<p>I have not been able to find any data on this
I have heard that entry-level salaries are good for pet. eng.
but I cant find any specifics for engineers who work in Middle East, Alaska vs Texas, Oklahama, ect.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.spe.org/career/salary_survey/docs/09SalarySurveyHighlights.pdf[/url]”>http://www.spe.org/career/salary_survey/docs/09SalarySurveyHighlights.pdf</a></p>
<p>PDF Document that has Salary data from around the world. (SPE)
US and Northern Europe have the highest average salaries.</p>
<p>[Petroleum</a> Engineers](<a href=“http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172171.htm]Petroleum”>http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172171.htm)</p>
<p>Petroleum Engineers US Salary data (BLS)
Alaska has highest average salary.</p>
<p>[Workforce</a> Info, Economic Information](<a href=“http://laborstats.alaska.gov/cgi/databrowsing/occExplorerQSDetails.asp?menuChoice=occExplorer&geogArea=0201000000&soccode=172171]Workforce”>http://laborstats.alaska.gov/cgi/databrowsing/occExplorerQSDetails.asp?menuChoice=occExplorer&geogArea=0201000000&soccode=172171)</p>
<p>Alaska Labor Stats: Entry level salary for 2009 is $99,450 USD
Mean/average is around $154,500 USD
Experienced make almost $200,000 USD.</p>
<p>Alaska has the highest entry salaries of any state.
If you want to work in Alaska then go to University of Alaska Fairbanks for a B.S. in Petroleum Engineering. That is the University I am attending this fall.</p>
<p>Living in Fairbanks while studying will prepare you for tough conditions when working as a PE on the north slope.</p>
<p>Exxon and BP are the two big recruiters at UAF. Exxon has a higher starting salary then the average starting salary in Alaska but to have a chance at working for Exxon you must be a great student.</p>
<p>Many PEs have shifts of 3 weeks work and 3 weeks vacation. PEs are paid when off duty too.</p>
<p>Hope that helps!</p>
<p>What constitutes an undesirable location?</p>
<p>I love being in natural places like Montana, and frankly, I would LOVE to live in Alaska for a few years. Are jobs there difficult to get if I graduate from the southeastern US?</p>
<p>Wow, should I as a female expect to be underpaid by as much as it shows? Or do you think that’s because of other factors, like maternity leave and such?</p>
<p>Thanks alchemist007. That is the data I was looking for. I read somewhere that an American pet. engineer working in the middle east was more lucrative but I guess not.</p>
<p>The top states for PetE employment are (state - employment - annual average wage):</p>
<p>Texas - 13380 - 126240
Louisiana - 2300 - 99550
Oklahoma - 2180 -110390
Colorado - 1170 - 136650
Alaska - 1100 - 154500
California - 1060 - 128890</p>
<p>Source: BLS OES</p>
<p>Two caveats:
- These figures are for average wage, not starting salary.
- No adjustment is made for the cost of living, which is significantly higher in some places.</p>
<p>Also important is tax basis, ie: Texas has no income tax.</p>
<p>a while back I had ChE classmates hired by Schlumberger to work in the Middle East or some Island in the middle of nowhere for top salary at the time, including all room and board paid for.</p>
<p>They then would use those 3 weeks to travel all over Europe.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Alaska also doesn’t have any income tax and sales tax. But cost of living is a bit higher in that state.</p>
<p>^ Especially if you prefer to avoid scurvy by consuming fresh fruit and vegetables during winter…</p>
<p>at john adams,</p>
<p>that is the type of situation I was thinking about.</p>
<p>but the data sbove shows pay is higher in the US, which is confusing me</p>
<p>^ The cost of living tends to be high in highly developed nations such as the US. Where else were you considering?</p>
<p>In any case, this is a rather silly concern at this time. If you want to study PetE, the salaries are obviously excellent. Your employer may expect you to move around a lot anyway, so I imagine you’ll see what’s available if you are able to secure a position.</p>
<p>goalsetter, don’t forget that these ChE’s at Schlumberger were able to save most of their income since the company paid for their room and board and flights in and out of where they worked.</p>
<p>Salary figures can be a little misleading.</p>
<p>I think I saw the other day on the BLS that the average petroleum engineer in North Dakota makes $163k/year. </p>
<p>That does not mean much because the BLS said the number of petroleum engineers was 80.</p>
<p>
It’s not that easy. Service companies don’t provide “top salaries”. It’s all a cut of the job. It depends on what group you work for. The amount of hours. The type of jobs.</p>
<p>You screw up a job big time, you’re fired. You have to be customer service oriented with customers that often have high standards.</p>
<p>“Where else were you considering?”</p>
<p>Im not sure this is all speculation</p>
<p>but i was thinking I would like to work in another country, somewhere in the middle east, africa, or maybe even like canada</p>
<p>I was just trying to see if the salary was more(or less) working in these other countries</p>
<p>this answers a lot of my questions, but I just asking out of curiousity and it is difficult to factor in cost of living, ect.</p>
<p>Petroleum Engineer Salry</p>