McDermott: Trends in Offshore Oil & Gas - GineersNow GineersNow Engineering Magazine Issue No. 021, McD | Page 39

Petroleum Engineers
Still the Highest Paid Engineering Job
With such a complicated job, no wonder they are hailed as the highest paid
engineering job according to the evaluation of the U.S. News.
When it comes to the production of oil and gas,
the petroleum engineers are our heroes. Why
heroes? Because what they do is not entirely
easy and yet they are up for the task. Petroleum engineers are listed to be #12 in the
Best Paying Jobs across all industries, and yet #8
in the Overall Best Engineering Jobs. Meanwhile
it is #83 in the 100 Best Jobs.
As how the University of New South Wales in
Australia would put it, petroleum Engineers are
employed by oil or gas companies to design,
test and implement efficient methods to extract
petroleum products from the earth and sea
floor. They spend most of their time making
estimations because they can never see what is
actually going on thousands of meters below the
ground. In 2015, these kind of engineers keep a median
salary of $129,990. Petroleum engineers in the
metropolitan areas o f Houston, Denver and
Dallas are the most compensated, at least in the
U.S.
More often than not, they are involved in locating
the dig site of the petroleum for them to design
and build the machines needed to extract the oil
and gas beneath. Petroleum engineers also man
the operations of the removal and processing of
the petroleum.
With such a complicated job, no wonder they
are hailed as the highest paid engineering job
according to the evaluation of the U.S. News.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists petroleum
engineering as one of the fastest growing fields.
According to trends, the BLS expects that the
profession will grow at a rate of 10% from 2014
t0 2024, despite the worldwide shift in renewable
energy. At that rate, the industry will generate
about 3,400 new jobs, largely because of the
expected retirees across the decade.
Big changes might shake up the oil and gas
industry because of the recent drastic changes
in energy source preferences. But for now,
petroleum engineers still hold the highest paid
engineering job.
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