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Petroleum Engineering

Hi,

What are the cons of petroleum engineering?

On the scale of 1-10, 1 being least boring and 10 very boring, would you rate petroleum engineering?

How can you get into petroleum engineering after doing a civil engineering degree?

Thanks

P.S. Please state if you are studying or employed already in this field.

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Reply 1
bump
Reply 2
From a friend who does it, it can be incredibly boring, and doing 2 week on off shifts get to you after a year
Reply 3
Original post by rickfloss
From a friend who does it, it can be incredibly boring, and doing 2 week on off shifts get to you after a year


how's the pay?
Reply 4
Original post by vik94
how's the pay?


of course its good, but why not earn more by becoming an accountant

lol
Reply 5
I'm not sure accountants earn more........
What's the mode income for an accountant? (In UK)


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Reply 6
Original post by rickfloss
of course its good, but why not earn more by becoming an accountant

lol

because accountants don't earn more .. are you or someone you know employed in petroleum engineering or accountancy?
Reply 7
he average earning potential of ICAEW Chartered Accountants in business, six to nine years after qualifying is £85,900 (£71,600 salary + £14,300 bonus).

Earning potential

Independent surveys show that ICAEW Chartered Accountants can command higher salaries throughout their careers compared with other accountancy qualifications:

The average income of an ICAEW Chartered Accountant outside of an accountancy firm is £113,300 (£92,100 salary + £21,200 bonus).

Average salaries for ICAEW Chartered Accountants in business, outside the UK are £128,300 and average bonuses are £35,600.

ICAEW Chartered Accountants working in banking and capital markets are the highest earners with an average income of £166,000 (£111,700 salary + £54,300 bonus).

The average income for an ICAEW Chartered Accountant working in the insurance sector is £142,400 (£111,500 salary + £30,900 bonus), and £112,000 in the entertainment/media sector (£94,000 salary + £18,000 bonus).

ICAEW Chartered Accountants working in energy, water, mining and utilities have an average income of £130,000 (£103,900 salary + £26,100 bonus).


Source: Salary Survey Report 2012, Stott and May



Remember, ACA not ACCA
Reply 8
if you do civil engineering, you could easily do a MSc in petroleum engineering, geological engineering, geophysics, anything like that.

I always thought that by sticking to one of the more traditional engineering routes (civil, electrical/electronics, mechanical, chemical and aeronautical) that you can get into most engineering fields that would be in some-way related.
Original post by rickfloss
he average earning potential of ICAEW Chartered Accountants in business, six to nine years after qualifying is £85,900 (£71,600 salary + £14,300 bonus).

Earning potential

Independent surveys show that ICAEW Chartered Accountants can command higher salaries throughout their careers compared with other accountancy qualifications:

The average income of an ICAEW Chartered Accountant outside of an accountancy firm is £113,300 (£92,100 salary + £21,200 bonus).

Average salaries for ICAEW Chartered Accountants in business, outside the UK are £128,300 and average bonuses are £35,600.

ICAEW Chartered Accountants working in banking and capital markets are the highest earners with an average income of £166,000 (£111,700 salary + £54,300 bonus).

The average income for an ICAEW Chartered Accountant working in the insurance sector is £142,400 (£111,500 salary + £30,900 bonus), and £112,000 in the entertainment/media sector (£94,000 salary + £18,000 bonus).

ICAEW Chartered Accountants working in energy, water, mining and utilities have an average income of £130,000 (£103,900 salary + £26,100 bonus).


Source: Salary Survey Report 2012, Stott and May



Remember, ACA not ACCA


lol at anyone who believes that.

Being in oil & gas I can tell you that the average accountant earns nowhere near the figure quoted above for those who work in "energy, water, mining and utilities" - unless, of course, oil companies are paying peanuts compared to water companies...

You'll earn much more as a petroleum engineer.
Original post by Smack
lol at anyone who believes that.

Being in oil & gas I can tell you that the average accountant earns nowhere near the figure quoted above for those who work in "energy, water, mining and utilities" - unless, of course, oil companies are paying peanuts compared to water companies...

You'll earn much more as a petroleum engineer.


hmm, anecdotal evidence vs a salary survey

decisions decisions

OP, would you want to move to aberdeen ?

or move to/stay in london
Original post by rickfloss
hmm, anecdotal evidence vs a salary survey

decisions decisions

OP, would you want to move to aberdeen ?

or move to/stay in london


lol, hardly a fair comparison. You could easily counter that with 'would you rather move to Liverpool, or go to Alberta, Canada?

