Employers

Approximately 5,900 mining and geological engineers are employed in the United States. About 40 percent work in the mining industry itself; the others work for government agencies, engineering consulting firms, and in academia. Mining is conducted in over 25 states, but more than 50 percent of all mining employees work in three states: Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The top states for employment of mining engineers in 2018 were (in descending order) California, Colorado, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Nevada.

Starting Out

Many mining engineers get their start through internships while in school. Ask your schools career services office for help with locating internship and entry-level job opportunities in mining companies. Beginning mining engineers generally perform routine tasks under the supervision of experienced engineers. Some mining companies provide starting engineers with in-house training. As engineers gain knowledge and experience, they receive increasingly difficult assignments along with greater independence to develop designs, solve problems, and make decisions.

Mining engineers may become directors of specific mining projects. Some head research projects. Mining engineers may go on to work as technical specialists or to supervise a team of engineers and technicians. Some eventually manage their mining companys engineering department or enter other managerial, management support, or sales positions. Others teach mining engineering at colleges and universities.

Read publications such as Mining Engineering (https://me.smenet.org) to learn more about the field.

Participate in the National Society of Professional Engineers’ mentoring program (https://www.nspe.org/resources/career-center/mentoring-resources).

Visit the following Web sites for job listings: https://careercenter.tms.org and https://miningjobs.smenet.org. 

Attend industry events such as MINExpo INTERNATIONAL (which is sponsored by the National Mining Association, https://nma.org/about-nma/meetings-events/minexpo-international) to network and to interview for jobs.