If you are working towards your petroleum engineering degree, here are some tips that will help you be more successful in school and get a job faster after you graduate.
1. Don’t Go Into Petroleum Engineering Just Because of Money
Many students go into petroleum engineering because of the high salaries that are often advertised online.
It is true that petroleum engineers make a lot of money right after university but not everyone who graduates with a petroleum engineering degree is guaranteed to get a job.
Secondly, you need to keep in mind that some of those people making 6-figure salaries are working 12 hours a day and often in remote locations for weeks straight.
It is unlikely that you will be working in an office and pulling $100,000 per year right after graduation.
2. Don’t Ignore Mechanical or Chemical Engineering
Many mechanical and chemical engineers hold the same positions as petroleum engineers.
One advantage they have is being able to get into a different industry when oil and gas are experiencing a downturn that happens every 5-10 years.
Read next: 4 Types of Petroleum Engineers
3. Work on Your GPA but Don’t Get Discouraged
Many exploration and production (E&P) companies will require you to have a high GPA to apply for the positions with them.
If your GPA is lower than their requirements, you can always start working for a service company instead and move into E&P later in your career.
This is a much better career plan than dropping out of university.
Based on my personal experience GPA is only important for your first job, after you gain some experience in the oilpatch it doesn’t matter as much.
Related: Working for Oil and Gas Operator vs Oilfield Service Company
4. Make Friends in School
Many engineers are naturally introverted and socializing might not come naturally.
However, having friends you can study with or work on a project will make your university life much easier.
Those friendships will become even more important after you graduate.
After getting a job you will likely work in a team environment, and developing your soft skills in university will make it much easier for you to fit in with people at your new workplace.
Also, try to make friends with seniors in your school.
Some of them might be able to recommend you to their boss after they get hired and it will make your job search much easier.
Related: Advantages and Disadvantages of Being a Petroleum Engineer
5. Get a Summer Job or Internship
Most companies that are looking for new grads will prefer to hire someone with experience in the oil and gas industry.
If you can get some experience while still studying, you will have a much easier time finding a job after you graduate.
In addition, some companies prefer to hire people who previously held summer or internship positions with them.
Use your internship time to learn as much as possible and focus on connecting with people and making new friends to expand your work network.
6. Start Building Your Professional Network
Networking is one of the most effective ways to ensure that you will get a job after graduation.
Many companies first advertise job positions internally and if you know someone in the company they might be able to pass your resume to a hiring manager before the position gets posted online.
There are many ways to network from attending school job fairs and networking events to messaging people on Linkedin that work in the oil and gas industry and asking them to meet up for an informational interview either in person or over Zoom.
Also, try to join related oil and gas associations and attend their social events.
Finally don’t ignore networking with your professors because some of them might have pretty strong connections in the industry and might recommend you.
Related: Should You Study Petroleum Engineering?
7. Work on Your People Skills
During my time at university, we had less than 10 presentations over 4 years.
This is not enough to build strong people and public speaking skills.
That’s why some people joke that engineers don’t know how to talk to the clients and need a sales guy with them.
8. Learn Excel and Basic Programming
A lot of companies still rely on Excel for data collection and preparing reports.
Having strong Excel skills will help you to stand out, especially if you know some VBA.
The same goes for programming.
There is a big shift towards digitalization in the oil and gas industry and knowing some Python will help you to stand out.
If you can’t take programming at university, take an online Udemy course in your spare time.
There are a lot of people that know how to program but very few of them understand the oil and gas industry.
That’s why companies prefer to hire someone who understands the oilpatch and at the same time has some computer science skills.
Related: Quick Intro to Data Analytics and Data Science in Oil and Gas Industry
9. Don’t Rush to Take a Master’s Degree
After getting your bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering, focus on gaining relevant work experience before taking a master’s degree.
You don’t want to spend 6 years in school and graduate with zero experience.
Working in the industry will help you to decide which master’s program to take if you really want it.
Some engineers end up taking MBA which can make it easier for them to transition into managerial positions.
However, there are also many engineers that end up working in executive positions without having a master’s degree.
10. Be Prepared for an Interview
Prepare a solid resume and cover letter. Make sure you have some references from your teachers and if possible from people that work in the oil and gas industry and can vouch for you.
Make sure that you have LinkedIn with all the relevant information about you.
Add all your school friends to increase the size of your network.
Next, make sure that you are ready for the interview.
Prepare answers to all the usual behavior-based questions that you can find online.
It is okay to practice interview questions by yourself but it might more effective if someone can sit down with you and give you constructive feedback.
Many universities conduct free mock interview sessions so don’t miss those.
In fact, take full advantage of all the services your career center provides while you are still in school and it is free for you.
They may help you to get a mentor or connect with someone already working in the industry that can point you in the right direction to improve your chances of landing a job.
Finally, clean up your online social presence.
Remove all the controversial media posts you made because many recruiters will scan the internet trying to find more info about you so don’t want to show yourself in a negative light.
Read next: What Classes Do Petroleum Engineers Take in University?