For instance, AGI projected that master's grads beginning work in the domestic oil and gas industries in 1990 would be paid a median of $37,250, a figure that is 11 percent higher than the median salary for 1989 grads. Similarly, the median starting salaries for geologists starting work in academia in 1990 were projected to be 10.7 percent higher than the salaries for those who began academic jobs in 1989; the association forecasted that new hires holding a master's degree, but without experience, would earn a median of $22,727 in 1990 (see chart).
In late 1989, AGI, a federation of member groups representing approximately 75,000 people, mailed 310 surveys seeking 1990 hiring plans and salary data from six categories of major geoscientific employers: oil and gas companies, mining companies, consulting firms, federal and state agencies, research institutions and national labs, and academic institutions. The overall response rate was 52.9 percent. ...
