Regardless of the fact that petroleum engineering is a lucrative career option, not much is known about it. Typically, petroleum engineering graduates discover natural resources of oil and study them. Also, developing the newest equipments and machines that can be used to extract and process oil is the job of petroleum engineers. In fact it won’t be wrong in saying that engineers in this field have a global calling and are employed by oil companies worldwide.

Petroleum engineers design and develop technologies and methods for digging the surface of earth to haul out gas and oil. They also find means to get either crude oil or natural gas from the ground. Apart from these, they explore and discern new procedures to dig out oil from older wells across the world. Petroleum engineers usually operate with geologists. They plan and oversee the drilling procedures after the likely drill location has been finalised. They guarantee that the techniques used give maximum beneficial recoveries.

Becoming a Petroleum Engineer

To land an entry level position, one needs a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering. It is amongst the areas of speciality in engineering which usually takes around four years to complete. Although, there are some universities that offer 5 year programs that grant students a master’s degree automatically. The majority of employers favour candidates who have prior work experience.

Aspirants can do a B.Tech in petroleum engineering after 10+2 in science. Likewise, post graduation can be pursued after completing BE/B.Tech in the pertinent subject. An MSc in Chemistry is also eligible for post graduation in petroleum engineering. One can do research in production, petrochemicals, refining and petroleum exploration.

University of Petroleum and Energy Studies

Since the time of its inception, University of petroleum and energy studies Dehradun has been a world-class institute; committed to the development of super-specialized and equipped to deploy engineers and managers for domain particular Industry. It is devoted to give training, consultancy, and research services in Energy & related areas. Furthermore, within a very short duration of time, the institute has become the `Institution of Choice` among students and Corporates in the Energy sector

UPES is young, inventive, business driven and dedicated to academic brilliance. It is the place to carry on one’s personal and professional growth. The institute is devoted to creating a global, comprehensive, world class environment for learning with a lively community of students, teachers and staff who contribute to its development towards becoming a leading institute in this field. It is already renowned for creating specialised, very much in demand and all set to deploy engineers, professionals and managers into the world of energy and power and the associated domains. Over 85% of its graduates are employed by the leading companies of India.

Opportunities in Gulf Countries:

The Gulf comprises of countries Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. Exponential growth in the economy has been witnessed by these countries in the last few decades or so. The oil revenues generated from the countries have been soaring pretty high. About 22% of the reserve of natural gas in the world lies with the Gulf countries. The Oil and gas sector has made these areas rich and have also paved the way for a lot of opportunities for petroleum engineers.

The Gulf countries have also gained the reputation of being the frontline exporter of oil and gas to many countries of the world and henceforth attract the attention of millions of job seekers. Large numbers of people from all over the world come here looking for bright career opportunities. The requirement for qualified people working in the oil and gas sector and many others has been registered at a very impressive rate. A lot of new sectors are also coming up as a result of which a lot of new job opportunities are expected to grow.

A lot of wonderful job opportunities are available in Gulf countries in the oil and petroleum sectors. It is believed that these countries have about 38% of the world crude oil reserves and 22% of natural reserves in the world. The Petroleum sector in these countries is responsible for about 80% exports to other countries of the world. In this sector a variety of jobs are available in areas like detection of oil resources, extraction of oil and natural gas, refinement of crude oil, production and distribution.

Career Advancement prospects:

Petroleum engineers always have the option to upskill and get further training. Doing so allows them to land higher-paying jobs. A lot of companies send their employees for further training or formal learning. Several years of knowledge in the field provides them the knowledge and skills to either go the entrepreneurial way or become a consultant for bigger companies. Otherwise, they can become faculty for university students as well.

Some of the leading Companies that hire petroleum engineers:

• Indian Oil Corporation
• Lubricants India
• Petrosil Group
• Oil Gas India
• ONGC
• Reliance Petroleum Limited
• Bharat Petroleum
• Hindustan Petroleum Corporation

Things to consider before taking the plunge:

Before thinking of pursuing petroleum engineering, aspirants should assess their capabilities and skills. This is because the branch is both physically and intellectually excruciating. Petroleum engineers should have exceptional analytical expertise that they can use to gauge difficult drilling plans, prospective problems and their resolutions. They also have to be creative to design processes to successfully extract oil and gas in the most lucrative way. Excellent math skills are just as vital.

Experts greatly recommend that graduates should get into internship programs to comprehend the nature of the job. Doing so can let them get a clearer picture of what qualified petroleum engineers do. They can also learn how to operate with other industry experts like geophysicists and geologists. Career opportunities are pretty attractive in petroleum sector as companies have great authority and offer great remuneration to employees. This demand for petroleum products is only likely to increase in the coming years, which would lead to newer job creation.