With the shale industry in the United States growing every day, specialized engineers are more in demand than ever. According to a new article in the Houston Chronicle, job postings for shale play employees are listed under customized titles like “facilities engineer” or “production engineer” instead of more broad classifications like “chemical engineer” or “civil engineer.”
Luckily for students at the University of Houston’s Cullen College of Engineering, specialized courses are preparing them for this job boom. The Chronicle spoke with Vita Como, senior director of the engineering career center, about the way the college is preparing its students for an ever-evolving job market.
"Every engineering discipline program has electives built into it for students to take these specialized courses. There are no degree plans for these specialized fields. If students have taken these courses, then they have the basics and their experience will come from on-the-job training," Como said.