Graham

Name Graham

Graduated June 1988                          Degree                         Earth Science

Job Title :  Project Leader

Present Location:   Geoscience Australia, Canberra, ACT, AUSTRALIA.

At the present time (June 2007) I work in the Australian geological survey.  I lead a project on natural hydrocarbon seepage.  I do a variety of things in this role.  I set the direction of the research and manage staff and project goals.  I work on geochemical data looking at the chemistry of oil and gas and link this with the geology in our study areas.  This requires me to undertake marine sea-bed surveys on different boats and work in the office and lab.  

The best thing about my job is the variety of work that I have been able to do.  I have travelled to many countries and seen places I would never have seen without this job.  I have worked on mineral deposits, petroleum geochemistry, early life, modern environmental studies in estuaries and marine geology.  I have been able to do all of this because I work in a government research organisation where there are lots of different projects.

Originally I went to University to do Geology or Chemistry.  I took both subjects for two years but decided I preferred geology and finished with a geology degree. As, I knew a geology degree would allow me to travel both for fieldwork and employment.  

I was still interested in Chemistry, so I decided to do a PhD at Bristol University in Organic Geochemistry.  This allowed me to combine my interests in sedimentology, palaeo-environments and organic chemistry.   During the PhD I worked in Europe and the USA and decided that I wanted to work abroad for a while.  When I graduated I got a research job working on the Precambrian-Cambrian boundary, a period when animal life started to flourish.  I was able to do a lot of travel and spent long periods in Australia.   After 3 years I moved to Australia and have worked in government research organisations for the last 12 years.

The need for oil and gas, plus mineral resources, means that there are a lot of jobs for geologists in Australia and around the world.  As these resources are used the need for skilled geologists is increasing, as it is becoming harder to find these resources.  Coupled with this, climate and environmental changes and human impact also need geologists to work on understanding the impact and assessing risks of these changes.  All of this means that geologists are needed by both government and industry in increasing numbers.

LINKS –  http://www.ga.gov.au/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_geochemistry

http://uos.anu.edu.au/2006.html (a blog from a Geosciences research cruise off north-east Australia in 2006)