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Old 05-10-2012, 02:19 PM   #80
GP_Matt
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Join Date: Jun 2011
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lt.Spears View Post
My brother who works as a intermediate geologist just started making close to 80K after 5+ years of work.

No one i know who is a recent grad is making anything close to 80K a year unless they are doing fieldwork on the rigs.

For most people graduating they should be expecting to make 40-50 grand per year given the field.

To save up the 10-20% required for a DP shouldnt take that long, its the payments that are going to own you, Try telling a 1-2 year grad who makes 55K a year, that he has to spend over 1/2 of his monthly net income alone on mortgage payments. Makes it almost impossible to do.

There is a reason people are getting married/having kids at 30+ now instead of in their 20's, because its basically impossible to do.
My example was for people doing field work. I live in the north so field work is pretty common but it doesn't mean you have to be a roughneck. A lot of the field work is more pleasant and will provide great experience that will help immensely with your career. A ton of the O&G managers in Calgary spent their early years in the field. And working in the field means large amounts of overtime. My first summer in the field had a few 180 hour pay periods. At $21 an hour that worked out to $4830 for two weeks work plus a $15/hour premium when I used my chainsaw. (Technically Alberta Labour Laws limit you to 168 hours in a two week period but that was often overlooked due the lack of their definition of an emergency.)
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