Petroleum Engineer Interested in Oil and Gas Private Equity

I'm currently a petroleum engineer working at a super major E&P company. My goal is to work at an oil and gas private equity firm in Houston. I just got accepted to HBS on Wednesday. Will I need to do 2-3 yrs at an investment bank after my MBA before breaking in or is it possible to bypass that altogether? Also, any insights into both investment banks (comp, exit opps, etc.) and PE firms in Houston would be much appreciated. I've read all the websites, but any actual experiences from folks on the forum would be very helpful. Thanks!!

 

I can't say I personally know of many PEng in PE, but there are definitely a few who have made the jump. There's a guy from ARC Financial who pretty much has your same background (Chem vs PEng). Really solid dude. I'll leave it at that.

From personal interaction, out of Houston, I've enjoyed meeting with the EnCap and NGP guys. I'd strive for EnCap if I was in your position. Have to write more when I have a minute

 
Best Response

Here is my list of energy PE shops. Feel free to add. Some are not pure-play E&P so you will need to sort -- I am/was more interested in OFS personally. If I could do it all again, my personal Tier 1 would be Arc, Denham, EnCap, First Reserve, Lime Rock, NGP, Quantum, Riverstone, SCF. Some shops not listed above are absolutely Tier 1, but my interactions put them lower down. Its fair to also assume I have not interacted with all of the firms.

Arc Financial Group www.arcfinancial.com Denham Capital www.denhamcapital.com EnCap www.encapinvestments.com Energy and Minerals Group www.emgtx.com Energy Capital Partners www.ecpartners.com Energy Spectrum Capital www.energyspectrumcapital.com Energy Trust Partners www.energytrustpartners.com First Reserve www.firstreserve.com Global Infrastruture Partners www.global-infra.com Haddington Ventures LLC www.hvllc.com HighStar Capital www.highstarcapital.com Kayne Anderson PE Energy www.kaynecapital.com Lime Rock Partners www.lrpartners.com NGP www.ngpenergycapital.com Prime Natural Resources www.primenri.com Quantum Energy Partners www.quantumep.com RidgeWood Energy www.ridgewoodcapital.com Riverstone  www.riverstonellc.co SCF Partners www.scfpartners.com Second City Capital Partners www.secondcitycapital.com SFC Partners www.sfcepartners.com Tiger Infrastructure Partners www.tigerinfrastructure.com TPH Partners www.tphpartners.com White Deer Energy www.whitedeerenergy.com

 

I'm coming from a similar petroleum engineering background with about 5 years experience and in the process of applying to top b-schools with an interest in energy PE afterwards. I'd love to hear how this worked out for you and what you learned along the way. Additionally, any insight from you or others regarding the necessity/helpfulness of spending some time doing IB first would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

Ducimus hic ut et sint error ut sit. Ut nihil iure fugit est. Vero unde maxime ea.

Ipsum sunt odio et sunt. Ex tempora maiores ut minima. Eum corporis quis quo laboriosam saepe.

Soluta cupiditate doloremque ut voluptas sequi eius. Praesentium voluptatem aut iusto reprehenderit. Est porro praesentium delectus quia. Quia ea velit tempora ea iure. Quia qui deleniti est quidem qui.

Nihil minus asperiores repellendus fugit nobis. Eveniet iure optio perspiciatis in illum est voluptatem ad. Ut doloribus perspiciatis ea ut nihil velit error ut.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.4%
  • Ardian 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Bain Capital 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • Warburg Pincus 97.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (21) $586
  • Vice President (92) $362
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (89) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (204) $268
  • 1st Year Associate (386) $229
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (28) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (83) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (246) $122
  • Intern/Summer Associate (32) $82
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (313) $59
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”