Job prospects Petroleum Engineer in British Columbia

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "petroleum engineer" in British Columbia or across Canada.

Job opportunities in British Columbia

These outlooks were updated on November 29, 2023.

Prospects over the next 3 years

The employment outlook will be moderate for Petroleum engineers (NOC 21332) in British Columbia for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment decline will lead to the loss of some positions.
• Not many positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

• Demand for engineering professions will continue to be high. Increased educational requirements and a high level of technical knowledge required for these positions make recruitment difficult.

Here are some key facts about Petroleum engineers in British Columbia:

• Approximately 150 people worked in this occupation in May 2021.
• Petroleum engineers mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Architectural, engineering and design services (NAICS 5413): 39%
  • Oil and gas extraction (NAICS 211): 28%
  • Support activities for mining, oil and gas (NAICS 213): 21%
  • Provincial and territorial public administration (NAICS 912): 7%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 83% compared to 78% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 17% compared to 22% for all occupations
• 52% of petroleum engineers work all year, while 48% work only part of the year, compared to 61% and 39% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 40 weeks compared to 42 weeks for all occupations.
• 27% of petroleum engineers are self-employed compared to an average of 17% for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 87% compared to 52% for all occupations
  • Women: 13% compared to 48% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: n/a
  • high school diploma or equivalent: n/a
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: n/a
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: n/a
  • bachelor's degree: 56% compared to 22% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: 35% compared to 12% for all occupations

Breakdown by region

Explore job prospects in British Columbia by economic region.

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology