# Petroleum Engineering Jobs in Canada



## thesfactor (Jul 9, 2009)

Hello good people!
I'm presently working in the US on an H1B visa as a Petroleum Engineer. I'd like to apply for permanent residence in either Australia or Canada and have been caught in the age old dilemma of choosing between the two countries. I'm typically a hot weather person, born and raised in a hot country and now I'm living in Houston, Texas. So ideally I'd be happy in a hot climate (Australia) but I don't want to make a choice based solely on this. I was wondering if you guys could help out with a few questions, any answers would be greatly appreciated.

Where are most of the petroleum engineering jobs located in Australia - I think I'd like to live in a big city so Melbourne, Sydney come to mind right off the bat. Perth might be a bit too far off for me since it seems like it will be quite a commute to go visit another place.

Similarly, could someone please tell me where the petroleum engineering jobs are located in Canada - Vancouver is the city I'm looking at here...I'd love to live here since it doesn't get too cold (relatively speaking) and was wondering if there were any jobs for this field in this city.

Also, what are typical salaries petroleum engineers make in both these places? Is there a demand right now for jobs in this area? I have two years work exp and am working in an office environment which is what I look forward to continuing.

Thanks again for any input!


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## dakus77 (May 15, 2009)

thesfactor said:


> Hello good people!
> I'm presently working in the US on an H1B visa as a Petroleum Engineer. I'd like to apply for permanent residence in either Australia or Canada and have been caught in the age old dilemma of choosing between the two countries. I'm typically a hot weather person, born and raised in a hot country and now I'm living in Houston, Texas. So ideally I'd be happy in a hot climate (Australia) but I don't want to make a choice based solely on this. I was wondering if you guys could help out with a few questions, any answers would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Where are most of the petroleum engineering jobs located in Australia - I think I'd like to live in a big city so Melbourne, Sydney come to mind right off the bat. Perth might be a bit too far off for me since it seems like it will be quite a commute to go visit another place.
> ...


Hi,
I am a Reservoir Engineer with 9 years experience, just landed in Canada from London and now looking for a job. As a Petroleum Engineer, the main city for Oil jobs is Calgary not Vancouver. There are a number of opportunities being advertised but most require heavy oil, SAGD, CBM or Shale gas experience. If you have those, then you can easily get a job in Canada. If not, I would advice you to stay in the US and try to get a job in Canada first while using that period to build up the required skill set for the Canadian market.

As for me, my husband is still working in the UK and I needed a break from work to get the kids settled first. I'm sure the market would have picked up a lot more by the time I would seriously want to get back to work, though I still send out my resume when I see an opportunity. 

As for Salaries, I can't be of much help, since I'm not working yet, but I know they are generally lower here than in the UK.


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## Auld Yin (Mar 10, 2009)

thesfactor said:


> Hello good people!
> I'm presently working in the US on an H1B visa as a Petroleum Engineer. I'd like to apply for permanent residence in either Australia or Canada and have been caught in the age old dilemma of choosing between the two countries. I'm typically a hot weather person, born and raised in a hot country and now I'm living in Houston, Texas. So ideally I'd be happy in a hot climate (Australia) but I don't want to make a choice based solely on this. I was wondering if you guys could help out with a few questions, any answers would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Where are most of the petroleum engineering jobs located in Australia - I think I'd like to live in a big city so Melbourne, Sydney come to mind right off the bat. Perth might be a bit too far off for me since it seems like it will be quite a commute to go visit another place.
> ...


From what you've said about living/working in a warm climate you should abandon all thoughts about coming to Canada. As the previous poster said most jobs in the oil/gas business are in Alberta and that is cold country. Much of the resource is in the north of the Province and that's even closer to the Arctic Circle. The cold weather is one of the big complaints from immigrants to this country. They think they know cold, but believe me, they do not. It can easily be -20 to -40 for 5-6 months of the year.


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## thesfactor (Jul 9, 2009)

AuldYin and Dakus77 - Thank you both for your replies. I greatly appreciate all this input. I understand that Canada is very cold, my uncles live in Ontario and I've visited only in the Summer...for good reason 

Dakus 77 - I'm a production engineer with 2 yrs experience with Schlumberger. I don't have any Shale gas, SAGD, CBM or heavy oil experience for that matter since I am just starting out. I understand what you are saying with regards to staying in the US and improving upon my skills first. However, I was thinking that I should work on a backup as well, in case I lose my job in the US because of the recession. I don't know if I can get a job in canada before I get there and without a PR visa because of my inexperience. Thanks so much for your input though, I wish you all the best with everything. Please let me know if you think there is anything else for me to be aware of.


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