HOW ENGINEERING GRADUATES CAN DEAL WITH EMPLOYMENT CHALLENGE - ESPECIALLY IN OIL/GAS FIELDS

As a graduate of petroleum engineering, and a one-time applicant, I
can easily say that this is the most competitive engineering course in Nigeria. The country produce thousands of graduate engineers annually, but the major challenge is that the field is very narrow. Unlike other engineering...
disciplines, it is either you work in an oil industry or
you are out of your field of study.
Think about it; how many Nigerian universities offer Petroleum
Engineering as a course of study?
*.Federal University of Technology Owerri
*.University of Ibadan
*.University of Benin
*.University of Lagos
*.University of Port-Harcourt
Since we are not fond of statistics in the country, I can't state the
average number of students in these schools studying petroleum and
related engineering courses. But by mere observation, we can safely
assume that they are in the thousands.
In my university days, 2002 -2006 session, I had over 300 course mates
most of whom have abandoned their field to work in banks,
pharmaceutical, education and other unrelated industries. As for me, I
ended up a writer, web developer and web marketing strategist for
businesses – after moving from several fields like building
construction and education agency /consulting service.
The competition
I remember one of my course mates confessing how intimidated he was
when he met a graduate from PTI – Petroleum Training Institute Warri.
Those students at PTI and other technical institutes learn more
practical and applicable skills than we do in our typical
universities. And that sets them at advantage when competing for
practical jobs in the petroleum industry.
Those of our counterparts who eventually get a job in oil and gas
companies are either:
1.Lucky
2.Have the contacts or
3.Have advanced training beyond their B.Eng – No, I'm not talking
about Masters degree.
As an engineer, if you are to be among the few and highly favored who
eventually get a job in the oil and gas section, then you need one or
all of the above factors. Interestingly, you can increase you luck,
contacts and chances of getting a job in the petroleum industry by
doing one thing; participating in advance training in oil and gas
industry. And doing it in an environment where you can develop
contacts with industry practitioners.
Fortunately, there are several oil and gas-related training programs
to undergo and stand out from the thousands of competing job seekers.
One of such recommended training isNon-Destructive Testing -NDT.
Non-destructive testing (NDT)is a wide group of analysis techniques
used in science and industry to evaluate the properties of a material,
component or system without causing damage. As a petroleum engineering
student, you should have done this during one of your courses on Oil
and Gas Exploration.
Because NDT does not permanently alter the material being inspected,
it is a highly valuable technique that can save both money and time in
oil and gas evaluation, exploration and maintenance. Common NDT
methods include ultrasonic, magnetic-particle, liquid penetrant and
radiographic.
NDT is commonly used in oil and gas exploration and is a much needed
service in the sector. Participating in NDT certificate training
program will offer you more added advantage over your contemporaries.
ASNT Certificationis the most recognized credential for NDT. ANST
certification has been the standard for the Non-Destructive Testing
industry for nearly half a century. ASNT is accredited as a
third-party certification body by the American National Standards
Institute (ANSI).
How to enroll for NDT training
There are few companies offering NDT training with ASNT certification
in Nigeria. One of such companies is Mound Inspection Nigeria Limited.
This company offers NDT training with ASNT certifications.
ASNT/NDT Training In Lagos, Nigeria
Mound Inspection is currently accepting new entrants for an ultra
Modern practical NDT training and ASNT Certifications. This training
is intended for inspection Engineers/technicians who are already
practicing or engineers who want to get into the exciting, rewarding
and rapidly expanding field of NDT.