I am interested in petroleum engineering however i’ve noticed that many major engineering universities do not offer it. Why is this?
Are u “interested” because you are passionate about the subject? Or because you are expecting a high paying job?
Go to Google News and search on the words: “oil price jobs”
I have visited an oil tech facility and found it to be very interesting, however the flagship schools like MIT, Berkeley, Stanford, and Georgia Tech do not offer the degree and I was wondering why not
Well there are a few reasons that I can think of off the top of my head:
[ul]
[li]For one thing, oil is located geographically in only a few areas, and schools that don’t generally draw from those areas heavily wouldn’t have much incentive to start a new department.[/li]
[li]Petroleum engineering as its own field is relatively new and is really more of a derivative discipline, drawing from a handful of other disciplines (e.g. mechanical engineering and geology). Many of the top schools already had all of those departments long before petroleum engineering started to become its own field and probably didn’t feel the need for another department. It’s kind of similar to how there are a relatively small number of dedicated materials science and engineering departments.[/li]
[li]Petroleum engineering as an entire field is something that has a finite lifespan. Petroleum is a limited natural resource, and once it’s used up, there really will be no need for dedicated petroleum engineers anymore. Now, this may still be years off, but it will happen eventually, and that is quite a deterrent against a cash-strapped university using a large amount of capital to start a brand new department.[/li]
[li]Even before petroleum actually runs out, the developed world is actively (albeit slowly) trying to wean itself off of petroleum as a major energy source. Again, this may (likely will) take a while, but it still means there is a definite end date for petroleum engineering as a useful discipline.[/li][/ul]
Do you think that it is a bad option to get into?
I think that’s more of a personal question. No one can predict the market 4 years from now. In all likelihood, petroleum will still be reasonably important throughout your future career. Perhaps not those of your future kids. That said, will Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Russia stop playing their games in the next 4 years and allow oil prices to rebound? Your guess is as good as mine.
My personal feeling is that it is bad to get into it now, but that has every bit as much to do with the fact that I don’t find the petrochemical industry even remotely compelling (quite the opposite, actually) rather than any objective fact.
So it’s not because petroleum is looked down upon in any sort of way?
I suppose it may be by some people. Like I said, I’m not too fond of it and petroleum engineers do have sort of a reputation for being people who are just chasing a payday. It’s not viewed as being some cop-out or easy major, though (to my knowledge).
Ok thanks for your help