Is petroleum engineering is good?

Petroleum engineering: Job with good future?

• I am not sure what to study. I don't want like physics, math, chemistry particularly. But I like the job of an petroleum engineer. Does it even have a good future? Should I still study it? What about getting intern ships?

• Answer:

  First, petroleum engineering is engineering. Math, physics, and science is what it is all about. If you don't like these things, you won't like petroleum engineering. And if you do get a degree, you won't make a good petroleum engineer. I'm sensing, from the way this question is asked, that there is some skepticism about the job being around for much longer. You know, once it is uncovered that we greedy oil folks have spent money to prevent cheaper, easier, more sustainable energy from being easier. 'Cause that makes more sense than developing and selling it ourselves. But I digress. Bringing a well online and getting stuff to market takes a lot of money. Tens of millions per instance in developing fields. And there is a lot of risk. Like sending-a-man-to-the-moon levels of risk. So the industry plans thinks and works about 10 years at a time. This means that if Grandpa Conspiracytheory is right and it's all coming to an end by next Thirsday, we've got 10 years worth of stuff in the cue just to produce first oil. And at least another 10 years for the wells that just came online today. And that's just if the sky is falling. If you're just being plain pessimistic, you can double that. Is the engineering good engineering? Well, let me put it this way, I just spent the day in meeting with an engineering team leader who has hired engineers from the Mars Rover team. Why? Because we are developing the same kind of technology to make wells safer and cheaper to drill. It's a strong and diverse career. Don't do it for the money, please. It's not that great.