There is no guarantee you'll get a job in London and there is no guarantee you'll have to go to Aberdeen.

Both accountancy and engineering are pretty transferable, so you can take them pretty much anywhere in the world.
Original post by rickfloss
hmm, anecdotal evidence vs a salary survey

decisions decisions

OP, would you want to move to aberdeen ?

or move to/stay in london


A salary survey is anecdotal, but needless to say the government's data seems to say that the average salary for an accountant is just under £37,000.

There are also a lot of petroleum engineers in London and the South East of England too.
Original post by bestofyou
lol, hardly a fair comparison. You could easily counter that with 'would you rather move to Liverpool, or go to Alberta, Canada?

There is no guarantee you'll get a job in London and there is no guarantee you'll have to go to Aberdeen.

Both accountancy and engineering are pretty transferable, so you can take them pretty much anywhere in the world.


i dont even want to reply to this comment, but ill turn my brain off for a bit

You are MORE likely to get a petroleum engineering job in aberdeen then you are in bristol or liverpool, ( considering thats were the oil is)

You are also More likely to get a accountancy ACA job in the centre of london, considering thats where the main accounting firms are
Original post by Smack
A salary survey is anecdotal, but needless to say the government's data seems to say that the average salary for an accountant is just under £37,000.

There are also a lot of petroleum engineers in London and the South East of England too.


by that logic, we should include the guys who fix the vending machines in engineer average salary

im getting tired of this nonsense
Original post by rickfloss
by that logic, we should include the guys who fix the vending machines in engineer average salary

im getting tired of this nonsense


Well if you actually believe that the average accountant is pulling in over six figures despite the fact the government's data, alongside people in industry, says otherwise then there's little point in continuing this discussion with you.
Original post by Smack
Well if you actually believe that the average accountant is pulling in over six figures despite the fact the government's data, alongside people in industry, says otherwise then there's little point in continuing this discussion with you.


can you not comprehend a implied point

the government data doesnt distinct between those who bookeep for small firms and those who are ACA trained, most of whom take up C level positions in companies

There is a massive difference between ACA/ACCA and bookkeeper salaries

please stop
Original post by rickfloss
can you not comprehend a implied point

the government data doesnt distinct between those who bookeep for small firms and those who are ACA trained, most of whom take up C level positions in companies

There is a massive difference between ACA/ACCA and bookkeeper salaries

please stop


I am talking about chartered accountants at oil firms, the government's data is talking about chartered and certified accountants, they make less money than petroleum engineers.
Reply 18
Original post by rickfloss
can you not comprehend a implied point

the government data doesnt distinct between those who bookeep for small firms and those who are ACA trained, most of whom take up C level positions in companies

There is a massive difference between ACA/ACCA and bookkeeper salaries

please stop



Original post by Smack
I am talking about chartered accountants at oil firms, the government's data is talking about chartered and certified accountants, they make less money than petroleum engineers.


To be fair i am flexible in relocating to where-ever in the world. The point that does matter is:

1. The rate at which i can progress in that career to a higher salary.

I want a job where the higher amount of pay is in the earlier years of employment but at the same time there is opportunities to

progress within that career without an upper boundary to the salary.

I hope that makes sense and if you have an suggestions or advice please reply
Original post by vik94
To be fair i am flexible in relocating to where-ever in the world. The point that does matter is:

1. The rate at which i can progress in that career to a higher salary.

I want a job where the higher amount of pay is in the earlier years of employment but at the same time there is opportunities to

progress within that career without an upper boundary to the salary.

I hope that makes sense and if you have an suggestions or advice please reply


Petroleum engineering definitely meets all of your criteria.

Most oil companies are offering starting salary packages around the £40,000 mark, and this rises quite quickly in the first few years.

If you work for a servicing firm in a field engineering position then you can make a lot more, tax free, but with such a firm you'll be probably be thrown all around the world, whereas with the oil company you'll likely be in an office doing 37.5 hours.

Once you get some experience, and if you are good, you can become a contractor or consultant and earn a **** tonne.

Only thing I would say though is that it is quite hard to get a job as a petroleum engineer.

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