Oil Careers Offer New Opportunities

Are you looking for a new and exciting career, or are you a young individual looking at potential careers?  Why not look at one of the many different jobs in the oil industry?  Oil careers offer many exciting opportunities for good pay, advancement, and a job that doesn't leave you chained to a desk from 8 to 5 every day.  There are many different oil careers that offer all of this and more, and they don't all involve working on drilling rigs, although many do.

However, when people think of the oil industry, drilling rigs are probably what they immediately think of.  Many people do work as part of a rig crew or in the discipline of drilling, completions, and intervention.  These include jobs like driller, drilling engineer, drilling supervisor, and the basic rig hand job.  Electricians are also needed on rig crews, as are mechanics and crane operators.  These three careers may require training outside of the oil discipline or specialized training.

However, there are some duties that don't involve working on the rig itself.  Project managers, for example, may be on-site but may work out of a temporary office.  They're often in charge of budgeting, hiring, and making certain the project is completed on time.  A materials manager, likewise, is often charged with coordinating equipment and resources for multiple drilling sites or even for an entire company.  Then there are those who work in environmental safety or health and safety. These Oil Careers are more focused on the sciences than engineering, which may be more suited to some.

Some who work in the oil industry work more on pipelines instead of rigs.  While some of the job duties are the same, there are some differences.  For example, instead of drillers and rig hands, pipeline work involves a lot of different inspectors.  They include the standard pipeline inspector and mechanical inspector, but there are also many specialized careers like a coat and wrap inspector and the instrument inspector.  Again, while these people work out in the field, those who work as a logistics coordinator or installation supervisor may spend more of their time in offices.

If you're looking for something that doesn't involve inspecting or doing a lot of rig work, you may want to look into some of the production or maintenance positions.  These are things like operations manager or production manager.  You could also train as a safety representative and be in charge of training others in how to be safe while working.  Plus, there are a number jobs in the oil industry that may surprise you.  Many of these are involved in sea rigs.  For example, sea rigs that feature a helicopter landing pad will need a landing officer and a pilot.  They may also have positions for a radio operator, a medic, and even a store keeper.  Boat crews are also needed to help transport rig workers to and from the sea rig.

These are just a few of the many oil careers available.  Remember, not all jobs in the oil industry involve working in the field—there are few skills that the oil industry does not need, so no matter what your interest, you can probably find a career in the industry.