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Petroleum Engineering

A Guide to Studying Petroleum Engineering in Europe

Did you know that, as an international student, you can get a degree in Petroleum Engineering at a top-ranked European university? Best of all, it's taught entirely in English and costs less than 1 year of tuition at a US college.

What are my options?

2
European Bachelor's programs taught entirely in English.
17
European Master's programs taught entirely in English.

About this area of study.

There are certainly job opportunities available to petroleum engineers within the United States, but someone considering this major should ideally be prepared to work in far-off places. For whatever reason, oil and gas tend to be found in deserts, jungles, tundra, and under the sea. Also, if you were to pick up a second language like Arabic, Spanish, French, or Russian while you get your degree, potential employers are likely to notice.

Petroleum engineers earn a hefty average of $138,000 per year. Several specializations are available, including refining, petroleum exploration, geosciences, drilling and fracking, process control, geosciences, and petroleum transportation.

Careers options in this area of study.

Though things may look differently in twenty or thirty years, for now the economy and everyone participating in it are dependent on oil. Petroleum is a huge and specialized industry - though mechanical, electronic, and civil engineers have their roles to play, engineers trained in the specific practices involved in locating, extracting, and transporting petroleum are highly employable.

Depending on the university you choose, you'll start your course of study with the science and math fundamentals every engineer is expected to know. In later semesters, you will be taught about geology, daily activities in the petroleum industry, specific safety rules, and how drilling, well construction, offshore operations, and pipelines work. 

You will also be exposed to the industry as a whole, including the economics of oil and policy issues. All told, this knowledge is quite valuable, as it significantly decreases the onboarding time required for a new engineer to become effective in their role.

In Europe, the best universities for an undergraduate or advanced degree in petroleum engineering are those with their own oil and gas industries. These may be based locally or in countries with which they have a historical relationship. Places to consider for a course taught in English include Britain, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, and France.

Admissions information.

The college admissions process in the US has become a race to the bottom as students compete with their peers for a single spot in a liberal arts college, convinced by parents and guidance counselors that their survival rests on playing a musical instrument or varsity sport. Many smart kids don’t do well on standardized tests. This doesn’t limit them as much when looking outside of the US, as many colleges in Europe do not require standardized tests. Many countries see entry into universities as a right, rather than a privilege, so admission standards are not as stringent.

How to study in Europe.

When you also factor in the many problems with US higher education, it is imprudent not to consider other possibilities. It is true there are many excellent schools in the United States—I don’t think anyone would argue that. There are some that have managed to look at applicants as people, and not just a checklist of achievements. Some even have reasonable tuition rates, and/or professors that actively teach and have highly engaged students. Despite this, I have yet to find a school in the United States that addresses all of these issues: allows students to opt out of the rat race the admissions process has become, have reasonable tuition, AND have positive results around the educational experience and post-graduation outcomes. Not every school in Europe provides all this either, but the schools listed in our database do.

How to find English-taught degrees.

Finding these programs is burdensome, difficult, and confusing, especially with institutional websites in foreign languages... We know that making the decision to study abroad can be difficult, so we want to make it easy for you. We scoured the continent for vetted programs and made them available to thousands of families looking to leave the US and find a better life in Europe. We found over 11,200 degrees, 870 universities, 550 cities, and 32 European countries to choose from. Europe offers an impressive range of educational opportunities!

We have gathered all of the information you need to know about studying in Europe – from the different types of schools available to how to get housing and everything in between. Our database helps you find these programs quickly and easily, helping you contextualize the many benefits and options around higher education in Europe.

You will be able to find programs and courses that suit your interests and needs, taught in English by experienced professors in state-of-the-art facilities. Search our database of English-taught European bachelor's and master's programs and get started on your journey to Europe today.

Travel the world while you get your degree.

Travel opportunities abound when attending college in Europe. For example, Lille, a city in northern France with multiple universities, is close to major cities such as Brussels, London, and Paris via high-speed rail. Air travel, especially with the rise of affordable airlines like Ryanair, EasyJet, and Transavia, can be comparable in price to rail travel, so many more destinations open up for short-term travel.

Feeling overwhelmed?

You shouldn't be! We're here to help in any way we can... and if it means running extensive searches and using our best judgement to lead the way, we're all for that too.

We get that choosing a program feels like committing to a major early on, but in reality it is more of a general direction. A Best Fit List gives you a unique list of 3 to 5 programs tailored to your needs, helping you take the headache – and heartache – out of choosing a program.

Discover all the English-taught European college programs in one place.

Beyond the States provides easy access to 11,600+ European bachelor's and master's programs across 870 universities, 550 cities, and 212 areas of study, plus all the resources you need to get there. No sponsorships. No bias.
3400+
English-taught bachelor's programs in our database.
8200+
English-taught master's programs in our database.
550
Beautiful European cities to choose from.
870
Top-tier universities accepting international students.
332,948
Typical savings against a private university in the US.
60,123
Typical savings against in-state tuition in the US.
All inclusive of tuition, living, food, books, health insurance, travel expenses, as well as hidden fees. Compiled with data from students and the official websites from KU Leuven, UNC, and Duke.

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