I am an Aggie class of 2010 and have been in law enforcement for the past 6 years in the Midland/Odessa area. I am looking to get in to the oil and gas industry. Any advice on on where to apply or what part of the industry I should apply to would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

HSE is probably your best bet.

Or security.

Why HSE? I am looking on their website and it does show numerous job listings but would it be better to go to their company site her and apply in person?

Where would I find the security job listings? I hear those pay well.

Not sure where you would find them listed, but best net would be to talk to anyone you know in Oil and Gas. You would most likely be looking for a large Operating Company.

Quick explanation of industry structure
-Upstream: typically everything from in the ground to the wellhead/production facilities also known as E&P (exploration and production)
-Midstream: typically from wellhead/production facilities to terminals/refineries etc
-Downstream: from refineries to distribution/retail/end user

Within upstream, you have 2 major components.
-Operators/E&P Companies: these are the companies that actually own and produce oil and Nat gas assets, Fewer people work for operators in our industry but for security i would guess this is your best bet. Think Exxon, BHP, EOG, Anadarko, Marathon, Conoco etc
-Service companies: majority of upstream jobs are here, these are companies that help operators get oil/gas out of the ground. But I'm not sure they hire a lot of security but I could be wrong. Think Halliburton, Schlumberger, FracTech etc.

These is a very crude (pun intended) explanation of how the industry is structured that you might find useful.

Check out rigzone.com for job listings

HSE stands for Health Safety & Environmental. It's your "safety" background as a cop that might get your foot in the door. Also, some HSE position include security. Although, security for them also includes computer networks, which is a bit out of your wheel house. And, you'd probably have to pick up the "Environmental" part along the way. Actually, it might be a good piece of business for you too look into a college course, seminar or other covering environmental to improve that part of your resume. IMO, that's the most likely way for you to get a foot in the door of O&G, and that's what you asked.

Good luck.

I've also hear it as HSSE, due to the "security" part being added in.

Ah ok thank you so much!!

I work for one of the big O&G companies right now. I was just talking to my boss and he said for every job posting they get a minimum of 400-500 applications. Make sure your resume is tailored specifically to highlight the experience you have to match the job you want. If a skill isn't relevant, don't bother including it. (This advice came straight from my boss.)

I got my foot in the door by going through a temp agency that the company uses. They will almost always give you priority and put you on a short list of interviewees when something full-time opens up.

Go be a roughneck

Being in law enforcement means you have a clean back ground. Being local means you don't have to be paid to travel in.

Go walk into any schlumberger office and tell them you would like an opportunity. You should have no problem finding a job. It will be in the field but it will be an opportunity.

Good people are so rare in the Permian that hands are rotating 20 on 10 off out of florida, Arizona and California.

Ragoo said:

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Being in law enforcement means you have a clean back ground. Being local means you don't have to be paid to travel in.

Go walk into any schlumberger office and tell them you would like an opportunity. You should have no problem finding a job. It will be in the field but it will be an opportunity.

Good people are so rare in the Permian that hands are rotating 20 on 10 off out of florida, Arizona and California.

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What hourly rate would you expect him to be able to demand right away? What about a year from now if he proves good at whatever roughneck job he gets?

I would need to check around. I am not based in Odessa or do the hiring out there but I speak with colleagues frequently that have communicated the frustration in lack of local hireable talent.

Feedback is $15+/hr.

I received some additional feedback.

Entry level trainee is $16.20ish an hour and over time that can grow to upwards of $41/hour. The later is like a 10+ year person who has a very diverse and advanced understanding of the equipment but the mid point of that range can be realized in just a couple of years.

That sounds reasonable. I was thinking entry level was in the $15-20 range and someone with some experience was around $40/hr. My experience is with water transfer and water midstream related roles.

Goose06 said:

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That sounds reasonable. I was thinking entry level was in the $15-20 range and someone with some experience was around $40/hr. My experience is with water transfer and water midstream related roles.

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oh yeah? Still doing those functions?

I do business development for a water midstream company

Anyone have insight about getting on as corrosion inspector (NACE certified)?