Issue link: http://resourceworld.uberflip.com/i/612354
42 www.resourceworld.com d e c e m b e r / j a n u a r y 2 0 1 6 mINING Students fieldtrip to Copper Mountain Mine near Princeton in Southwest BC, in August with the 2015 Cohort of Masters of Engineering Students in Mining Engineering. Photo courtesy of University of British Columbia's Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering. for Those Who are inTeresTed in a working in the mining sector there are a variety of different avenues to take towards acquiring the skills and expertise neces- sary to obtain a career in a field that offers a myriad of employment opportunities. Some high schools are giving youth the opportunity to explore careers in the resource industry before they gradu- ate. Established in 1991, MineralsED is a teacher-industry partnership program in British Columbia, Canada that is dedicated to "encouraging and supporting Earth science, mineral resources and mining edu- cation in school". The programs' goals are to, "foster a well-informed public through school education based on accurate and balanced information, and to stimulate young peoples' interest in minerals indus- try careers". Working with high school career facilitators, MineralsED finds place- ments within the BC minerals industry for students enrolled in a program. Obviously, geologists, engineers and the like require a depth of knowledge and expertise obtained at institutes such as the University of British Columbia's Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering or the Colorado School of Mines where one can obtain a degree in mining engineer- ing. Exposing high school students to the wide variety of mining jobs available in the resource industry better enables youth to plan and choose from a variety of post secondary educations choices. Colleges also offer training for those interested in working toward gaining specific skills in specialized areas. The pro- grams offered at colleges range widely in duration and cost, but are generally more hands-on and are usually more affordable than university degrees. How to become a Miner by Kathrine Moore There was a time, when, if you wanted a job as a miner, you would just show up at a mine. If the mine needed workers, and you were deemed fit, you were hired. Once hired, a miner could worked towards a higher skilled and higher paid job through on the job training. Today, there are fewer entry level jobs available and a lot more people competing for them. As in most indus- tries, advances in science and technology have translated into equipment and processes becoming more and more complex and specialized.