Oil Comp Engr
38 Years Experience
Houston, TX
Female, 60
I recently retired from a major integrated oil company after 38 years. I have degrees in Civil and Petroleum Engineering. I worked with safety, health and environmental management systems and operations in the upstream (finding and producing oil and gas) and downstream (refining, chemicals and distributions) areas. I travelled all over world, enduring good & bad business cycles and good and bad managers.
Energy companies need people with an environmental background. Starting in the Safety, Health and Environmental department of an energy company might be the best way to get your foot in the door. Once you are there and have established a good reputation, you could then take some courses at night or on line to develop some technical knowledge of the operations.
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I started in the industry in 1981, just as we were starting to come off a peak in hiring. By January of 1986, the price of oil had hit a record low of around $9/bbl. I had worked very hard and had established a reputation of delivering a high quantity of high quality work. Also, we had a sizeable number of folks that were eligible to retire, or close to retirement, so the company offered incentives to those folks to leave. Had I been at smaller company or been a geologist instead of an engineer, I might not have fared so well. As an engineer at an integrated oil company, there were a lot of opportunities for me (pipelines, refineries, etc.). Over my career, I have changed jobs about every 3 to 5 years. I was open to new opportunities and was more interested in being a generalist ("a mile wide and an inch deep") instead of a specialist ("an inch wide and a mile deep"). This was not a conscious decision on my part, it's just my preference. During the down cycles, this paid off for me. When the prices dropped again in the late 1990's, I was able to take a transfer to a refinery. Regarding your question about getting a PhD, the advantages depend on what you want to do with that PhD. If you want to do research on cutting edge technology for oil and gas processing or drilling techniques, then you will want a PhD. Or, for example, if you want to be a reservoir engineer working on one of the world class reservoirs (Middle East, Western Siberia, Caspian Sea), then a PhD may also be of use. A slight difference in the porosity or permeability of the reservoir can affect the calculation of oil reserves by millions of barrels. If, on the other hand, you are more interested in the operational aspects, then a PhD will probably have been a waste of your time. Every oil and gas field has a unique set of characteristics that are best learned via on the job training.
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I have a daughter who is a sophomore in college, so we recently went through the process of selecting a college. You are going to work very hard (and hopefully play a litte too!) while in college, so my advice is to choose a college where you can see yourself fitting in and thriving and where you will enjoy working hard. In engineering, of course, it is very important that the program is ABET accredited (most are, but a few are not). If you are happy at your college and work hard, you will succeed. If you are concerned about the job opportunities, check in with the colleges' career placement offices to see how active they are and how much support they provide to students in finding internships and permanent employment.
You may not have as many job offers as if you attended a highly prestigious PE program, but life is about more than just "getting the job". Also, all you really need is one great job offer at a company that suits your goals. College is also about finding your passion. There is also no guarantee that you are going to love petroleum engineering, so I suggest you select a college where you can see yourself spending the next 4+ years just in case engineering does not work out for you. Also, there is no guarantee that the job market will continue to be so strong for petroleum engineers. I hope that it will, but again, be flexible and try to keep your options open. Best of luck to you.
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I suggest you do as much networking as you can while pursuing your Master's degree. Join the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), attend their regional and national conventions and conferences and build your network. You never know what might lead to that next job opportunity.
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See the post below re. Family time. Getting the degree is hard work but if you enjoy the subjects it is rewarding.
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Any kind of practical, field experience is very valuable to oil and gas operators. Wireline experience should be especially valuable if you are interested in reservoir, drilling or subsurface engineering. It would be less valuable if you want to work on surface facilities and pipelines.
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