Career
Petroleum engineers
Find ways to get oil and gas out of the ground.
$144,910
Median pay
+2.0%
Job growth, 2025–35
1,000
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Specify and supervise well modification and stimulation programs to maximize oil and gas recovery.
- Monitor production rates, and plan rework processes to improve production.
- Maintain records of drilling and production operations.
- Analyze data to recommend placement of wells and supplementary processes to enhance production.
- Assist engineering and other personnel to solve operating problems.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then ideas & analysis?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Specify and supervise well modification and stimulation programs to maximize oil and gas recovery.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Writing.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $144,910 a year and 1,000 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Civil EngineeringSee the degree →
- Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental EngineeringCIP 14.0802
- Petroleum EngineeringCIP 14.2501
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers$106,220 · +3.8%
- Chemical Engineers$125,040 · +4.7%
- Geothermal Production Managers
- Water/Wastewater Engineers
- Industrial Engineers$102,440 · +12.4%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
Not sure this fits who you are? Start with Vocational Finder →
Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.