Earth Drillers

Operate a variety of drills such as rotary, churn, and pneumatic to tap subsurface water and salt deposits, to remove core samples during mineral exploration or soil testing, and to facilitate the use of explosives in mining or construction. Includes horizontal and earth boring machine operators.

On the job, you would:

Operate controls to stabilize machines and to position and align drills.
Start, stop, and control drilling speed of machines and insertion of casings into holes.
Regulate air pressure, rotary speed, and downward pressure, according to the type of rock or concrete being drilled.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		84%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		84%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		75%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		72%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		70%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		69%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		68%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		68%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
		68%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		66%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
		65%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		65%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		63%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		62%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		58%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		53%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		100%	Realistic - Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services.
		67%	Investigative - Work involves studying and researching non-living objects, living organisms, disease or other forms of impairment, or human behavior. Investigative occupations are often associated with physical, life, medical, or social sciences, and can be found in the fields of humanities, mathematics/statistics, information technology, or health care service.
		56%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		67%	Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		75%	Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
		72%	Reaction Time - The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
		72%	Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
		72%	Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
		69%	Manual Dexterity - The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
		66%	Depth Perception - The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
		63%	Rate Control - The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
		63%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		60%	Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
		56%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		56%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		56%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		56%	Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
		56%	Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
		56%	Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
		56%	Hearing Sensitivity - The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
		53%	Visual Color Discrimination - The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
		53%	Finger Dexterity - The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
		53%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		57%	Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
		57%	Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Operate drilling equipment.

Measure work site dimensions.

Operate drilling equipment.

Select construction equipment.

Operate drilling equipment.

Select construction equipment.

Install drilling equipment.

Drill holes in earth or rock.

Remove debris or vegetation from work sites.

Drive trucks or truck-mounted equipment.

Maintain drilling equipment.

Drive trucks or truck-mounted equipment.

Record operational or environmental data.

Operate cranes, hoists, or other moving or lifting equipment.

Assemble products or production equipment.

Position construction or extraction equipment.

Pour materials into or on designated areas.

Operate pumps or compressors.

Operate drilling equipment.

Inspect equipment or tools to be used in construction or excavation.

Record operational or environmental data.

Collect geological samples.

Operate drilling equipment.

Position construction or extraction equipment.

Design energy production or management equipment or systems.

Decontaminate equipment or sites to remove hazardous or toxic substances.

Clean equipment or facilities.

Prepare excavation or extraction sites for commissioning or decommissioning.

Review blueprints or specifications to determine work requirements.

Determine appropriate locations for operations or installations.

Monitor extraction operations.

Signal equipment operators to indicate proper equipment positioning.

Collect geological samples.

Fabricate parts or components.

Develop equipment or component configurations.

Monitor extraction operations.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		94%	Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets - How much does this job require wearing common protective or safety equipment such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets?
		92%	Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls - How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?
		88%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		88%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		85%	Exposed to Hazardous Equipment - How often does this job require exposure to hazardous equipment?
		84%	Sounds, Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable - How often does this job require working exposed to sounds and noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable?
		84%	Outdoors, Exposed to Weather - How often does this job require working outdoors, exposed to all weather conditions?
		81%	Exposed to Contaminants - How often does this job require working exposed to contaminants (such as pollutants, gases, dust or odors)?
		80%	Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions - How much does this job require making repetitive motions?
		78%	Spend Time Standing - How much does this job require standing?
		77%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		76%	Exposed to Whole Body Vibration - How often does this job require exposure to whole body vibration (e.g., operate a jackhammer)?
		75%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		74%	Consequence of Error - How serious would the result usually be if the worker made a mistake that was not readily correctable?
		71%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		69%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		68%	In an Open Vehicle or Equipment - How often does this job require working in an open vehicle or equipment (e.g., tractor)?
		68%	Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - How much responsibility is there for the health and safety of others in this job?
		66%	Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings - How often does this job require exposure to minor burns, cuts, bites, or stings?
		66%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		65%	Very Hot or Cold Temperatures - How often does this job require working in very hot (above 90 F degrees) or very cold (below 32 F degrees) temperatures?
		65%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		63%	Extremely Bright or Inadequate Lighting - How often does this job require working in extremely bright or inadequate lighting conditions?
		59%	Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers?
		59%	Exposed to Hazardous Conditions - How often does this job require exposure to hazardous conditions?
		59%	In an Enclosed Vehicle or Equipment - How often does this job require working in a closed vehicle or equipment (e.g., car)?
		56%	Cramped Work Space, Awkward Positions - How often does this job require working in cramped work spaces that requires getting into awkward positions?
		56%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		56%	Spend Time Bending or Twisting the Body - How much does this job require bending or twisting your body?
		76%	Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		90%	Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials - Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
		88%	Controlling Machines and Processes - Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
		86%	Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment - Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
		80%	Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment - Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
		78%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		74%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		72%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		72%	Handling and Moving Objects - Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
		71%	Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
		71%	Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
		70%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		63%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		60%	Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
		60%	Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
		58%	Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
		57%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		56%	Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
		56%	Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information - Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
		54%	Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
		54%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		53%	Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
		52%	Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates - Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.

Getting Started

Education:

73%

High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)

15%

Less than a High School Diploma

Earth Drillers

What they do:

On the job, you would:

Personality

Characteristics of this Career

Strengths

Values of the Work Environment

Aptitude

Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Skills | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Job Details

Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent

Tasks & Values

Getting Started