Where do you hear this?  Most international players have preference to hire MSc and PhD students only...  especially in the US....

Oh yes, of course. With no replies from the E&P companies my next best would be oil service companies. Engineering/ construction companies like Technip and Aker seem to only want MechEs, and CivilEs. Basically my preference: E&P jobs > industry-related engineering jobs > industry-related non-engineering job.

Local or MNC, low (but not too low lah) pay or high pay doesn't matter much to me for my first real job. As long as the company provides a good platform to self-learn and decent mentorship I will take it.

I heard it from my observations and hearsay :-D

Ok I shouldn't have called it a fact, and it's still a much-debated topic. But it was obvious to me through all the relevant job postings that a degree was sufficient. Only in majors like Geology would a Master's be indicated, which is the industry norm. The way I see it from the companies perspective, is that a bachelor's degree is sufficient in proving that the individual is competent in carrying out the task. Why then should they employ the fresh MSc/PhD holder over the fresh degree holder, if they have to provide a higher salary. The value of a MSc holder is his depth of knowledge. Unfortunately some companies don't value this extra knowledge. In a high risk, high reward environment, yes the skills of a MSc holder would be highly appreciated, an example would be the field of reservoir engineering; you don't want to overestimate reserves and end up losing millions of ringgit. But for the bulk of jobs out there that are relevant to petroleum engineering; a bachelor's degree is sufficient. And I'm pretty sure it's the same scenario in the US; most PE students do the MSc program not to escape the horrible job search but because they're genuinely interested in research. Proof being that MSc programs have very high undergrad CGPA requirements.

Ah I totally forgot about the alternate route of grad school. The earliest I could finish at UTP (they don't seem to specify a minimum CGPA requirement) would be 1.5 years, but who knows how industry employment will be like then? People keep talking about an economy bubble burst. Our national oil reserves are falling faster than it's being replenished. Other MNCs may follow Newfield in exiting Malaysia to concentrate on their shale assets elsewhere. All this combined with the generally agreed on fact that Masters' holders have less job opportunities than degree holders  (the "overqualified applicant" argument), I think I'll take my chances gaining valuable O&G experience during the 1.5 years, even if it's non-engineering related.

I've been a professional in O&G for close to 2 decades and I never heard of the crap you mentioned about the "fact that Master's holders have less job opportunities than degree holders". Where did you get the idea? From your academic advisor in UTP? Has he ever worked in O&G? You admitted you were a recent graduate but you wrote like you knew the O&G since birth. You get hands-on advices from experienced professionals in O&G in this forum and yet you dismissed the advices without much care. Probably the problem with you landing a job in the O&G is not due to your CGPA, but with your attitude. Look into the mirror, boy!

fresh graduates nowadays aiming for big companies only, and never paid attention to other so-called small companies. Some of them even reject offers from this small companies, and wait for big companies to call and etc.

i'm working with vendor/supplier in ong currently, and of course the pay is not as big as the client. but in term of career advancement, i believe you'll learn more in this side, rather than the another. that's good for you experience and knowledge. you can jump ships after 3-4 years, and maybe at the end, you'll end up at client side too, who knows?

my advice is work your way up. dont just jump straightaway. yes, you can do that but dont ever underestimates the other companies as well..

Ah I totally forgot about the alternate route of grad school. The earliest I could finish at UTP (they don't seem to specify a minimum CGPA requirement) would be 1.5 years, but who knows how industry employment will be like then? People keep talking about an economy bubble burst. Our national oil reserves are falling faster than it's being replenished. Other MNCs may follow Newfield in exiting Malaysia to concentrate on their shale assets elsewhere. All this combined with the generally agreed on fact that Masters' holders have less job opportunities than degree holders  (the "overqualified applicant" argument), I think I'll take my chances gaining valuable O&G experience during the 1.5 years, even if it's non-engineering related.

I graduated recently with a degree in petroleum engineering, but with below average grades (the basis of rejection from big companies, and therefore an underlying assumption for the rest of the post). I have no hesitation starting with smaller, lesser-known companies, and even agree with your opinion that one may learn more (though this depends highly on the individual's motivation).

But see my dilemma here: for MechE, EE, ChemE etc. there are many small-scale companies offering work relevant to their degree. But for petroleum engineers, as far as I know there isn't a single small, local company hiring petroleum engineers to work as a reservoir/drilling/production engineer, at least not one that will overlook my grades (grades aren't exactly failing, a 2.8/4.0). Even Petronas's G.E.E.S program requires a 3.0. Hence I don't know where my "work from bottom" lies at. Unless it means foregoing a reservoir engineering career forever and working with service companies. This is a leading question to...if I work for a service company for 2-3 years, coming out of it will I be able to land an entry-level reservoir/production engineer job with operator companies? Working as a driller for a service company is fun, I agree, but if I had to choose between drilling and reservoir/production I would go with the latter due to the cyclical nature of the O&G industry. During times of less exploration, reservoir/production engineers stay employed, not so for drilling engineers

And would you advise against working non-engineering jobs (e.g. drilling technical assistant, field technician) for 1-2 yrs experience v.s waiting longer for more engineering opportunities? Again, would this affect my hiring chances as an entry-level drilling/production/reservoir engineer? I truly appreciate any advice you guys could provide.

any chance you will be able to do a masters degree in petroleum engineering with your 2.80 CGPA?

if you can, then you should consider doing a masters degree and study like hell to get 4.00 CGPA when you graduate. that way will increase your chance of being offered a job as a petroleum engineer working as reservoir engineer. you can explain to the would be employer that you were having too much fun partying during your undergraduate days that it affected your studies and hence your low CGPA, and you have since "repented" and have worked hard for your masters degree and hence you manage to score a perfect CGPA (or near there).

recently i gave the same advice to two fresh graduates with 3.10 CGPA to take up a masters degree in their field. they were unsuccessful to obtain employment in the companies of their choices. now they working their asses off to get their masters degrees with flying colours. 

Ah I totally forgot about the alternate route of grad school. The earliest I could finish at UTP (they don't seem to specify a minimum CGPA requirement) would be 1.5 years, but who knows how industry employment will be like then? People keep talking about an economy bubble burst. Our national oil reserves are falling faster than it's being replenished. Other MNCs may follow Newfield in exiting Malaysia to concentrate on their shale assets elsewhere. All this combined with the generally agreed on fact that Masters' holders have less job opportunities than degree holders  (the "overqualified applicant" argument), I think I'll take my chances gaining valuable O&G experience during the 1.5 years, even if it's non-engineering related.

im probably asking too much.. but is there anyone from Miri sarawak?

have anyone tried getting into O&G field with Diploma? im sure those technician position are Dip level no?

i have applied to various companies to no luck. im willing to get a job non related to E&E. cant seem to apply for smaller companies as they mostly are employing Engineers which is Degree based.

tough luck here even though theres alot of O&G companies

Dude, have you considered applying to Uzma? as far as i know, this company does employ fresh grads for PE majors... the boss himself is a PE major from USA . Maybe can try giving a shot.. since thier client base are all big shots also ie. Petronas, Emepmi, Talisman etc etc.

Keep trying. I am using my Electrical Eng. Diploma to get a job in this field. Will be reporting for duty at Labuan this December after 2 month wait since the first interview. Just keep trying. Some company will give you a second chance for interview from what I have seen.

Keep trying. I am using my Electrical Eng. Diploma to get a job in this field. Will be reporting for duty at Labuan this December after 2 month wait since the first interview. Just keep trying. Some company will give you a second chance for interview from what I have seen.