I graduated from Heriot-Watt University in 2016 with a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering. I decided to study Chemical Engineering because of the wide range of industries and opportunities it can lead to after graduation, the overarching understanding of processes lends itself well to project and operations management.
During my degree I completed a student placement year at Perenco UK. I gained a real world understanding of what a Process Engineer does and was able support the projects team in delivering an offshore well tie-back to an unmanned platform in the Southern North Sea. It was really fulfilling to be given responsibility for actual project deliverables, rather than ‘busy-work’. I also went offshore which was eye opening and great fun.
I returned to university with a renewed outlook which made my final year at Heriot-Watt my best. I was offered a graduate Process Engineer role at Perenco UK and I decided to accept as I’d been given a lot of responsibility and opportunity to excel during my placement. They also have good progression opportunities for Process Engineers and good graduate cohort. Both important aspects for me.
During the 3 year graduate programme I had 4 different placements, from Major Projects, to Integrity Management, then Process Safety, and finally Bacton Gas Terminal. The breadth of experience from these varied placements was invaluable and gave me an understanding of a lot of different aspects of the business, which ultimately now helps me in delivering my current job. I think this is one of the key areas that Perenco UK is very good at, and the opportunities afforded to its graduates ‘throw you in at the deep end’ and rely on them as a valued and important members of the team.
Since completing the graduate programme, I spent 2 years as the Bacton Terminal responsible Process Engineer, and then moved into the Major Projects department as a Project Engineer. I am currently delivering a multi-discipline, multi-million pound project at Bacton Gas Terminal, which is both challenging and rewarding.
