Explore by Career/Construction and Extraction
Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas
Set up or operate a variety of drills to remove underground oil and gas, or remove core samples for testing during oil and gas exploration.
- Median pay
- $65,010
- per year
- 10-year outlook
- +0.2%
- Stable
- Typical entry
- No formal educational credential
Key skills
- Critical Thinking
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Instructing
- Speaking
- Coordination
What they do
- Train crews, and introduce procedures to make drill work more safe and effective.
- Observe pressure gauge and move throttles and levers to control the speed of rotary tables, and to regulate pressure of tools at bottoms of boreholes.
- Count sections of drill rod to determine depths of boreholes.
- Push levers and brake pedals to control gasoline, diesel, electric, or steam draw works that lower and raise drill pipes and casings in and out of wells.
- Connect sections of drill pipe, using hand tools and powered wrenches and tongs.
- Maintain records of footage drilled, location and nature of strata penetrated, materials and tools used, services rendered, and time required.
- Maintain and adjust machinery to ensure proper performance.
- Start and examine operation of slush pumps to ensure circulation and consistency of drilling fluid or mud in well.
- Locate and recover lost or broken bits, casings, and drill pipes from wells, using special tools.
- Weigh clay, and mix with water and chemicals to make drilling mud.
Majors that lead here
No mapped majors yet.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections) and O*NET, used under CC BY 4.0.