ Karst Geologist The study of caves; A geologist who studies the unique formation and system of caves through understanding its rock composition, also known as karst.

Meteorologist The study of weather and climate; a geoscientist who studies current weather and climatic patterns, projecting plausible outcomes of said forecast.

Oceanographer the study of the ocean; a geoscientist who studies a variety of ocean aspects, including marine life, ocean currents, marine ecosystems, movement of sediment, and seafloor geology.

Astrogeologist The study of space; a geologist who studies the components of the solid bodies of the solar system such as the planets, comets, asteroids, and moons. Astrogeologists help us understand our Earth's creation by researching the neighboring planets.

Crystallographer The study of structures within minerals; a scientist who studies the interconnected crystal lattices at the atomic level to better understand atomic structure. This study combines the undestanding of biology, chemistry, physics, and geology.

Exploration Geologist A geologist who surveys and discovers new mineral or rock deposits to obtain funded by companies.

Geochemist The study of geology with an emphasis in chemistry; a geologist who studies the chemical principles and understandings in geological situations to better understand Earth's natural systems.

Geodesy The mathematical understanding of Earth's shape and area in space, along with gravity.

Geoengineer The study of geology with an engineering emphasis, also known as climate engineering; a geologist or engineer who makes large scale changes to our Earth's environment in hopes to counteract climatic forces and changes, such as global warming.

Geomorphologist A geoscientist that relates the aspects of physics, chemistry, biology, and geology to the Earth’s ever-changing naturals processes. Geomorphologists study how the surface of the Earth grows and changes in regards to rivers, mountains, icebergs, climate, etc. over a given amount of time.

Geophysicist The study of geology with an emphasis in physics; a geologist who applies the principles of physics, physical processes and physcial properties, to solve problems on our Earth and our Earth in space.

Glaciologist The study of glaciers, related to geomorphology; a geologist or geographer who studies the movement and properties of glaciers, along with snow and ice.

Martian Geologist The geological study of Mars; a geologist who studies the unique geological landscape, sediment, structure, or past environment of Mars with an emphasis of similar processes to that of Earth.

Mineralogist The study of mineral properties; a geologist who studies minerals, such as their chemistry, physical properties, internal structure, and how they form.

Pedologist A subdicipline of soil science; a geographer who studies the change in soil with an environmental framework. They focus on the evolution and formation of soils.

Petroleum Geologist The study of petroleum within the Earth; a geologist who identifies oil deposits for the production and use of fossil fuels.

Petrologist The study of rock conditions within the Earth; a geoscientist who studies the rock cycle within the Earth. They assess sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks through their changing cycles.

Sedimentology and Stratigraphy The study of the origin and transportation of rocks, and how those rocks deposit and build up.

Seismologist the study of earthquakes; a geologist who studies the phenomena of earthquakes and their seismic waves.

Structural Geologist the study of rock deformation; a geologist who researches the three dimensional view of rocks, their composition, and tectonic history.

Volcanologist A geologist who studies volcanos, lava, and magmas that churn within the earth. This exciting career seeks to understand our Earth’s formation of volcanos, its contents, relation to plate motion and tectonics.