Only hiring young engineers; What is your advice for a 27 years experienced engineer looking for a job

I was a production engineer with 28 years diverse experience and was laid off 2 years ago. I moved from Oklahoma to Houston hoping that this oil capital of the world would give me an edge in search for a job. Lately in the last two months there were a flurry of job advertisements for production/ completion/ petroleum engineers. However, all of them only requires engineer with a few years experience. What is your advice for a 55 years old to compete? I wonder I am in the dinosaur category and the signs pointing me to hang up my gloves.

There are a couple of job advertisements lately from Aramco that requires 15 years+ experience. However, their requirements written are out of this world.

Below is a short examples of recent 3 weeks advertisements:

EP Energy - Staff Completion Engineer - requires 6+ years experience

EP Energy - Production Engineer II - requires 1+ years engineering experience

BreitBurn - Senior Production Engineer- requires 8+ years operations/production/drilling experience

BHP Billiton - Sr Completion Engineer North American Shale - requires 7 years in drilling, completions, workover

Marathon Oil - Completions Engineer II - requires 2 to 5 years experience in completion, production, or workover experience

I can give you a few more examples, but you get the points......

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7 replies (most recent on top)

Career prospects go down hill quickly after age 40. After 30 years in the oil and gas industry an engineer cannot help but have resources sufficient to stop worrying about full time employment. Pursue contract and/or consultant or enter other fields. Little if any options for a new job at a new company matching the pay and benefits in the last job at the last company.

WalMart may be hiring life-experienced people as greeters.

I am over 60 and comfortably retired, but I do contract work at $1500/d. I work only about 2 days a week and can gross over $150k per year. Not bad for part-time work. My clients benefit because they only hire me when there is work. And they don't have to pay medical, Social security and pension benefits and maintain expensive office space. Now they want to hire me to train all the young folks that can't do the work. I raised my rate to $2000/d and they didn't blink.

I sincerely hate to rain on your parade, but you will not be hired for any of these positions... even if you meet/exceed all requirements and agree to substandard wagers. This is just the brutal reality of business in the 21st century. They will hire a younger candidate that is 'hungrier' and will more readily eat their BS.

Tell the prospective company that you will give them 27 years of experience for the price of a 6-7 year hand. Definitely would be a pay cut, but having a pay check is better than not having one.

become a consultant/contract engineer.. Then there is no age discrimination.

PEs what you waiting for? Grab these opportunities by p&@$! as rightly said by the idiot President.

Thread regarding ConocoPhillips layoffs

Only hiring young engineers; What is your advice for a 27 years experienced engineer looking for a job

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