People who get to work as engineers in the oil and gas production are usually very well trained professionals. There are many things an engineer can be responsible for. For instance, a drilling engineer has to make sure the drilling of wells goes well, and also provide engineering support for all stages of oil and gas extraction. This includes planning and drawing up the drilling program, monitoring safety and providing on-site support. The drilling engineer must analyze the performance of the drilling and the factors that may sometimes influence the cost and the efficiency of the process as a whole.

The reservoir engineers are the ones to estimate the amounts of oil and gas that could be taken from the rock of the reservoir. They are asked to draw up plans in order to be able to extract as much as possible, as you might have already guessed by now!

Oil and gas engineers work in offices that are usually situated onshore. There, they must spend some 40 hours each week. This is not like working offshore, where the working schedule is usually 12 hours on and 12 hours off for two weeks. The rest of the month, they are being left onshore. The salaries are quite good in this particular field. The work of an oil and gas engineer requires that the person has skills for solving any problem that might occur and work well in a team or being able to lead one. Oil and gas engineers must have a scientific approach to their work and be prepared to work away from home from time to time. These persons must also be responsible and safety-conscious. The most important thing is that they are interested in protecting natural resources and the environment while meeting the demand for oil and gas.

There are many types of employers that may be able to offer jobs in this field. Should it be an operating company or a drilling company, the jobs keep on flowing. There are many other companies that can provide jobs in the oil and gas field. Some of them are engineering consultancies and service companies, for instance the seismic exploration firms or the well service firms.

So, an oil and gas engineer must have a postgraduate qualification, and most of all, he must be rather young of age, as it is very difficult to start working in this field when you are in fact close to 50.