12 months full-time leading to Master of Science degree

The programme (formerly MSc in Petroleum Geology) is regarded as perhaps the best of its kind in the world.. It has been running since 1973, and has achieved an excellent reputation as one of the top vocational training pathways. Graduates from this course are highly sought after by industry. The course has been rated by the Natural Environment Research Council as the best of its type in the UK and the only course of its type in Europe. The training offered in this course is also an ideal springboard into a career based on further research at PhD level and above.

Aims

The MSc in Integrated Petroleum Geoscience is a Degree which aims to

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  teach the geoscience skills needed for hydrocarbon exploration and production, so that course graduates are ready to embark upon a petroleum industry career. In particular, to provide an all-round preparation for a wide-range of employment in a mobile, dynamic, wealth creating industry, and to show how integration of information across discipline boundaries can provide solutions to industrial problems.
  


• 
  develop the knowledge needed to communicate with and work alongside specialists in the other engineering and scientific disciplines involved in hydrocarbon exploration and production, in small, multi-disciplinary teams.
  
  


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  enhance the inter-personal and transferable skills relevant to the hydrocarbon industry today; to develop presentation and report-writing skills; to encourage team work; to stimulate creative thinking and problem-solving ability; and to foster initiative and self-discipline.

Components of the course focus on all aspects of upstream geoscience, from initial exploration for new prospects, through field appraisal and development, to maximising recovery from mature and declining fields. Topics covered include: seismic interpretation, petrophysical analysis, geochemical evaluation, sedimentology, structural analysis, and reservoir modelling. Skills in the analysis of the subsurface are further developed by field work on outcrops and by hands-on experience with core logging.

Requirements

Applicants must have an Upper Second Class (2:1) or better Honours degree (or overseas equivalent) in a scientific discipline. Because we have to assume a certain level of starting knowledge, we have a strong preference for the first degree to be in Geology, Geophysics, or a joint degree incorporating Geology as a major component.

Students whose first language is not English will be required to provide evidence of English language proficiency, see www.abdn.ac.uk/international/english-requirements for details.

If you wish to discuss your suitability for the programme please get in touch with the Graduate School Admissions Team who will be able to talk you through the requirements of the degree.

Syllabus

Components of the course focus on all aspects of 'upstream' geoscience, from initial exploration for new prospects, through field appraisal and development, to maximising recovery from mature and declining fields.

The structured teaching covers:

• Petroleum Technology


• Exploration and Development Geophysics


• Reservoir Sedimentology and Sequence Stratigraphy


• Petroleum Geochemistry and Basin Analysis


• Downhole Geological and Petrophysical Logging Methods


• Formation Evaluation


• Structural Geology and Basin Development


• Prospect Evaluation and Appraisal


• Production Geology with Reservoir Modelling and Management


• Integrated Case Studies and Exercises


• Field Courses in UK and Utah

The last part of the programme – the individual project – is an integral part of the training and forms a large part of the assessment of each student. This project entails each student working on a problem defined by industry on data supplied by industry. These projects are either worked in a company’s office, or on workstations within the Department. The student submits a thesis on the completion of the project.

We undertake two field trips to provide the opportunity to study large-scale examples of a wide spectrum of geological phenomena, and to evaluate them in the context of petroleum geoscience and the hydrocarbon industry.

A key strength of this programme is that we make considerable use of our position in Aberdeen in the heart of the oil industry in Western Europe with guest speakers contributing their experience to the taught units and visits being made to local companies to demonstrate technology and hardware. Local companies also provide data and practical help for the 4-month summer project and often students do their project at the company’s offices.

Skills Acquired

• Seismic interpretation


• Wireline log interpretation and petrophysical analysis


• Working with borehole core and other samples


• Sedimentology analysis


• Interpreting geochemical and biostratigraphical analysis


• Evaluating exploration prospects and constructing basin analysis


• Calculating reserves and constructing geological reservoir models


• Assisting with reservoir quality and performance prediction evaluation


• Working with reservoir engineering fluid and rock data


• Taking account of completion engineering and making geological recommendations


• Understanding the technical and economic context of petroleum geoscience


• Working in teams, but will also be capable of taking the lead when necessary


• Giving oral presentations


• Writing reports in a concise and effective manner


• Communicating with specialists from other disciplines, in particular those involved with drilling, engineering, petrophysics, geochemistry and geophysics


• Ability to audit technically the geological studies of others

Assessment

We have moved away from reliance on examinations, and now have a balanced mixture of assessed practical exercises, short reports, exams and a final project report (max 7500 words).

Teaching

The programme is 50 weeks in duration, commencing in the last week of September each year. The programme is divided into seven months of structured teaching, three weeks of fieldwork, and four months on an individual industry Applied Research Project.

