Geological engineers play an important role in identifying and mitigating man-made and natural hazards that pose a threat to civil structures, infrastructure, or people. Their work includes performing site investigations for planned tunnels, dams, or roads; locating sites and designing facilities for nuclear waste disposal; developing and restoring groundwater resources; stabilizing rock and soil slopes for dams, highways, and property development; exploring and harvesting mineral and energy resources; and studying geologic hazards such as volcanoes, landslides, and earthquakes.
Specialty areas in geological engineering include the following:
- Soil mechanics
- Rock mechanics
- Geotechnics
- Groundwater engineering
- Hydrogeology
- Civil design
- Hazard investigation and planning
- Natural resources
The daily duties of geoscientists, such as geological engineers, could include investigating natural phenomena and collecting data on location, interpreting the results in a lab, and writing reports.
Field studies bring geoscientists to diverse landscapes around the globe—from volcanoes to oceans to oil fields. Geoscientists must have the ability to develop a picture of a field site based on limited data; therefore, sound critical-thinking skills are advantageous in this discipline. Due to the nature of their work, these professionals must adapt to a variety of situations and working conditions.
Our graduates have found work in the following areas:
- Groundwater and surface water monitoring and cleaning
- Natural-hazards mitigation
- Satellite remote sensing of environmental processes
- GIS mapping of environmental data
- Site investigations of underground hazards
- Slope failure investigations
- Oil or gas exploration and recovery
- Subsurface visualization
- Natural and Induced Seismicity Evaluation
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