This fall, I will be a freshman at the University of Oklahoma. I am planning on double majoring in petroleum engineering and business administration and minoring in French. I have a few questions.
Is this a decent plan? If I stay on track, I will graduate in 5 years. What is the job outlook? I plan on doing internships, but will those be difficult to come by? Will it be difficult for me to land a job when I graduate? I’ve read about what petroleum engineers do, I’ve gone through forums, etc… I don’t mind traveling. I don’t mind long hours, losing sleep, etc… It sounds like something I would enjoy doing. I’ve read a few different perspectives on what a day in the life of a petroleum engineer is like, but I’m still not clear about the office side of the deal? What exactly would you do if you worked in an office, as opposed to if you traveled?
Also, since it’s a male-dominated field, as a female (and a minority, Vietnamese), would I have trouble finding a job in the field or thriving in it?
Will I be okay?
Edit:
This fall, I will be a freshman at the University of Oklahoma. I am planning on double majoring in petroleum engineering and business administration and minoring in French. I have a few questions.
Is this a decent plan? If I stay on track, I will graduate in 5 years. What is the job outlook? I plan on doing internships, but will those be difficult to come by? Will it be difficult for me to land a job when I graduate? Some people say its a good industry to get into, while some say its not?
I’ve read about what petroleum engineers do, I’ve gone through forums, etc… I don’t mind traveling. I don’t mind long hours, losing sleep, etc… It sounds like something I would enjoy doing. I’ve read a few different perspectives on what a day in the life of a petroleum engineer is like, but I’m still not clear about the office side of the deal? What exactly would you do if you worked in an office, as opposed to if you traveled?
Also, since it’s a male-dominated field, as a female (and a minority), would I have trouble finding a job in the field or thriving in it?
Will I be okay?
As an OU student who knows a considerable number of PE majors as well as one French minor, I’m just going to say your plan is almost impossible and you’ll likely drop to one field of study by second semester freshman year.
I agree with whenhen too. I’m going to major in PE in UTulsa and was thinking of majoring in geophysics too, but a relative in the field for 18 yrs told me it will be to hard and stressful taking another major coupled with PE. So I thought and decided to couple with a minor in chemical engineering. After graduating I was told that it is not that hard to find a job, but since the PE major these days is in demand, the companies are much more selective. I do not know about the office side because what I was told is the same as you read (being away from home a lot).
Don’t worry that much… If you strive to give and be your best, you’ll be just fine.