Odds ‘n’ Sods Part I: Finding a job as a geologist in the 1980s
Ralph Rushton (second from left in orange) on a field trip to Normandy, France, in his final year at university before commencing his job search. Credit: Ralph Rushton.
We all have our firsts in life; the stories of those defining moments that changed things forever. First beer, first kiss, first car. How about your first job? Here’s how I an averagely intelligent 21-year-old middle class boy from southeast England landed my first career move down the deep level mines in South Africa. I committed to a three-year stint, embracing an unknown world of diamond drilling, stope mapping, shaft sinking and reserve calculating.