Jessica Willemsen - Senior Reservoir Engineer

I earned a bachelor of chemical engineering and management degree from McMaster University and began working as a reservoir engineer in 1999 following graduation. I was drawn to the job because reservoir engineers get to see all sides of the development and operation of a field. I see myself as the link between geoscientists and production and facilities engineers, the connection between operations and the office.

One of the things I find most exciting about my job is predicting what is happening hundreds or even thousands of meters underground. I've been involved in many exciting projects in the course of my seven-year career -- from drilling horizontal gas wells several kilometers deep to designing new thermal recovery schemes for in situ oil sands development.

Right from the start, I was regularly involved in multimillion-dollar decisions. A significant part of my job involves production forecasting for new projects. By predicting how much oil or gas will come from a new well, for example, I drive the revenue side of the project economics. The forecast I am responsible to provide determines if Shell will drill the well or pursue another opportunity.

A Bit of Advice

Managing uncertainty is probably the single most important skill a person needs to acquire as a reservoir engineer. The decisions I make are based on imperfect data, at best, and I need to be able to assess the key risks and uncertainties and determine how I can mitigate these risks and reduce my level of uncertainty. Problem-solving skills are also critical. You need to be able to challenge assumptions and think outside the box.

Petroleum engineering is a broad field with a number of different specialties to suit individual interests and aptitudes. There are a wide variety of assignments and opportunities in Canada -- from head-office jobs to field jobs, from onshore to offshore, from bitumen to heavy oil to conventional oil to coalbed methane to deep sour gas. You can live in Calgary and have access to all these opportunities, or travel abroad and use your skills to maximize hydrocarbon recovery around the world.