Petroleum Engineering

What the Numbers Say About Petroleum Engineering

Federal agencies employ 318 people in the Petroleum Engineering occupation (OPM code 881), accounting for 0.0% of the total federal civilian workforce of 2,289,472 for the March 2025 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -2.8% versus the prior period, though at this small a headcount, year-to-year swings can reflect a handful of hires or departures rather than a broad hiring trend.

Average tenure in Petroleum Engineering runs 12.5 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Pay averages $134,293 per year, 22.2% above the $109,869 federal civilian average and up 2.0% from the prior period, a modest shift, consistent with routine locality pay and grade-level movement.

Code 8, the Engineering and Architecture Group family, is where the federal government classifies Petroleum Engineering alongside 28 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Petroleum Engineering postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.

Petroleum Engineering makes up 0.2% of the 142,526 employees across the Engineering and Architecture Group family, ranking #24 of 29 occupations in that family by headcount.