Oil, Education | Crisis numbers: – The doomsday prophets scare the youth

In 2013, there were 420 people who applied for a total of 53 study places in petroleum subjects at NTNU. Two dramatic crises in the oil industry later, head of department Egil Tjåland is pleased that 26 people have applied for the 20 places the university can offer.

– The crises in recent years are probably a probable reason why there are fewer applicants. Many are worried about job security due to the downscaling we have seen in recent years, says Tjåland about the application numbers, which are slightly lower than last year.

However, he believes that those who have chosen to apply for petroleum subjects have made a smart choice.

– Many of those who entered the industry 30 to 40 years ago will now retire. These must be replaced if we are to continue to develop and maintain the structures that Norway currently lives off, says Tjåland.

– So these students can expect many job offers and a fat starting salary?

– Supply and demand now apply as before. And I think the pay conditions can be a nice thing to look forward to for the students.

The average salary for a civil engineer in petroleum technology was NOK 81,500 a month in 2020, ie NOK 980,000 a year. Today’s students thus have good prospects of earning a million salary and well so when they go to work.

The study petroleum technology at the University of Stavanger (UiS) has 20 study places and this year received 21 applicants with the study as their first choice. Last year, there were 37 applicants for 20 places.

Read more: Oil prices collapsed – but students did not flee

Frp races – MDG cheers

Roy Steffensen (Frp) is the leader of the education and research committee in the Storting, and believes the public discourse on the oil industry must take its share of the blame.

The doomsday prophets frighten the youth. With all the rhetoric about change and that the oil industry is portrayed almost as something immoral and sinful, it is almost a miracle that someone at all applies to Norway’s most important industry, says Steffensen.

When asked who he thinks of as “doomsday prophets”, he answers:

– Everyone who mentions the end date.

MDG has decided that they want an end date for the Norwegian oil industry by 2035. AUF has the same.

The FRP politician says he cheers on the young people who dare to go against the flow, and says we should be proud of the oil industry and our oil workers.

– We hope that this trend reverses next year, says Steffensen.

MDG politician Ulrikke Torgersen believes there are other reasons why young people steer clear of petroleum studies.

– The educations must respond to the great challenges we face. Oil and gas jobs are no longer safe because the world is going to be fossil-free. Our engineers and skilled workers must rather work in other important industries to bring about technology development and restructuring. This change is more urgent than ever, and here the students play an important role, says Torgersen.

Last year wrote Nettavisen Økonomi that the University of Bergen discontinued the bachelor’s program petroleum and process technology due to low application numbers. Instead, the university created its own master’s degree program called “Energy”. There were 78 applicants for 49 study places this year.

Torgersen is happy that young people are now looking for directions that can help take Norway out of the oil age. Torgersen emphasizes that the current oil workers have valuable knowledge that can contribute to utilizing Norway’s competitive advantage in a green transition.

– Competent workers in the oil industry who are released from the industry provide the prerequisites for investing in new industries that can operate within nature’s resilience, says Torgersen.

Also read: – Studying petroleum will not be a weekend

Many want to work with energy and climate

The oil and gas industry not only recruits from the pure petroleum studies, but also recruits talent from a wide range in various engineering disciplines, IT and economics as well.

Here are some selected application numbers from the broader energy studies at the largest study places:

• Environmental physics and renewable energy at NMBU received 60 applicants for 25 study places.
• Electrification and digitization at NTNU received 79 applicants for 30 study places.
• Marine Engineering at NTNU received 124 applicants for 91 study places.
• Energy and environment at NTNU received 189 applicants for 131 study places.
• The engineering program renewable energy at NTNU received 139 applicants for 76 study places.
• Renewable energy at UiA received 31 applicants for 40 study places.
• Geosciences (both geophysics and geology) at UiB received 113 applicants for 75 study places.
• Petroleum logic and economics at Molde University College received 22 applicants for 30 study places.
• Energy at UiB received 78 applicants for 49 study places.
• Geophysics and climate at UiO received 47 applicants for 30 study places.
• The engineering program energy and petroleum technology received 66 applicants for 38 places.
• Geology at UiT received 30 applicants for 40 study places.
• Energy, climate and environment received 37 applicants for 25 study places

Read more: – They will never return to this industry

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