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Geoscientist

Geoscientist profiles score highest on Analyzing and Exploring. This page covers what the work involves, what the trait profile looks like, what it pays, and where the fit tends to break.

Score your fit for this role See the trait profile

Median pay: $101,920per year, U.S. BLS 2025
Entry education: Graduate or professional degreetypical for the occupation

SOURCE · O*NET 19-2042.00 and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Figures are national and vary widely by state and setting.

What the work involves

Study the composition, structure, and other physical aspects of the Earth. May use geological, physics, and mathematics knowledge in exploration for oil, gas, minerals, or underground water; or in waste disposal, land reclamation, or other environmental problems. May study the Earth's internal composition, atmospheres, and oceans, and its magnetic, electrical, and gravitational forces. Includes mineralogists, paleontologists, stratigraphers, geodesists, and seismologists.

Skills rated most important

Reading Comprehension78

Critical Thinking75

Science75

Speaking75

Active Listening72

Work context

Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams88

Indoors, Environmentally Controlled74

Contact With Others69

Spend Time Sitting64

Spend Time Standing39

Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled35

Spend Time Walking or Running27

Spend Time Kneeling, Crouching, Stooping, or Crawling15

Spend Time Bending or Twisting Your Body13

Spend Time Keeping or Regaining Balance12

Spend Time Climbing Ladders, Scaffolds, or Poles11

O*NET importance and frequency ratings, 0–100.

The trait profile

Where Geoscientist profiles sit on the eleven Haliscope traits, derived from O*NET’s published interest and work-style data.

Analyzing98

Exploring82

Operating76

Organizing53

Persevering52

Law-Abiding41

Safety-Seeking40

Creating30

Helping22

Harmonizing17

Influencing13

Who it fits, and who it doesn’t

Strong signals

High Exploring. Measures your openness to new experiences and curiosity about the unknown. High scorers seek novelty, enjoy experimentation, and value the journey itself.
High Organizing. Measures your preference for structure, detail, and systematic processes. High scorers excel at creating order, optimizing workflows, and maintaining precision.
High Persevering. Measures your persistence and resilience in the face of challenges. High scorers push through obstacles, maintain long-term focus, and value grit as both means and end.
High Law-Abiding. Measures your commitment to ethics, rules, and fairness. High scorers value honesty, follow procedures, and prefer environments with clear moral guidelines.
High Creating. Measures your inclination toward original thinking and artistic expression. High scorers generate innovative ideas and find rigid structure limiting.
Moderate Safety-Seeking. Measures your preference for stability and predictability. High scorers value security, prefer familiar environments, and carefully weigh risks before acting.
Low Operating. Measures your preference for hands-on, practical work. High scorers thrive in action-oriented roles with tangible outputs and prefer doing over theorizing.
Low Influencing. Measures your drive to lead, persuade, and shape outcomes. High scorers are confident communicators who naturally take charge and direct others.

Friction points

Low Exploring. Measures your openness to new experiences and curiosity about the unknown. High scorers seek novelty, enjoy experimentation, and value the journey itself.
Low Organizing. Measures your preference for structure, detail, and systematic processes. High scorers excel at creating order, optimizing workflows, and maintaining precision.
Low Persevering. Measures your persistence and resilience in the face of challenges. High scorers push through obstacles, maintain long-term focus, and value grit as both means and end.
Low Law-Abiding. Measures your commitment to ethics, rules, and fairness. High scorers value honesty, follow procedures, and prefer environments with clear moral guidelines.
Low Creating. Measures your inclination toward original thinking and artistic expression. High scorers generate innovative ideas and find rigid structure limiting.

These are what the occupation’s profile says, not a hiring criterion. Haliscope is not validated for hiring or screening, and none of these is disqualifying — they are where a fit most often breaks.

Getting in

Entry education: Graduate or professional degree.

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

O*NET Job Zone descriptions, U.S. Department of Labor.

Exposure to AI

How much of this work AI can already do, and how much AI tools help the people doing it, is scored task by task in the AI Risk Index.

Will AI replace Geoscientist?

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