Petroleum Engineering

Petroleum Engineering is a branch of engineering that deals in the recovery, development, and processing of petroleum. Petroleum engineers are required to explore oil reserves worldwide and conduct research activities so as to invent new techniques and technology to lessen mining expenses and generate more resources. The field is divided in to two sectors: the upstream sector and the downstream sector. The upstream sector consists of the exploration, production, and exploitation of oil and natural gas. The downstream sector comprises the refining, marketing, and distributing functions. Petroleum Engineering is an indispensable field that deals with the manufacture of natural gas or crude oil, the byproducts of petroleum that facilitate industrialization and development of any economy. Therefore, it is referred to as liquid gold. As India is surrounded by water bodies on three sides, petroleum resources are plenty and so are the job prospects for aspiring graduates in this field.

Courses and Eligibility:

The various courses offered under Petroleum Engineering are:

• BE Petroleum and Offshore Engineering
• BE Petroleum Engineering
• BTech Applied Petroleum Engineering
• BTech Petrochemical Engineering
• BTech Petroleum Engineering
• BTech Petroleum Refining and Petrochemicals Engineering
• BTech Petroleum Refining Engineering
• BTech Petroleum Reservoir and Production Engineering
• ME Petroleum Engineering
• MTech Petroleum Engineering
• MTech Petroleum Exploration
• MTech Petroleum Refinery Engineering
• MTech Petroleum Refining and Petrochemical Engineering

The eligibility criterion for admissions to a bachelor’s programme is a 10+2 pass in the Science stream with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics as core subjects. The 2-year MTech course can be pursued after successfully completing an undergraduate course. Students must go through entrance exams such as GATE for admissions to BTech and MTech courses.

Job Prospects:

Petroleum engineers are employed in jobs that are mainly concentrated in oil and gas extraction; professional, scientific, and technical services; and petroleum refining. Graduates get recruited in government companies such as Indian Oil, Oil India Limited, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Bharat Petroleum, and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation. One can also consider the option of working as a scientist/researcher to carry out R&D processes. Employment is assured for graduates in this sector as the number of graduates passing out is always less than the number of jobs available.

Remuneration:

In India, petroleum engineers are paid a starting monthly salary of Rs. 25,000–Rs. 40,000, apart from other perks and benefits. Among engineers, petroleum engineers are the highest paid; the reason is to attract qualified workers to this industry.