The first half of structured teaching, up until the end of the calendar year, is an intensive treatment of the fundamental skills needed – the “building blocks” of petroleum geoscience, with particular focus towards hydrocarbon exploration. After examination on this material the programme integrates the material presented earlier by focussing on the application of these skills to industry, with more concentration on field development. The second phase includes a greater amount of focus on teamwork, presentation skills and practical exercises that span the subdisciplines and provide the opportunity to reinforce the basic proficiency.

Team Work

Employers require graduates who not only have good academic qualifications but who also can show that they are capable of:

• Creative thinking


• Problem solving


• Project planning


• Teamwork


• Communicating effectively

We strive to create an environment within which the students can develop these skills. In particular, we encourage the students to take responsibility for their own development.

As well as the training in these aspects inherent in the course syllabus, we have two additional ways to stimulate student development.

Groups and Group Tutors

The MSc class is divided into groups from the very beginning of the session. We are creating a closer parallel of the way industry works, so helping the students with the transition from formal education to employment. The students are encouraged to work and act as a group in every possible way. Taking a trivial example, when it comes to getting photocopies of papers, one member of the group gets the original, rather than all the students competing.

Each group is allocated to a member of the MSc teaching staff who acts as group tutor. Usually the students would approach the tutor of the course component about technical matters, but the allocated staff member is the initial point of contact for students seeking additional help or information. Group tutors will arrange short meetings and tutorials at which the students may also raise general matters of concern that they would rather not raise in front of the whole class. Conversely, some communication with the students will be via a group representative rather than directly with each individual. The groups and the tutors are free to make use of this system in whatever way they wish.

Team Development Programme

All students participate in a Challenge Day in the first half session. This is run jointly with students from the MSc in Oil & Gas Enterprise Management.

Students will be trained in skills to increase their effectiveness in team work. The training is based on fun, problem-solving, and role-play. Part is taught outdoors, but is not an outward-bound course and not strenuous or dangerous. After each role-play the students learn by evaluating each exercise in discussion groups. Participation in the course will enable the students to show they are serious about developing their own skills. This will help them in the rest of the MSc course and in securing future employment.

Funding

We are fortunate in having available each year a healthy number of studentships. Of the 25 or so places on the MSc course each year, several are offered with full scholarships though note we are unable to offer scholarships to non-British applicants. These are awarded to those judged by degree result, referee's reports and interview, to be the most promising applicants. There is of course, strong competition for these awards.

The NERC and Oil company studentships cover University tuition fees, provide a student allowance, and contribute towards fieldwork costs. Students with these awards will have to pay an additional sum (currently estimated at £250) to the department for fieldwork in the USA, as well as pay for all meals.

The remainder of places are either self-funded, or are sponsored by overseas sources such as government and industry. You may be able to get help with paying for the costs of this MSc. There are many different schemes, and they vary widely between countries. You should apply in your own country as soon as you can as competition for these scholarships is intense. We cannot keep up with every scheme in every country, but the links (left) are for a leaflet describing the main scholarship schemes that we know about.

Given the nature of global oil politics, we will not be absolutely sure we have all the studentships until Spring of each year. There is a small chance we might have to ask students to pay an additional sum for the USA fieldwork if there are large increases in the costs of the field trip (for example because the dollar-pound exchange rate changes dramatically to our disadvantage).

Please note: there will be interviews conducted for the funded places on the MSc Integrated Petroleum Geoscience Programme.

University of Aberdeen Alumni Discount Scheme

The University of Aberdeen is very pleased to offer a 20% discount on postgraduate tuition fees for all alumni who have graduated with a degree from the University of Aberdeen. The Alumni Discount Scheme applies to both home and overseas students, and applies to the self-funding element of the postgraduate tuition fee. This is the element of tuition fee which you are paying yourself and does not cover the element of tuition fee which is covered by a scholarship, funding body, your employer, a company, or any another source of funding. The Alumni Discount applies only to the tuition fee element and does not apply to any other costs such as additional programme costs or research costs. More Information can be found on the Graduate School web pages.

Careers

Over the last decade, more than 95% of the MSc graduates have immediately been employed in the oil industry or gone straight on to funded PhD research. The industry does, however, have a crudely cyclic recruitment pattern, and employment prospects fluctuate with the oil price and global politics. The trend of the oil majors in the early 1990s to "down-sizing and outsourcing" saw a shift in first destinations of our graduates towards the service and consultancy sector. At present the oil majors are desperately short of qualified staff, so have increased direct recruitment of MSc graduates.

Equal opportunities exist for men and women in offshore work, and there is no discernible bias in industry recruitment

Fees