Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
Also called: Coal Mine Inspector, Engineer, Exploration Engineer, Field Engineer, Geological Engineer, Geophysical Engineer, Geotechnical Engineer, Geotechnical Project Engineer
Conduct subsurface surveys to identify the characteristics of potential land or mining development sites.
What Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers do
Typical tasks
- Prepare technical reports for use by mining, engineering, and management personnel.
- Inspect mining areas for unsafe structures, equipment, and working conditions.
- Select or develop mineral location, extraction, and production methods, based on factors such as safety, cost, and deposit characteristics.
- Select locations and plan underground or surface mining operations, specifying processes, labor usage, and equipment that will result in safe, economical, and environmentally sound extraction of minerals and ores.
- Prepare schedules, reports, and estimates of the costs involved in developing and operating mines.
- Monitor mine production rates to assess operational effectiveness.
- Supervise, train, and evaluate technicians, technologists, survey personnel, engineers, scientists or other mine personnel.
- Examine maps, deposits, drilling locations, or mines to determine the location, size, accessibility, contents, value, and potential profitability of mineral, oil, and gas deposits.
- Design, implement, and monitor the development of mines, facilities, systems, or equipment.
- Test air to detect toxic gases and recommend measures to remove them, such as installation of ventilation shafts.
- Implement and coordinate mine safety programs, including the design and maintenance of protective and rescue equipment and safety devices.
- Devise solutions to problems of land reclamation and water and air pollution, such as methods of storing excavated soil and returning exhausted mine sites to natural states.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers salary
The median annual wage for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers is $106,220 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $67,490 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $169,990. The mean annual wage is $115,410.
The mean hourly wage of $55.00 is 7.6× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $106,220 → in 3 years $114,000 → in 5 years $119,500 → in 10 years $134,500 (10-year range $115,700–$156,200). The model assumes pay growth of +2.4% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
Skills, education and requirements for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 4 — considerable preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★★☆ Demanding (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.