Howdy,
I am a mechanical engineer with a masters in petroleum engineering, it was hard for me to find a job in oil & gas so I was working with a construction company for the last two and a half years.

Recently, I have accepted an offer from Halliburton to work in Sperry with an intent to move to production enhancements or completions as soon as I can, I thought it will be easier to move while in Halliburton.

I was told today that I can't make a crossover to a different PSL before two to three years, I don't want to stay in Sperry for that long as my goal is to work as a production or completion engineer. I am seeking an advice/help from my fellow Aggies here as I feel that I got stuck in Sperry because of my poor judgment.

Thanks.

That's pretty normal.

No one wants to spend 6 months getting you up to speed for you to transfer at the end of the year. It would kill them. The last place I worked had 18 month minimums on roles before you could make a jump. I thought that was pretty accommodating.

If you're up front about getting in to just make a jump it could complicate things. If you're truly looking for a career opportunity, it sounds like you have it. It's a lot easier to make a move to a competitor for the role you want if you're in a similar role once you've got two to three years experience at big red. Sounds like this opportunity could provide that in multiple forms.

Edited to add

You won't be moving PSLs any time soon - Halliburton is a large company and any internal moves have to be approved by the Sperry PSL. It's ok to show ambition by Halliburton isn't like that all the time. Training is expensive as mentioned above.

Your career path for Sperry is to go from MWD to DD. If you're not comfortable with doing any of that, I'd be looking to move out of Halliburton.

Also, in my experience, it's not as easy to transition to an ops role these days. They are truly looking for experienced completion/production engineers for these roles.

You could try doing MWD/DD and then switching to a smaller MWD/DD company or look to get into frac/completion tools with another service company.

Thank you very much for replying.
I believe I will start looking outside of Halliburton, any advice or leads will be highly appreciated.

Have you already officially started with Halliburton? If so, trying to jump ship immediately is going to be very poor optics for any hiring manager.

Moh said:

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Howdy,
I am a mechanical engineer with a masters in petroleum engineering, it was hard for me to find a job in oil & gas so I was working with a construction company for the last two and a half years.

Recently, I have accepted an offer from Halliburton to work in Sperry with an intent to move to production enhancements or completions as soon as I can, I thought it will be easier to move while in Halliburton.

I was told today that I can't make a crossover to a different PSL before two to three years, I don't want to stay in Sperry for that long as my goal is to work as a production or completion engineer. I am seeking an advice/help from my fellow Aggies here as I feel that I got stuck in Sperry because of my poor judgment.

Thanks.

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How did you wind up at Sperry in the first place? Did you not voice your interest in completions during your interview? If you did, and they still assigned you to Sperry, it looks like they placed you where the job openings are.

I would recommend sticking it out for the 2 or 3 years they expect out of new hires. At least two. If it looks like there's still no chance after two years, that is at least a long enough stint there to look respectable in front of another company.

In the meantime, you've got two years at big red. I'd find every reason possible to network with the other teams, especially enhancements and completions.

Thank you for replying, I lack the experience in this field and that's why I turned to my great fellow Ags here.

Halliburton is a great company and that's why I got disappointed when I realized that there is no way for me currently to jump to PE or Completions, my problem with Sperry is the future outlook, I am not interested in a career as a DD or in data management and i don't see a career in Sperry that leads to something else. Do you agree?

You are correct. I had two interviews, one with Sperry and the other one with Completions. I clearly expressed my interest in completions in multiple occasions but Sperry wanted to hire someone urgently while completions where interviewing for future positions.

I am only afraid that I will be wasting my time in Sperry if I am pursuing a career in enhancements or completions, and after reading the previous answers and searching online, it is easy to conclude that Sperry doesn't lead into a career for engineers.

I would've thought someone with your career choice, would've at least fine with frac. Since that is on the completions side of things.

I'd stick with Halliburton. Get your field experience. You'll also have access to Halliburton's online training modules for just about everything within Halliburton, take advantage of this.

This experience along with your education should set you up very well into a drilling engineer role. That can then lead you into Production/Completions.

Can also lead you into a Company Man/Drill-Site Manager role.

The more you know experience, the better you'll be prepared for the future in O&G.

Moh said:

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You are correct. I had two interviews, one with Sperry and the other one with Completions. I clearly expressed my interest in completions in multiple occasions but Sperry wanted to hire someone urgently while completions where interviewing for future positions.

I am only afraid that I will be wasting my time in Sperry if I am pursuing a career in enhancements or completions, and after reading the previous answers and searching online, it is easy to conclude that Sperry doesn't lead into a career for engineers.

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Wait are you a design engineer or a field engineer? You said you did ME then PE. If you're design, sticking with Sperry and transferring in 2 years is absolutely your best route. There's a lot fewer people dedicated to designing the tools than running them. Once you know Halliburton's internal processes, you'll be a good candidate when you want to transfer.

If you're field, you could cut bait and hope another company doesn't care about this misadventure. Beware though, many hiring managers do, and you've got a 'new hire's' profile. There are plenty of applicants out there who don't have a potential red flag. Even if this works and you get picked up though, remember that Halliburton has the largest presence in fracking. If you ever decide to go back to them, HR might have flagged your profile.

Its your career, don't let a bunch of online folks hold too much sway. But it looks like Halliburton gave you an opportunity that wasn't otherwise lining up. After you're out of college for 3 years most businesses don't let you be declared as a fresh out new hire. You're then a mid career and you have to have experience to be considered.

There is a lot to learn about the OG that isn't taught in school. I would take the opportunity in front of you and run with it. Even if you can't stand it and bail after a year, that is still going to look way better than 2 months.