Working in Oil & Gas
A Day in the Life
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a career in oil and gas? Get the whole story from the people in the field, as they tell you about their typical days on the job.
Craig – Bed Truck Operator
Craig Copeland drives a truck equipped with a winch, loads and unloads equipment and does "spotting" or positioning equipment at the rig site.
Elaine – Chief Geophysicist (PDF)
Elaine never imagined working in the oil and gas industry growing up in her home town of Mississauga, Ontario. Upon entering university, she became aware of the exciting world of geophysics, and has never looked back. Her early career in mining as a geophysicist, proved to be the ‘foot in the door’ she needed to convince oil and gas employers to hire her as a seismic data processor.
Nic – Derrickhand
At 25, Nic already has a dream life of travel, good times and a great salary which he credits to hard work in the petroleum industry. Currently, Nic works in the drilling sector as a derrickhand working his way up to become assistant driller for Nabors Drilling International.
Lance – District Landman (PDF)
Nine years later and still going strong, Lance worked his way up into his current role as a district landman. The job suits him perfectly, and has close ties to the rural farmers and landowners he frequently works with.
Rick – District Manager
Rick White worked his way up through the ranks. Now he makes sure that "the crews are at the right place at the right time and that they get the job done."
Ayesha – Field Engineer
Ayesha Khory is a field engineer in charge of a three-person electric wireline crew that runs measuring and data gathering tools down into open wells.
Tim – Field Operator (PDF)
I spent 15 years in agricultural retail before applying, and was really surprised at the variety of backgrounds people came from. There is also a lot of responsibility given to individuals who are looking for a challenging career.
Souk – Field Technologist (PDF)
Having worked in the industry as a Field Technologist with Canadian Natural Resources (CNRL) for the past 3 years, Souk's view of oil and gas operations has certainly broadened. Souk is now at the very centre of it all, keeping tabs on daily production for producing wells.
Krysia – Summer Intern – Law / Aboriginal Relations
Krysia is an eighth-year summer student at TransCanada Pipelines in Calgary, aspiring to become a full-fledged lawyer with the company. As a summer law student in the Aboriginal Relations department, Krysia shuffles between reviewing legal agreements, providing feedback on Aboriginal issues and inspiring other Aboriginal youth about the numerous opportunities available in the oil and gas sector.
Faron – Plant Manager
Faron Ritz started his career as a journeyman welder. Now he hires, trains and supervises a team of welders, supervises plant safety and works on research and development projects.
Amy – Production Engineer (PDF)
Production engineers are typically involved in the full life-cycle of a well. My hands touch everything from the design, construction, operation, maintenance, quality control and optimization of systems involved in oil and gas production. Production engineers are the "practical side" of the industry, central to field operations.
Jackie – Production Field Administrator (PDF)
As a Production Field Admin, I mainly work in an office setting. It's a desk job and most of my day is spent doing data entry, or helping out where needed. I have regular working hours, and I'm able to make it home to prep dinner for my one-year old son.
Kerria, Health, Safety & Environment Advisor (PDF)
Kerria landed her current role as a Health, Safety and Environment Advisor (HSE Advisor) with CCS Midstream (CCS), after hearing about the tremendous growth potential in the industry from her peers.
Jullien – Seismic GPS Rover
Jullien helps the surveyor as required and is responsible for giving the surveyor accurate shots on all shot points and land contours.
Andre – Seismic Line Crew Helper
As a Line Crew Helper, Andre lays out and picks up seismic recording equipment for 2D and 3D land seismic data acquisition.
Travis – Senior Observer
During seismic tests, observers like Travis work in a recording truck, using two-way radios to direct the work of crew members involved in the tests.
Warren – Service Rig Operator (Driller)
Warren Butler is a driller on a service rig. It's his job to supervise the rig crew, which consists of himself, a roughneck, a derrickman and a leasehand.
Steve – Well Testing Operator
Steve Dumontet works on a crew that tests wells for things like flow rate, pressure, salinity, or anything else the operator wants to know.
