21332 Petroleum engineers

What this occupation covers

Petroleum engineers conduct studies for the exploration, development and extraction of oil and gas deposits; and plan, design, develop and supervise projects for the drilling, completion, testing and re-working of oil and gas wells. They are employed by petroleum producing companies, consulting companies, well logging or testing companies, government, and research and educational institutions.

Official main duties

The NOC profile lists 10 main duties for this code.

• Conduct feasibility assessment studies for developing new oil and gas fields
• Direct and monitor oil and gas drilling operations
• Develop drilling programs, select sites and specify drilling fluids, bit selection, drill stem testing procedures and equipment
• Direct and monitor the completion and evaluation of wells, well testing and well surveys
• Design and select artificial lift machinery, and well and surface production equipment and systems, and specify programs for corrosion control and oil or gas treatment
• Develop specifications for and monitor and supervise well modification and stimulation programs to maximize oil and gas recovery
• Analyze reservoir rock and fluid data to design optimum recovery methods and to predict reservoir performance and reserves
• Monitor and forecast oil and gas reservoir performance and recommend oil recovery techniques which extend the economic life of wells
• Design, develop and coordinate the installation, maintenance and operation of subsea well-head and production equipment.
• Petroleum engineers may specialize in drilling, production, reservoir analysis or subsea operations.

Do not copy these lines into your reference letter. The letter has to describe what you actually did, in your employer’s words. DUTYPROOF flags wording lifted from the NOC as something to review, and an officer reading a letter that mirrors the NOC reads it the same way.

What DUTYPROOF screens for

This is DUTYPROOF’s screening threshold, not IRCC’s decision. For this NOC, screening requires at least 2 of its 10 official duties to be evidenced in your own words, plus the required letter elements. IRCC asks that you performed the actions in the occupation’s lead statement and a substantial number of its main duties — so treat the duty coverage as the number that matters, not the badge.

Codes this one is confused with

The NOC profile names these itself. Choosing the wrong code of a look-alike pair is the most common way genuine work experience fails to establish eligibility.

• 21320 Chemical engineers
• 82021 Contractors and supervisors, oil and gas drilling and services
• 20010 Engineering managers
• 21331 Geological engineers
• 21102 Geoscientists and oceanographers

Excluded from this code

• Chemical engineers (See 21320 Chemical engineers)
• Contractors and supervisors, oil and gas drilling and services (See 82021 Contractors and supervisors, oil and gas drilling and services)
• Engineering managers (See 20010 Engineering managers)
• Geological engineers (See 21331 Geological engineers)
• Geoscientists and oceanographers (See 21102 Geoscientists and oceanographers)

Job titles filed under this code

A title on this list does not by itself put your experience in this code — the duties in your letter decide that.

chief petroleum engineer · drilling and recovery chief engineer · drilling and recovery petroleum engineer · exploitation engineer - oil and gas · exploitation engineer - petroleum · mud engineer · mud engineer - petroleum drilling · natural gas engineer · offshore drilling engineer · offshore drilling rig subsea equipment engineer · oil and gas drilling engineer · oil and gas production engineer · oil well logging engineer · petroleum engineer · petroleum production engineer · petroleum reservoir engineer · petroleum well completion engineer · subsea engineer · well logging engineer

Employment requirements

• A bachelor's degree in petroleum engineering or in a related engineering discipline is required.
• A master's degree or doctorate in a related engineering discipline may be required.
• Licensing by a provincial or territorial association of professional engineers is required to approve engineering drawings and reports and to practise as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.).
• Engineers are eligible for registration following graduation from an accredited educational program, and after three or four years of supervised work experience in engineering and passing a professional practice examination.