Interested in MWD

[jvyyc]

I know, "not another one!", but the forums I've read before haven't quite fit my situation so I was hoping to benefit from all the experience out there. I have no field or rig experience, but am very interested in getting into MWD and am wondering about how possible that is? I know a guy who also had no experience and was able to get in and is doing well, but he knew someone who knew someone. Is he the exception rather than the rule? Do I have to know somebody in charge of hiring? I grew up on a farm so am no stranger to crappy (and long hours) and even working with machinery, but my resume is mostly sales and service roles. I am totally willing to bust my hump to succeed at it, just not sure how to get the foot in the door. And I am well aware of the shift work and other downsides that as a newbie I'd be dealing with, I am also aware of it being fairly lucrative, and part of an industry that has some major potential to grow in.

Oh, and I am aware of the necessity of H2S, PST, and WHIMIS. Going to take those courses in the next couple of weeks as I was told it is mandatory to even get looked at.

[HomespunLobster]

good luck at this time of year. spring break up.

i'm just trying to get in as well, but i have roughneck experience. they were happy to see that

[jvyyc]

Yeah I have heard this time of year isn't great, but was speaking to someone at Precision Drilling and they said they thought it would be a relatively short break up this year, like 3 to 4 weeks before they'd start taking guys on again. How long were you a roughneck? How's the money doing that? I did think about maybe doing a stint as a leasehand or something just to get my foot in the door and make myself a bit more marketable, maybe I should consider that some more.

[Supa Dexta]

If I were to do it again, I'd go DD off the bat - And get whatever experience I needed (derrick - some drilling usually) to go that route instead.

[Kloubek]

Why did I read the subject line as "Interested in WMD".


...watching too much American TV....

[HomespunLobster]

4-5~ months as roughneck
pay is pretty good. 29/h

[DRKM]

Originally posted by Supa Dexta
If I were to do it again, I'd go DD off the bat - And get whatever experience I needed (derrick - some drilling usually) to go that route instead.

I am not to many places would take someone in for a junior DD with no rig experience?

From what I have seen they are generally MWDs or Drillers.

[msommers]

A DD with zero rig experience? Good luck. All the DDs I've come across have been from the bottom of the totem poll and are where they are after a lot of rigging years.

MWD doesn't require you to have rig experience. You also don't need an Eng. degree but it helps. There are MWD hands who were able to get hired on with basically no pertaining knowledge or experience but I'd say that's the exception than the rule.

Roughnecking would be a great way to get experience around the rig while getting a pretty decent pay cheque. Not easy work but you have to start somewhere.

[Supa Dexta]

I said nothing about 0 rig experience.

[msommers]

I actually spoke to our Halliburton crew out here about this and the answers were very surprising.

DD's can have no experience coming. They're actually wanting guys with Eng. degrees to come in without experience because of the potential for previous "bad habits." Same with MWD hands but he said you can't really come in with no rig experience or no Eng. degree. Company men don't even need rig experience which was super surprising. They've both come across a lot of trainee company men with no rigging experience.

So there you have it.

[zarge]

lol good luck, hard even if you have rig experience. My current bosses have piles of resumes like 2 feet high and they only hire their friends or employees/contractors friends. Why would I train some random guy I don't know?? No Thanks
Best bet is probably a bigger company if you have school and you will be their bitch, get paid half of what smaller companies pay.. but you can always transfer over to a smaller company later. Once you have MWD experience it's pretty easy to get a job anywhere.

[SKR]

Originally posted by msommers
I actually spoke to our Halliburton crew out here about this and the answers were very surprising.

DD's can have no experience coming. They're actually wanting guys with Eng. degrees to come in without experience because of the potential for previous "bad habits." Same with MWD hands but he said you can't really come in with no rig experience or no Eng. degree. Company men don't even need rig experience which was super surprising. They've both come across a lot of trainee company men with no rigging experience.

So there you have it.

Your Halliburton crew is all retards.

[Supa Dexta]

Good point^

Anything else to add though?

[msommers]

I agree it seems off but who knows, maybe they're changing their hiring practises.

What do you guys do at the rig?

[Supa Dexta]

vac truck, so I think I know a little bit more about all of this then most.

[lasimmon]

Good luck going to be a DD with no experiance. I know a coupleand they both have experiance. You could go MWD or wireline or frac or something along those lines. They are always looking for guys to do that stuff. And a retarded monkey could probably do most of it (I know from experiance).

To be honest a lot of oilfield work requires 2 feet and a heartbeat, but I would say DD is not one of them.

[SKR]

Most places are going to hire DDs who have actually drilled. There are probably a lot where extensive MWD experience can replace drilling experience. Halliburton did a lot of dumb shit while I was there and it was getting worse every day, but I can't see them doing something like that. Now, if that's what you were told, then that's what you were told and maybe it's true. I just can't see it happening.

As far as experience and education go, it depends. Actual rig experience is still valued over almost everything, and if you want to keep your options open, this is the way to go. If you have an idea of what you want to do for the next 10-15 years, getting an education specializing in your desired field might be a better option.

And if you're like me and you have no rig experience or education, I hope you really like whatever job you get, because you're going to be there looking through the glass ceiling for a long time. By the time I build up enough experience where I can get into an oil company's office, which for most people here is going to be the finish line, I could have started as a leasehand and worked my way up faster, or got an engineering degree and got in that way.

These threads pop up all the time, and if you don't have any rig experience or an engineering degree, probably the high water mark in your career is going to be one or two levels above where you started. If you're a stud and the right opportunities present themselves, sure, you can go farther. But that's not a guarantee, and certainly not as guaranteed as what experience or education can do for you. Six years ago, I was driving from rig to rig, checking mud. Six years from now, I'll probably still be driving from rig to rig, checking mud. If instead of starting as a mud man I started working rigs, in those same 12 years there's no reason I couldn't be a wellsite supervisor or working in the oil company's office. Maybe I can do it as a mud man too, but it's going to take a lot of work and a lot of luck. And it's not that I'm an asshole or that I'm shitty at my job, it's just that a few years of experience with service companies doesn't really mean anything when it comes to working in Calgary.

Short version: getting experience working on rigs in my opinion will be more beneficial in the long run.

[jvyyc]

Hey guys,

Thanks for all your insights. Sounds like the guy I know really lucked out in getting MWD right off the bat with no rig experience. I on the other hand have never been the lucky type so I might have to look at being a leasehand or some other starting rig position first. If I go that route can I make a pretty decent wage first year out? I hear 25 - 29/hr + overtime, is that generally the case?

Thanks again, looks like I might have an interesting year in front of me once spring break up is over.

[SKR]

CAODC's recommended wage for leasehands is $27.00/hour, and most drilling contractors are within a dollar or two of that either way. I think I've only seen a couple drilling contractors that pay less than CAODC-recommended. I think most pay that or a little more.

You'll make good money as long as you don't piss it all away like everyone does when they start making good money.

[HomespunLobster]

Spring break up is happening but there are still jobs. My rig shut down I called the office and now I'm going to fill in a lease hand position for a week. You be enthusiastic and outgoing and you'll find work