Jobs in Antarctica

December to April is the main job application time, some late positions come up from June to August
Australian Antarctic Division  |  British Antarctic Survey  |  Antarctica New Zealand
United States Antarctic Program  |  United States Antarctic Support | USA - PAE
Other countries down the page
Cool Antarctica cannot help directly to find work in Antarctica
other than offering the advice and information found on this page.

  Working in Antarctica - Introduction

You've seen the pictures, watched the videos, read about about it online and in books and now you've decided you want to actually go to Antarctica. Maybe you can't afford to go as a paying passenger or maybe you want to experience the continent more fully, more closely and most of all - during the winter months when no tourist can visit.

Reality check 1 - There are far more people who want to work in Antarctica than there are jobs available

Speculative postings to Antarctic and job seeking forums from people who are hoping that making it known that they are available is not sufficient to find a job. Sending me your resume or cv won't work either (so please don't).

Reality check 2 - with some exceptions, Antarctic personnel are specialists in a particular field, enthusiastic generalists can get jobs in Antarctica, but the field of applicants is that much larger.

But people obviously DO get jobs in Antarctica and some of them get to go down again and again.

Reality check 3 - It is expensive to transport personnel to and from Antarctica, so while 3-6 months may suit you best, longer than this makes more sense for those who pay the bills.

But then again, there are some positions for 3-6 months going as well as the longer contracts.

Scientists and support workers combine to enable Antarctic science, here at the South Pole, a major project drilling deep into the ice to deploy neutrino detectors.

The inside of a hut placed over a dive-hole cut in the sea-ice near McMurdo base.

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  Where are the jobs?

Jobs in Antarctica are almost exclusively on National Research Stations. These stations vary in size quite considerably, typically having 40 - 50 people in the summer months, from around November - March, and a much smaller winter crew of maybe 10 - 20 from March to November (ish). There is a big American base at McMurdo that is much larger than this however.

McMurdo base, a deep-south coastal station the morning after a blizzard.

About 5,000 people visit Antarctic stations each year from about 27 different countries with around 1,000 of them remaining over the winter months. Winter means isolation when there is no transport in or out and contact is only by various electronic telecommunications.

Halley Station including virtual tour

A list of currently operational Antarctic Stations

  What are the jobs that are available?

Jobs fall into two categories - scientific and support (sometimes called trades)

Scientific Positions are in reality the job of the base, without them there would be little or no need for the base at all. Scientists are at a minimum of postgraduate level and often postdoctoral, though the more junior they are the more likely they will be able to spend a longer time period in Antarctica (over-wintering for example). Scientists usually take down a project to Antarctica with them and are fairly self-contained equipment-wise. Occasionally they may be able to "plug-into" an on-going project fulfilling a discrete sub-part of the whole. Scientists fall into many categories:

• Glaciologists
• Geologists
• Chemists - studying snow, ice, freshwater etc.
• Atmospheric physicists
• Meteorologists
• Oceanologists
• Biologists - terrestrial or marine

       ...and a few other sorts of "ologists"

Releasing high altitude balloons from Halley station to investigate the earth's radiation belts.

Support positions or trades fall into a whole range of occupations that are involved with the tasks of keeping the base and its personnel in good repair and able to perform duties safely and efficiently. These positions usually require people who are experienced in their particular field almost always with relevant professional qualifications, including but not limited to the following:

• Cook
• Electrician
• Carpenter
• Boat handler
• Mechanic
• Plumber
• Radio operator
• Doctor
• Diving officer
• Fire fighters

McMurdo station is more like a small town and so needs much of the infrastructure that you expect in small towns anywhere else in the world.

The large US base at McMurdo also has positions for generalist staff, cleaning, food preparation etc. "There are attorneys, judges, pharmacists, and PhD's working as mechanics, janitors, galley slaves, housing department and shuttle drivers."

Your experience of Antarctica will depend very much on your job. Scientific staff will generally have more interesting experiences as their jobs often take them away from the base more. There are exceptions though, an atmospheric scientist will have little reason to leave base for the purpose of doing the job, and a boat handler will spend large amounts of time off base. If your job involves transportation in any way, then you will see more of Antarctica than anyone.

On many bases there is the expectation and requirement that all staff will fulfill generalist roles such as unloading ships, washing-dishes, night-watch, cleaning the base, dealing with the trash etc. The smaller the base, the more varied of these housekeeping jobs you will be expected to do in addition to your own specialist tasks.

