Petroleum Engineer Jobs in Houston, TX
Houston is still where petroleum engineers get hired, from ExxonMobil's campus in Spring to ConocoPhillips' global headquarters. Local pay is high, with a metro median near $170,000 a year. Here are the current openings, followed by who is hiring and how to get in.
Current petroleum engineer Openings in Houston, TX
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Petroleum Engineer Work in Houston
Most petroleum engineering jobs in Houston are office and campus roles that plan and manage wells in fields far from the city. ExxonMobil's reservoir and simulation engineers work at its Spring campus off the North Freeway, Halliburton runs a software group off Sam Houston Parkway East on the North Belt, and operator and service offices cluster in the Energy Corridor along the Katy Freeway and in Westchase. Current postings lean toward unconventional work: shale reservoirs, simulation models and completions design for basins in West Texas and beyond, run from desks in Houston.
Hiring is selective. The Greater Houston Partnership's 2026 forecast expects oil and gas extraction to shed about 3,200 jobs this year while health care drives regional growth, so openings tend to be specific, experienced roles and new-graduate programs rather than broad hiring waves. Consolidation has also reshaped the employer list: Chevron now owns Hess, and ConocoPhillips owns Marathon Oil.
Top Houston Employers Hiring Petroleum Engineers
These Houston employers have posted or described petroleum engineering roles on their own careers sites:
- ExxonMobil - hires unconventional reservoir engineers and reservoir simulation engineers at its Spring campus.
- Chevron - lists Houston as a location for its full-time petroleum engineer program for new graduates.
- ConocoPhillips - the Houston-headquartered producer recruits for drilling, completions, production and reservoir engineering.
- Halliburton - the oilfield services company hires petroleum engineers for its Landmark software team on the North Belt.
Petroleum Engineer Salaries in Houston
- Entry level: about $90,000 to $150,000 a year; Chevron's posted range for new graduates is $108,000 to $150,000.
- Experienced: roughly $150,000 to $200,000 a year, with the Houston median near $170,000.
- Senior and staff: $250,000 to $290,000 or more a year at the top of the market.
These are estimates based on federal wage data for the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro and employer postings. Pay moves with the employer and with specialty, as reservoir simulation and unconventional completions experience command a premium. Bonuses and hiring both rise and fall with oil prices, so the same title can pay very differently from one year to the next.
How to Become a Petroleum Engineer in Houston
You need a bachelor's degree in engineering, usually petroleum engineering, although ExxonMobil's postings also accept chemical or mechanical engineering degrees. The University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering runs a Department of Petroleum Engineering at UH Technology Bridge on the Gulf Freeway, with a BS, an MS and an online Master of Petroleum Engineering. Texas A&M's Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering in College Station is another common route. For a technician route, Houston City College, formerly Houston Community College, offers a Petroleum Engineering Technology AAS at its Northeast Campus. Professional Engineer licenses are issued by the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors; most engineers working on their employer's own oil and gas operations are exempt, but you need a PE to offer engineering services to the public.
What the Job Involves
Petroleum engineers decide how to get oil and gas out of a reservoir safely and at a profit. Daily work includes building and running reservoir simulation models, analyzing production data, designing well completions, estimating reserves, running economic evaluations of new wells, and working with geologists, geophysicists and field crews. Office roles still involve field visits and, for some, offshore or rotational assignments.
Skills Employers Look For
- Reservoir engineering and simulation software such as Petrel or Eclipse
- Production and decline curve analysis
- Well completion and hydraulic fracturing design
- Python or other scripting for data work
- Economic evaluation and reserves estimation
- Clear communication with geoscience and field teams
Career Path and Advancement
Most Houston petroleum engineers start through a new-graduate program or internship with an operator or service company, often with rotations through reservoir, production and completions work. From there the ladder runs to senior engineer, staff or principal engineer, and asset or engineering manager. Some move into software and data roles, like the petroleum engineers in Halliburton's Landmark group. The SPE Gulf Coast Section, based in Westchase, is the local professional network.
Related Careers in Houston
If petroleum engineering interests you, these related Houston roles are worth a look:
Frequently Asked Questions
Do petroleum engineers in Houston need a PE license?
Usually not for a job with an oil and gas company. Texas law exempts much of an employer's in-house oil and gas engineering, so many working petroleum engineers never hold a PE. You do need one from the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors to offer engineering services to the public or sign off as a consultant.
How much do petroleum engineers make in Houston?
Federal wage data puts the Houston median near $170,000 a year, with the bottom 10 percent around $90,000 and the top 10 percent above $288,000. Chevron's posted range for its new-graduate petroleum engineer program is $108,000 to $150,000.
Where are petroleum engineering jobs in Houston located?
Jobs sit at ExxonMobil's campus in Spring, the Energy Corridor along the Katy Freeway, Westchase, downtown and the North Belt. Most roles are office based, with field visits to the basins the team supports.
Can I get hired with a chemical or mechanical engineering degree?
Yes, for some roles. ExxonMobil's Houston reservoir postings list petroleum, chemical or mechanical engineering as preferred degrees. A petroleum engineering degree or a master's in the field still makes you more competitive for reservoir and completions work.
Is petroleum engineering hiring growing in Houston?
Not much right now. The Greater Houston Partnership expects oil and gas extraction jobs to shrink in 2026, so competition is stiff and openings are targeted. Experienced reservoir and simulation engineers and new-graduate programs are where the hiring is.
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