Real Life of a Mining Engineer

 

Real Life of a Mining Engineer

The working and academic lives of a mining and geological engineer is one of constant problem solving, exploration, attention to detail and communication. As one of, if not the primary coordinator for digging and mining operations, the engineer is charged with the planning, logistics, safety assurance and contingency/emergency management of their projects. In addition to the technical engineering skills required for the surveying, planning, digging and extraction or study of materials, the project engineers are quite often also required to maintain strong lines of communication with the crews of professional miners or students they are working with. As such, and especially in respect to safety or emergency management, the numbers of women entering the fields has been steadily increasing.

Former University of Arizona mining student and captain of the women’s mine rescue team, Allison Hagerman was interviewed by the school news site UANews.org in 2013, during one of its mining and geological engineering drilling competitions at the school’s San Xavier underground mine. Speaking about her experiences, she highlighted that safety in the field was not only paramount, but also presented a specialization. One which, following her graduation in May of 2013, inspired her to take the reigns as the captain of the women’s rescue team at the San Xavier Mining Laboratory. While talking to UANews about her studies of the mining and geological sciences, Hagerman eagerly pointed out that along with a 100% program graduation rate, her skills and studies allowed her to transition directly out of school into a stable, high paying position in the private sector.

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