Wednesday 21 November 2012

Overview of a Career in Oil and Gas Industry



In case you are looking for a job in the Oil and Gas Industry, you must decide on the field of activity you want to work in. Of course, this will be a difficult thing to do if you have never worked before in the oil industry. Therefore, the best place to start is conducting a detailed research on the Internet, where you can find a lot of information about this industry. The thousands of jobs that are a part of this industry fall into one of nine categories. Within each, there are both entry-level as well as advanced positions available. The nine categories are:
Business and Operational Support
·         Trades
·         Technologies
·         Technicians
·         Engineers
·         Geoscience Professionals
·         Marine and Nautical services
·         Field Workers
·         Operators
The main objective of the oil and gas sector is to deliver sources of energy. Major activities are divided into two areas: exploration & production, and refining & marketing. Exploration and production includes searching for new oil or gas fields, assessing whether they are viable for development or the project stage, and extracting from them or the production phase and refining and marketing focuses on processing the raw product into a saleable form. Typical employers in exploration and production include operators who run projects from start to finish, contractors who provide specific services to operators, e.g. installing equipment, suppliers who provide equipment and individual components, and engineering companies who specialise in particular areas, e.g. flow assurance calculations. Employers in refining and marketing include refineries, contractors, suppliers and engineering companies who provide extra expertise on refinery work.
There are a range of career opportunities in the oil and gas industry. Careers in the industry are usually well‐paid and long‐term, with opportunities throughout the world. There are many ways into the industry:
·         Straight from school or college and progress through operator and technician roles onwards to craftsperson status
·         Through apprenticeships such as the apprenticeship in process technology, oil and gas extraction industry or chemicals manufacturing and petroleum industries
·         Vocational qualifications such as process engineering maintenance or operations and maintenance engineering
·         Higher education courses that have been designed to equip graduates with the practical and hands‐on knowledge
·         In‐house training and development, of which there is a strong tradition in the sector
Across the sector there is high demand for skilled managers, engineers and technicians, scientists, process operatives and professionals to replace those leaving the industry. Elementary occupations, such as roustabouts who do unskilled manual labouring jobs on rigs and platforms, only account for 1% of the overall workforce. Level 2 and 3 occupations, such as process operators, technicians, skilled trades and business administrators, account for 55% of the workforce.
Like many industries, as long as you put in your time working hard and having a strong work ethic, you’ll be able to choose to take your career as high as you like, both in the corporate sector, and out in the field. Some of the most popular advanced jobs are drillers, petroleum geologists, and petroleum engineers. In addition, there are several different types of advanced engineering positions. There are specialty welders, called sub-sea engineers, who drill under the ocean, as well as some managerial positions out on oil rig platforms. Other positions include hydrographic surveyors and blasting supervisors, as well as various jobs in refining.

For more information about oil and gas jobs and for the latest oil and gas jobs and oil and gas vacancies, please visit http://www.hazelleng.com/