💡 Why it matters: Carrying everything from Earth is very expensive, so future missions may use water and minerals found in space. Geologists who understand rocks and ice will help decide where to look and what is worth using.
🌍 Around the world
- United States: Jobs for geoscientists are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, faster than average (US Bureau of Labor Statistics).
A job of the future expected 2040s
Space agencies want water and minerals found on the Moon and asteroids to support long missions. If this succeeds, geologists will be needed to find, test and plan the use of those resources.
This is an informed prediction, not a promise. The skills below are useful whichever way the future goes.
💰 What it can pay
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Starting out
- ₦3M – ₦8M
- Mid-career
- ₦8M – ₦20M
- Senior
- ₦20M – ₦45M
≈ ₦667k – ₦1.7M a month mid-career. Indicative estimate by Incusim.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Closest UK job: Geoscientist. Typical starter to experienced salary. National Careers Service, 2026
🇺🇸 United States
Closest US category: Geoscientists. Median pay; low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
🇨🇦 Canada
Closest Job Bank occupation: Geoscientists and oceanographers. Hourly wage median x 2,080 hours; low and high were not captured. Job Bank (Government of Canada), 2022-2023
Yearly pay before tax. UK, US and Canada figures come from the official sources named on each card. Nigeria has no official salary survey, so those are our indicative estimates. Real pay depends on the employer, the place, your skills and experience.
🛠️ What you actually do
- Study images and samples from the Moon and asteroids
- Find where water ice and useful minerals might be
- Help plan robot missions that dig and test samples
- Work with engineers on drilling and mining tools
- Write rules for using space resources responsibly
⚡ Skills you'll need
- Scientific thinking
- Data analysis
- Curiosity
- Fieldwork
- Teamwork
Get ready at school
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Work in mining or oil and gas exploration first, then move into space science
- Geology degree followed by a master's in planetary science abroad
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Start in mining, oil and gas or environmental consulting, then move into space science
- Look for graduate schemes with space agencies or universities
🇺🇸 United States
- Summer field camps and research internships
- Work in mining or energy exploration first, then move into space science
🇨🇦 Canada
- Summer field courses and co-op work terms
- Work in mining or energy exploration first, then move into space science
🗺️ Your path to this career
- 1Love rocks, chemistry and physics
- 2Study geology or geophysics at university
- 3Join field trips and learn mapping and sample testing
- 4Take a planetary science postgraduate programme
- 5Work with a space agency or private space company on resource missions
⏰ A day in the life
You examine photos of an asteroid taken by a probe and mark spots that may contain water-rich rock. You chat with an engineer about a drill that could collect a sample, and compare your guesses with test rocks in the lab.