Oilfield Training Program

The API Oilfield Training Program is a unique educational partnership between America’s oil and natural gas industry and the Carville Job Corps Academy in Carville, Louisiana. The program trains students in the basics of the oil and natural gas industry and prepares them for entry-level positions. Students receive about 150 hours of classroom training in areas such as rig types, blowout prevention, drilling fluids, pipe handling, casing and cementing, well logging, power systems and instrumentation, and HS&E. The students pursue certification for OSHA Basic Safety Training, First Aid, CPR, Marine Water Survival, and the IADC Rig Pass. Students also have the opportunity to work paid and unpaid internships in the program’s work-based learning program.

The Oilfield Training Program coordinator has more than two decades of experience in the oil and petrochemical industry. More than 50 students have already completed the rigorous program. The program is the result of close cooperation between API, industry service companies, and the Job Corps program at the U.S. Department of Labor. The Carville Job Corps Academy opened in 2004 and its curriculum includes coursework in math, reading, General Equivalency Diploma (GED) exam preparation, information technology, and communication, employability, and social skills. It is the only Job Corps location to have an oilfield training program since there are opportunities for graduates to find entry-level work in an industry vital to the Louisiana economy.

Industry Careers – Carville Students at OTC 2007

The Job Corps Program is a national educational and job training program created in 1964 by the Department of Labor for disadvantaged youth. The program trains students for careers in energy, culinary arts, carpentry, health care, masonry, welding, heavy equipment, and automotive as well as business office technology. The program helps students earn a high school diploma or GED, learn a trade, and find a job. Students must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident between the ages of 16 and 24, meet income requirements, and want to participate in an educational environment.

For more information about the Oilfield Training Program, please contact James Crandall at (202) 682-8475.

To learn more about institutions which offer training in oil and natural gas, please visit the following sites:

McMurry Training Center
Appalachian Basin Oil and Gas Training Center
Williston State College
Maritime Drilling Schools Limited
High Plains Technology Center
Petroleum Institute for Continuing Education