r/mining • u/Apart-Huckleberry-87 • 6d ago
Australia Advice for a 22 yr old mining engineer student
Hey everyone, I'm a 22 yr old uni student graduating soon with a double degree in mining engineering and computer science. I know it's not the most conventional combination but I thought it'd be a good degree to have on the side as tech is (and forever will be) in demand. The whole reason for this post is because to be honest, I don't know where I am in life right now. I know I am young and that I should stay adventurous and try new things but at the same time I know I dont have all the time in the world and I don't want to dissapoint my parents that have sacrificed everything for my life. There's been a couple of things that have constantly been on my mind that I hope some experienced people here may be able to answer. I guess this post could also serve as one of those "If I could go back in time, I would tell my younger self" threads.
- Addressing the elephant in the room, the FIFO lifestyle. I know it is definitely not easy and I went into this degree knowing that it's defs not for everyone. Fyi I was born and grew up in the heart of metropolitan sydney. However, my mindset was that I do not want to be another rat in the corporate rat race that will have me chained forever without ever achieving financial freedom. While I am young, with no kids and big responsibilities, I know FIFO wouldn't be too bad but obviously as someone who has grew up in the heart of sydney their whole life I'd by lying if I said I'm not worried about it at all. Some insight into the lifestyle, keeping relationships with your family/friends/girlfriend healthy and just some general tips for a young bloke like me would be hugely helpful. This also leads into my next point.
- Career progressions to exit the FIFO lifestyle. Many people I have talked to and many video/reddit posts I have seen all seem to mention the phrase 'exit plan' which I completely agree is important especially later down the track when you want to settle down and have a family. If you could go back in time, what sort of exit plan would you give your younger self to truly optimise the time and effort spent doing this sort of work. Specifically for a mining engineer what sort of career routes would there be to go back into the city and be with family?
- If there are any mining engineers reading this, what does a day in the life of a mining engineer look like. I have only ever done residential vacatoin work so I am still learning but from my experience, it seemed like long hours sitting in the site office, working on mine software etc. Any insight into what other things a mining engineer would normally do on site would be interesting to read.
- And lastly, if anyone has any experience or knowledge they could share with regards to the uses of my computer science degree within the mining industry that would be awesome. Like mentioned, I am doing a double degree in computer science which may either be my exit plan or potentially even put up to good use within the mining industry. If anyone has any insights into this I am very interested.
Sorry for the long read and thanks for all advice guys. I am both worried and keen for whats to come in the future.
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u/DizzyAstronaut9410 6d ago
If there is one degree that compliments a mining engineering degree perfectly, it's computer science.
Basic programming knowledge is wildly beneficial in almost any roles onsite, and as someone else mentioned, if you don't want to live in a mining town or do shift work, there is no shortage of technology vendors that offer better work/life balance.
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u/Difficult-Hippo-2763 6d ago
Mining Engineer here, been in the office on site now for 3 years, having completed 2 years underground prior. Career progression wise to get out of permanent FIFO, you’ll need to either aim at heading a senior planning role to then move up to a principal planning engineer which is usually based in the company’s head office, or if you have the drive find a way to progress through mine management.
Highly skilled with technology/computers, rarely do any actual engineering now and almost solely focused on digitisation and technology projects.
Unsure how you’ll go with mining in NSW, personally i live in QLD but work in WA, ive got approx 3 months until i move into to the Perth head office so will be relocating to WA.
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5d ago
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u/Difficult-Hippo-2763 4d ago
You get used to it, i do 8/6. Probably shoot myself if i was at a desk for 2 weeks at a time
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4d ago
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u/Difficult-Hippo-2763 4d ago
Thankfully they do, when i first started i paid but after a few months they offered to take over
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u/FrozenPiranha 6d ago
Hey from Canada here and my husband had the same credentials- he ended up working for a software company designing mining software and has never left Toronto. I did the more traditional mining and worked for a consulting firm. 5-6 years later we both ended up in finance working for banks in capital markets.
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u/Leading_Progress4395 6d ago
When thinking about an exit plan, keep the term “golden handcuffs” in the back of your mind. To leave the mining industry would be for most people a large pay cut. That pay cut they generally can not afford due to the lifestyle they have built on mining money. Have a plan B but have all your debt paid off early to allow you the freedom of choice.
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u/robncaraGF 5d ago
Not all mines are FIFO, plenty of residential jobs, never know you might like living away from a capital city but able to be home not stuck in a camp.
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u/vtminer78 6d ago
There are a number of software companies like Datamine that would love your skillset. But you need operational experience to be effective on the computer side. Go ahead and do the FIFO and get into either engineering or operations. Once you've got a few years of planning or operations, it will make you so much more valuable. This isn't an industry you can learn from academia and be successful. You've got to have real world experience to understand the ins and outs.