Personnel are screened carefully for their psychological and physical suitability to work in the demanding environment of Antarctica. They must be in very good physical shape as full medical facilities are far away in distance and also often in time.

Other jobs - you may have guessed by now that there are lots of jobs for which there is no requirement in Antarctica. So you might be the best car salesman, lawyer or basketball coach in your town, but you won't be getting a job in Antarctica doing those things. The number of non-required occupations is too long to list, if you want to work there you need to be a required specialist or take a non-specialist job.

Participants guides, for those employed to Antarctica:
Australian Antarctic Program    British Antarctic Survey    United States Antarctic Program

  Antarctica jobs and pay

How much do I get paid to work in Antarctica?

As it's a case of supply and demand, and the supply of people ready to work in Antarctica is generally greater than the demand for personnel, the answer to this question is not the great fortune that is sometimes imagined.

In general, personnel in Antarctica on a National Antarctic Programme, supply ship, contract work etc. will be paid pretty much the same as they would for doing the same job back in their home country, often with a small extra bonus but forget any idea of 2x or 3x salary multiples.

It seems that you're paid more though because:

• There's not a lot to spend your money on.
• Taxation is often less than at home (varies by country) .
• The big expenses of accommodation, food and much of your clothing, usually including all specialist clothing, are provided for you for free .

So you should be able to save up a good proportion of the money you are paid to take back home with you.

A bedroom at Halley base, facilities vary by base, though typically sleeping accommodation is quite small and used just for that purpose, many personnel on a base will also have an office or other work area, there are also public areas on base. Retreating from base life into a private space is not encouraged and is not good for base-life or the individual.

  How do I go about getting a job in Antarctica?

The first step is find the National Antarctic programme of your own country, if only because interviews will usually be held in that country. Some countries also have a strong preference for their own citizens or you may find that foreign nationals are simply not considered.

Some country's Antarctic bases are run by the military or have a strong military presence and you will therefore stand a much better chance if you are already serving in a branch of the military.

Listed below are links to many points of first call. Many countries simply do not have an Antarctic programme or it is very small, so unless you have relevant professional skills and work in a country that does, you may find that your chances are very limited.

  Are there any jobs other than with National Operators?

Yes, but very few. The Antarctic Heritage Trust for instance takes on about four seasonal staff each year for positions as assistants at Port Lockroy on the Antarctic Peninsula.

Port Lockroy, or Base "A" is a British historic base situated on the tiny Goudier Island off the Antarctic Peninsula.  It was established in 1944 and occupied until 1962.  The abandoned base was restored in 1996 as a "living museum".

The jobs require a compulsory interview in the UK plus a mandatory training course. No expenses for former are payable. No age restrictions but sucessful applicants need to pass a medical and to be fit and strong. Disabilities cannot be accommodated which would prevent someone from doing the job.

Applications are invited during a short window each year of around a week or two in late February. To put things in perspective, there were around 1500 applicants for 4 positions in 2015 following a documentary that was shown on PBS and the BBC. In 2014, there were 82 applicants for the same 4 posts. 4,000 applications were received for the 2022 recruitment round.

Port Lockroy

  Artists and Writers - Community Engagement

The Antarctic programmes from a number of countries, such as UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand support "Artists and Writers" initiatives at various times. These tend to be active for a year or two followed by a dormant period, on average they tend to be dormant more than they are active. Try these links for: New Zealand,  Australia and the USA. The Scott Polar Research Institute in the UK also sponsors an Arctic and Antarctic artist for a few weeks each year.

Photographers and film makers are NOT sponsored.

  Institutions / National Antarctic Programmes

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If your country is not in the list above, you will find it very difficult to get a job in Antarctica unless your country has close links with a country that is in the list. At the very least you will need to travel at your own expense for interview in the country whose programme you wish to join.

  Other Information Sources

The national sites above often have links to diaries of the bases that are written for the family and friends of the personnel on the bases. These tend to be a rather sanitized official version of events and not terribly interesting or informative unless you know the people involved.

There are also a large number of unofficial blogs and web diaries written by people in Antarctica that come and go, frequently being started with good intentions but often abandoned not long afterwards. Some are very good and give an excellent insight into life in Antarctica. Because such blogs and diaries appear and also mysteriously disappear without warning (even the really good ones) I no longer link to any in particular. Google is your friend here.

I personally went to Antarctica with the British Antarctic Survey on a small base and reading through some other diary entries am quite astonished at how different an Antarctic experience people have on the different bases.

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Picture credits: Anthony Lister , Alan Light

 

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