It is a known fact that oil companies have seriously depleted the world's oil reserves; that is those reserves that in the past have been relatively easy to access. With modern technology and the improved equipment, oil can now be extracted from even the most remote and uninviting areas of the globe.
Oil and gas engineering has been bought into the twenty-first century by this technology and it has meant that engineers not only need the basic knowledge, but they also need wide ranging knowledge like thermo-hydraulic, geomechanics and the all important intelligent systems that are used in modern day drilling techniques.
In the United States alone there are seventeen universities that offer specialist courses in oil and gas engineering. Oil companies themselves run engineering training courses on a constant basis. Working within this field an engineer can expect to be amongst the top bracket of wage earners; more experienced engineers can earn almost double the money a graduate would expect to make initially. Many countries rely on oil and gas engineering to keep their economies in the black so universities have added courses to their curriculum to satisfy the ever increasing demand for new engineers in the oil industry.
There are several types of engineers whose expertise is much needed to the oil company and they can be split into three defined categories:
Reservoir engineers
Drilling engineers
Production engineers
A reservoir engineer is the man who decides where and how the oil rig will be set up to optimize the amount of oil that will be produced. The technical side of well operation is managed by the drilling engineer, whether it is exploratory, production and injection. Finally the production engineer manages everything else that has to do with the production of the oil. Each one of these engineers has a specific role in the production of the oil that has been discovered and is a vital cog in the machine for the whole operation to run smoothly.
Oil companies rely on these engineers to find, extract and produce oil within an optimum time frame. If one engineer gets it wrong it could cost the oil company millions. For this reason these engineers are highly trained and extremely well paid by oil companies.
Working offshore is a way that engineering graduates gain the experiences that will lead them into the high bracket level salary that they will be able to enjoy. They usually have a 12 hour on and 12 hour off shift over two weeks after which they are entitled to either a two week or a three week break off the rig. The shifts are put in place so that off-shore workers can cope with the often harsh conditions of working on an oil platform.
Choosing a career in oil and gas engineering is certainly worth considering for the financial rewards alone but the different aspects of the job are also part of the appeal. But with a job such as this the responsibilities are extremely demanding even for the most experienced of oil and gas engineers.