Occupational Employment and Wages, November 2004

17-2171 Petroleum Engineers

Devise methods to improve oil and gas well production and determine the need for new or modified tool designs. Oversee drilling and offer technical advice to achieve economical and satisfactory progress.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
14,790 7.2 % $44.64 $92,840 1.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $23.67 $31.89 $43.29 $55.34 $67.72
Annual Wage (2) $49,240 $66,340 $90,040 $115,100 $140,850

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Oil and gas extraction 7,220 $49.41 $102,770
Architectural and engineering services 1,770 $41.24 $85,780
Support activities for mining 1,760 $39.56 $82,280
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing 720 $44.06 $91,650
Management of companies and enterprises 390 $46.64 $97,010

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Oil and gas extraction 7,220 $49.41 $102,770
Management of companies and enterprises 390 $46.64 $97,010
Other financial investment activities 90 $46.38 $96,480
Petroleum merchant wholesalers 60 $45.64 $94,930
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing 720 $44.06 $91,650

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
Oklahoma 1,600 $42.68 $88,780 0.111%
Wyoming 250 $30.23 $62,870 0.101%
Alaska 270 $52.51 $109,220 0.091%
Texas 7,270 $48.00 $99,840 0.078%
Louisiana 880 $42.66 $88,740 0.047%

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
Alaska 270 $52.51 $109,220 0.091%
Colorado 430 $49.99 $103,980 0.020%
Ohio 320 $49.74 $103,450 0.006%
Texas 7,270 $48.00 $99,840 0.078%
California 1,240 $45.09 $93,790 0.008%

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Casper, WY MSA 150 $26.79 $55,720 0.426%
Houston, TX PMSA 4,470 $48.53 $100,950 0.212%
Bakersfield, CA MSA 450 $46.47 $96,660 0.190%
Lafayette, LA MSA 220 $42.23 $87,840 0.132%
Tulsa, OK MSA 460 $39.78 $82,730 0.121%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Tyler, TX MSA 30 $56.15 $116,790 0.035%
Anchorage, AK MSA 160 $54.07 $112,460 0.114%
Amarillo, TX MSA 60 $52.56 $109,320 0.060%
Odessa-Midland, TX MSA (7) $50.13 $104,280 (7)
Fort Worth-Arlington, TX PMSA 350 $50.01 $104,030 0.046%

About November 2004 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(7) Estimate not released.

All Architecture and Engineering Occupations

November 2004 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2004 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2004 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2004 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download November 2004 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: November 9, 2005