A career in one of the biggest industries in the world

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1 S t u d y f o r a C a r e e r i n M i n i n g a t U W A M o r e c a r e e r s s t a r t h e r e > >

2 A career in one of the biggest industries in the world A mining degree from The University of Western Australia will put you among a group of highly sought-after professionals in one of the biggest industries in the world. UWA degrees are recognised and respected internationally, and mining industry graduates from UWA enjoy excellent career prospects. The Industry The mining industry is the backbone of our modern way of life. We all rely on its products such as metals, coal, mineral sands, even talcum powder! The mining industry is Australia s largest single exporter - contributing over 1 /3 of the nation s total. Australia s mining industry is also large on a world-scale, with Australia ranking in the top three countries for supply of commodities such as gold, iron ore, lead, diamonds, nickel, mineral sands, alumina and zinc. To remain as one of the world leaders in mining technology, the Australian industry is always looking at ways to mine smarter by applying cutting-edge innovations and technologies. By mining smarter we not only save money, but also our environment! Mining industry professional engineers need the ability to: Use a broad range of skills in different types of engineering Assess and implement new technologies Take responsibility for multi-million-dollar decisions Work outdoors, as well as in an office

3 The course UWA offers a Bachelor of Engineering (BE) honours course to put you right at the centre of the mining industry - Mining Systems. This course is designed to produce skilled engineers, with an emphasis on the analysis, design and optimisation of complete mining operations (or systems) - from definition and extraction of the ore right through to delivery of the final product to the customer. BE Mining Systems The course includes geology, engineering design and project management, as well as specific mining topics such as surface mining, underground mining, rock mechanics and mine design. The course has been officially recognised by the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy ( Combined degrees Many students at UWA choose to add value to their engineering degree by combining it with a second degree - often a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) or Bachelor of Science (BSc). Particularly employable combinations are BE Mining Systems with BCom or BSc(Geology). Mining Engineering Mining Engineering is all about extracting the ore from the ground. This includes analysing and designing: The mining method that is the best for a specific deposit - underground or surface, large or small, etc. The best equipment to efficiently perform the chosen mining method and cope with unexpected variations in the rock being extracted. The most appropriate blasting technique Integral to any design in the mining industry is selection of the most environmentally responsible way of treating and/or recycling the waste products, and the ability to produce minimal environmental impact.

4 Why study at UWA for this profession? The University of Western Australia is a world-class university with a history and reputation to match. UWA s teaching and research staff are internationally recognised for their high quality. As a result, UWA attracts the best students from Western Australia and overseas. Mining students particularly benefit from being located in Perth - one of the world s mining centres - with lectures by industry experts from world-leading consultants and companies. Graduates from UWA are highly educated and highly employable, and are sought after by industry - in Australia and internationally. UWA graduates entering the mining industry are among the highest paid of all university graduates. What could be my career path after UWA? UWA graduates entering the mining industry can follow a career in many fields, and in many countries. These include (but are not limited to) working: As technical specialists (e.g. rock mechanics, simulation, ventilation) With service companies (e.g. supplying technical solutions for explosives, specialist software, trucks) As consultants based in Perth, elsewhere in Australia, or overseas In mine management and production In banking, finance or stock broking In research and development In the government sector

5 Past Graduates Matthew Holcz, BE (Mining Systems) / BCom, 2001: Studying at UWA allowed me to combine units in finance, management, politics and law with my BE. After completing vacation work in Western Australia and New South Wales, I graduated in Currently I am working in a team in Perth on the design of a potential $1 billion underground mining project. Even in my brief involvement in the mining industry, I ve had many broad experiences including: conducting geological surveys 1 km underground climbing an 80 m shovel boom for maintenance purposes 4-wheel driving in torrential rain to monitor water levels for environmental purposes handling an 18 kg boa constrictor as part of remote site training driving in a 240 tonne capacity truck So far I have enjoyed both the creative and practical aspects of mining engineering and have benefited from exposure to a number of disciplines including geology, metallurgy and environmental engineering. The lifestyle offers considerable variety, whether it be working in an office in a major city, exploring remote locations for mineral deposits, or detonating explosives thousand of metres underground. In the future, I am looking forward to taking advantage of the numerous opportunities to work overseas. Catherine Callow, BE (Mining Systems) / BCom, 2004: I m working as a Mine Engineer at BHP Billiton Iron Ore s Yandi Operations, so far focusing mainly on planning and scheduling, but I have only been here a couple of months. Eventually I ll be learning some of the contract management stuff, as well as covering some of the day-to-day engineering functions. For me one of the great benefits of learning Mining at UWA was the fact that many of the lecturers are guys who are currently working in industry as consultants which means they not only have a wide range of experiences to teach from, but up-to-the-minute knowledge of the technology being used in mining today. Since leaving uni, I have worked for Barrick Gold of Australia at Plutonic Gold Mine and now here. At Plutonic I rotated through a few things, including Continuous Improvement, ventilation and underground production. Having a graduate job like that, which exposes you to a lot of different aspects of operations, is really important, since the more you understand about others jobs, the better an engineer you will be. Working fly-in/fly-out is challenging, but it s not the kind of work environment you d be in if you weren t up for a challenge anyway. You definitely have to enjoy getting a bit dirty, working long hours and balancing production pressures with your responsibility to ensure things are done safely. That makes it sound like just plain hard work, but the on the up side, not many people get paid good money for playing with oversized Tonka toys and blowing stuff up. You re certainly never bored in mining engineering, because there are so many different things to do and no day is ever the same as another. Not only that, but every day you can see the value that you add to the operation, through the tonnes produced and the ever-increasing size of that hole in the ground! Being at UWA let s you enjoy all the benefits of being in the city and getting a world-standard education while finishing a degree that is going to get you out there into a really practical job and the beginning of your career. Enjoy it, plan for the future, but don t freak out about it and remember that the learning is only just beginning.

6 Want to know more? For more information and the latest on job opportunities, salaries, scholarships etc., please visit our web site or contact us. Telephone: info@mining.uwa.edu.au CRICOS Provider Code: 00126G Information in this publication was correct at February 2006 but is subject to change at any time.