Geology Exploration interview prep.

Behavioural questions to expect

1. Walk me through your background + geology experience.
2. Tell me about an exploration or resource project you've worked on.
3. Why mining geology vs academic geology or oil + gas?
4. Why this commodity + deposit type - gold / copper / nickel / lithium / iron ore?
5. Why the firm?
6. What's your read on our project portfolio + recent drilling results?
7. Tell me what you understand about our latest resource + reserve update.
8. Walk me through how you'd take a greenfield target to a maiden drilling program.

Technical concepts to master

• Exploration + targeting workflow

  Deposit model + mineral system · Geochemistry - surface + downhole · Geophysics - airborne + ground · Structural geology + mapping · Remote sensing + GIS

• Drilling + sampling + QA/QC

  Drilling methods - RC vs DD vs sonic · Core logging + sampling · QA/QC routine - CRMs + blanks + duplicates · Lab + assay methods · Twin hole + check assay

• Mineral Resource Estimation (MRE)

  Domaining + geological model · Statistics + compositing + top-cuts · Variography + estimation method · Classification - Inferred / Indicated / Measured · Validation + reconciliation

• Reporting codes + Competent / Qualified Person duty

  Competent Person (CP) / Qualified Person (QP) · Modifying factors · Materiality + disclosure · Technical report structure · Independence + peer review

Practical drills

• You inherit a greenfield porphyry Cu-Au target with regional mag + IP + reconnaissance soils completed. Walk through how you'd take it to a 5,000 m maiden drill program.
• A CRM in your latest assay batch returns 15% below expected mean. Walk through your QA/QC response + implication for the next resource update.
• You have 25,000 m of drilling on a vein-hosted orogenic Au prospect. Walk through how you'd build a maiden Inferred resource - then size which fraction could realistically be Indicated.

Smart-question anchors

• Project pipeline - greenfield vs near-mine vs resource-definition vs operating mine balance
• Commodity strategy + deposit-type focus - precious vs base vs battery metals
• Reporting-code regime - JORC vs NI 43-101 vs SK-1300 jurisdictions + recent technical reports
• Drilling cadence + lab partnerships - meters per year, RC vs DD mix, QA/QC protocols
• ESG + social licence - indigenous + landholder engagement, environmental baseline

Sourced from

JORC Code 2012 (Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves) · CIM (Canadian Institute of Mining) Definition Standards + NI 43-101 · SEC SK-1300 Mineral Disclosure Rule (Regulation S-K Subpart 1300) · CRIRSCO International Reporting Template · AusIMM Mineral Resource Estimation + Monograph 23 / Annual Mining Geology Conferences · Society of Economic Geologists (SEG) deposit-model literature + Reviews in Economic Geology