Prevailing Wage for Petroleum Engineers
Prevailing wage requirements for Petroleum Engineers, including roles filed under titles like Completion Engineer, Drilling Engineer, and Operations Engineer, are set by DOL using regional wage surveys. DOL defines four experience levels, and the wage floor shifts significantly by city, so checking the worksite location is essential before evaluating any sponsored offer.
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Entry-level engineers new to petroleum work, typically with a bachelor's degree and limited field experience. Assignments are routine and closely supervised, with little expectation of independent judgment on drilling or production decisions.
Qualified engineers with some independent project experience, typically two or more years in upstream or production roles. Level 2 is the most common filing level for Petroleum Engineers, reflecting standard industry hiring for mid-career professionals.
Experienced engineers who lead technical workstreams, mentor junior staff, or manage complex reservoir or completion projects with minimal supervision. DOL expects demonstrated depth in a petroleum specialty and a track record of independent problem-solving.
Fully competent senior engineers or technical leads who set methods, influence organizational decisions, and may supervise others. This level applies to principal engineers and senior advisors with broad authority over extraction strategies or field development plans.
Prevailing Wage for Petroleum Engineers by OES area
Each shape is a DOL OES area, the unit prevailing wage is published for.
What’s an OES area?
The Department of Labor publishes prevailing wages for geographic zones called OES areas. Every U.S. county belongs to exactly one, and the wage floor applies across the whole area. A worker in Oakland gets the San Francisco metro wage, not a separate Oakland wage.
Top 10 cities · Level 1
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Watch how signing bonuses affect your wage floor
Petroleum companies, particularly in Texas and Oklahoma, frequently structure offers with large signing bonuses. DOL excludes one-time bonuses from prevailing wage calculations, so verify your base salary alone clears the floor for your level and worksite.
Account for the Anchorage premium before comparing offers
Alaska operations pay significantly above national medians due to remote location and hazard differentials. If you are evaluating a field rotation role based in Anchorage, the L1 prevailing wage floor there is well above the national entry figure, which changes the entire comparison.
Check whether your title aliases to a different SOC code
Titles like Operations Engineer or Project Production Engineer sometimes get filed under general engineering SOC codes rather than SOC 17-2171. If your LCA uses a different code, the prevailing wage floor may not match what Petroleum Engineers in your metro actually earn.
Use Migrate Mate to find employers sponsoring Petroleum Engineers
Migrate Mate shows which companies have historical H-1B sponsorship records for Petroleum Engineers, letting you focus on Texas, Colorado, and Oklahoma operators that have actually filed for this occupation before rather than cold-approaching firms with no sponsorship track record.
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Find Jobs for Petroleum EngineersPrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 17-2171.00 alongside Petroleum Engineers, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Completion Engineer Prevailing Wage
Completion Engineer Prevailing Wage
Completion Engineer positions fall under SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Drilling Engineer Prevailing Wage
Drilling Engineer Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Drilling Engineer for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Engineer Prevailing Wage
Engineer Prevailing Wage
Engineer is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Operations Engineer Prevailing Wage
Operations Engineer Prevailing Wage
Operations Engineer positions fall under SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Petroleum Production Engineer Prevailing Wage
Petroleum Production Engineer Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Petroleum Production Engineer for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Project Production Engineer Prevailing Wage
Project Production Engineer Prevailing Wage
Project Production Engineer is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Project Reservoir Engineer Prevailing Wage
Project Reservoir Engineer Prevailing Wage
Project Reservoir Engineer positions fall under SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Reservoir Engineer Prevailing Wage
Reservoir Engineer Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Reservoir Engineer for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Reservoir Engineering Consultant Prevailing Wage
Reservoir Engineering Consultant Prevailing Wage
Reservoir Engineering Consultant is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 17-2171.00 (Petroleum Engineers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for Petroleum Engineers?
DOL uses Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics across metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas. For SOC 17-2171, DOL computes four wage percentiles corresponding to its four experience levels. Employers filing an LCA through OFLC must pay at least the level matching the position's actual duties and experience requirements.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I know which one applies to my offer?
Level 1 is entry-level with close supervision; Level 2 reflects qualified independent work and is the most common filing level for this occupation; Level 3 indicates experienced, lead-level technical work; Level 4 covers fully competent senior or principal engineers. Your level is determined by the job duties on the LCA, not your years of experience alone. If your offer involves leading reservoir projects or mentoring staff, Level 3 or 4 should apply.
Why does the prevailing wage for the same Petroleum Engineer role vary so much by city?
DOL's prevailing wages are calculated from regional OES surveys, so local labor market conditions drive the figures. Anchorage and Austin consistently show higher floors than Columbus or Pittsburgh because of concentrated operator activity, cost of living, and local competition for petroleum talent. Under OFLC rules, the LCA must list the actual worksite location, and the wage certified on that LCA must meet the floor for that specific area, not a national average.
What happens if a sponsored job offer falls below the prevailing wage floor?
USCIS will not approve an H-1B or other sponsored visa petition if the LCA wage is below the DOL prevailing wage for the worksite and level. If DOL audits the LCA during PERM or H-1B processing and finds a deficiency, the petition can be denied. Employers may also face back-pay liability. If you notice a wage discrepancy, raise it with your employer before the LCA is filed.
How do I find and verify the prevailing wage for a Petroleum Engineers position in a specific U.S. city?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool, which lets you look up current DOL wage levels by SOC code and metropolitan area. Enter SOC 17-2171 and the worksite city to see all four level wages for that location. You can also review recent LCA disclosure data published by OFLC to see what wages employers have actually certified for Petroleum Engineers in that market. Migrate Mate lists employers with verified sponsorship history for this occupation if you want to cross-reference active hiring activity.
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