Exploration Geology (MSci)

Why study this course

Specialise in the exploration of our natural resources and gain valuable research skills on this four-year degree.

Professionally accredited

Accredited by the Geological Society, the professional body for geosciences in the UK.

Summer placement opportunities

Many students have the opportunity to complete a summer placement, working as a junior geologist and experiencing real exploration work. In the past, our students have travelled to locations like Finland, Canada, Africa, Australia and Kazakhstan.

Alumni mentorship scheme

Through our digital support scheme via LinkedIn you can be assigned to an exploration geology graduate, who will act as a mentor to you during your studies. Our mentorship scheme helps our students to gain confidence, receive support, and learn more about navigating the world of careers.

Student support tutorials

You will be in close contact with an assigned tutor with expertise in exploration geology. They will be there to help you through regular formal sessions, as well as to offer guidance on anything relating to your course or the subject matter.

Flexible course

In most cases, you may request a transfer to programmes with a professional placement year, with a year of study abroad, or to the MSci. You may also request a switch to another course in the school at the end of the first semester.

People have been using Earth’s natural resources like metals, minerals, oil and gas for centuries to build our towns and cities, power our homes, and make the vehicles, devices and tools that we depend on. New resources are increasingly hard to find, and specialist skills and technology are required to locate and use them responsibly.

On our Exploration Geology course, you will discover how Earth’s processes have created natural resources and how to explore for them to meet future demand. You will develop skills in data analysis, confident decision making and fieldwork, both above and underground. Through specialist exploration modules and practical classes, you will learn to characterise minerals and experience modern software and datasets used by professionals in the sector. All students will gain an introduction to the environmental, social and governance factors affecting the exploration industry and can choose sustainability-focused modules on topics such as hazard resilience and environmental geology as options.

Cardiff University has been training mining engineers and geologists for over 100 years, and our Exploration Geology degree is the only undergraduate degree in the UK that focuses on specialist training in resource exploration. We have a strong and established network of industry connections that allows us to offer our students summer placement opportunities, working in exploration organisations around the world.

As a student on this course, you will gain access our Alumni Mentorship Scheme, a digital support resource run via LinkedIn, where you can get career advice, support and inspiration from our graduates.

The MSci involves the opportunity, subject to academic performance, to do a fourth year of study where you work on an exciting research project with an academic from the School and their research staff. This research can be in resource exploration, or in other geological fields. You will gain advanced research and problem-solving skills that will be invaluable to employers in academia, government and industry.

Accreditations

• Geological Society

Careers and placements

Career prospects

Our constant demand for metals, construction materials and other natural resources means the knowledge and skills of an exploration geologist are in high demand. With a degree in Exploration Geology, you have a range of career options open to you and can apply for roles like an exploration geologist, a hydrogeologist, a mineralogist or an environmental consultant. The practical and business-focused aspects of the degree will give you essential employable skills that sectors like insurance, finance, education also look for.

Your advanced research skills, innovation and initiative from your postgraduate degree will be invaluable to employers in academia, government and industry. Many senior positions in exploration geology-related careers ask for a minimum of a master's degree level qualification and it is often the entry-level qualification for PhD research programmes.

Some of our past students have gone on to work for Anglo American Plc, North American Nickel, Mineco, Karelian Gold Ltd, 6 Alpha Associates, Gemfields Ltd, Terravision Exploration Ltd, Bibby Hydromap and the engineering and mining consultancies Golder Associates and Royal HaskoningDHV.

Placements

Summer placements 

Students on this course will have the opportunity to complete a placement for a minimum of five weeks in the summer term, between year two and year three. You will have the opportunity to work as a junior geologist and experience what it is like to carry out exploration in the real world, which will help you to gain an advantage when applying for a graduate career.  

We will help you to find a placement locally or with a range of international mining organisations that explore for base metals, gold, platinum and other commodities. In the past, our students have explored for nickel, platinum and diamonds in Greenland, gold in Finland, Ghana and Australia, and copper and lithium in Peru and Chile, as well as working in the UK and Ireland on projects focused on clay, zinc and gold Many alumni look back on this experience as a defining point in their career. 

Placement opportunities are based on merit. We cannot guarantee placements as the recruitment and selection process depends on the company you are applying to. However, we will support you in finding and applying for a placement. Payment for the position, travel costs and other expenses vary depending on the placement provider.  

We advise students to undertake a summer placement if they want to, but it is not a requirement. Other summer project opportunities include mapping projects in the UK and overseas, where students will have the opportunity to generate data that can go into their dissertation and feature on their CV.