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The differences between drilling engineers and oil well engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a drilling engineer and an oil well engineer. Additionally, a drilling engineer has an average salary of $101,225, which is higher than the $83,972 average annual salary of an oil well engineer.
The top three skills for a drilling engineer include cost estimates, well design and data analysis. The most important skills for an oil well engineer are AFE, engineering support, and well design.
| Drilling Engineer | Oil Well Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $101,225 | $83,972 |
| Hourly rate | $48.67 | $40.37 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 25,035 | 2,568 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 80% | Bachelor's Degree, 82% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 8 |
Drilling engineers and oil well engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Drilling Engineer | Oil Well Engineer | |
| Average salary | $101,225 | $83,972 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $155,000 | Between $47,000 And $147,000 |
| Highest paying City | Reno, NV | Tulsa, OK |
| Highest paying state | Nevada | Nevada |
| Best paying company | Devon Energy | Exxon Mobil |
| Best paying industry | Energy | - |
There are a few differences between a drilling engineer and an oil well engineer in terms of educational background:
| Drilling Engineer | Oil Well Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 80% | Bachelor's Degree, 82% |
| Most common major | Petroleum Engineering | Petroleum Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between drilling engineers' and oil well engineers' demographics:
| Drilling Engineer | Oil Well Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.2% Female, 9.8% | Male, 88.3% Female, 11.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 10.3% Asian, 17.2% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 17.1% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |