Nigeria or the North Sea? Whether you fancy a future in exploration, production, manufacturing or refining, supply and distribution, R&D or in business or IT, here are a few specialist roles to whet your appetite:

Mudlogger. With the best job title by far, mudloggers (also known as logging geologists or mudlogging geologists) work at wellsites where they collect, analyse and record complex data from drilling operations. Usually armed with a degree in geology, mudloggers often act as drilling engineers.

Drilling engineer. Often qualified mechanical engineers, a drilling engineer develops, plans, costs, schedules and supervises onsite well operations from well design to testing and completion, and finally shutting drilling operations down.

Environmental consultant. Favourite colour: green (probably). Environmental consultants are responsible for protecting the environment by identifying, assessing and managing the effects of human activity such as oil exploration. Tasks range from environmental audits to contaminated land reclamation and river control works.

Wellsite geologist. They examine and identify rock cuttings taken from oil and gas wells to determine how drilling should proceed. They are experienced geologists who decide when specialised tests should be carried out and when drilling should stop.

Offshore diver. Fins always at the ready, offshore divers are mainly used to explore and survey oil and gas sites, and to build, repair and inspect drilling platforms and pipelines. Some hold degrees in surveying and engineering. Commercial divers have to pass regular medical checks and have survival and safety training.

Sources: energyzone.net/towardsacareer; prospects.ac.uk

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