Graduate / A Conversion from Electrical Engineering toward MS Petroleum! [7]

Hello Everyone!
I am having problems with the SOP. Converting from EE to PE is really challenging and it is very difficult to sell your interest. I believe I have some problems with developing interest part (2nd para) and overall the flow. Please assess honestly.

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My country is facing a serious short fall in energy and the crisis are ever increasing since late 2000s. A shortage in oil products is recorded every day. It is not because my country doesn't have enough oil reserves. In fact, according to a report released by Energy Information Administration (EIA) Pakistan stands 9th in Shale Oil reserves, a 30 fold increase in reserves! This famine in oil products and power supply we face is merely because we lack technical in the concerned field.

My interest towards petroleum industry bloomed when while surfing over the internet I found a course on Petroleum Geology offered by Delft University of Technology. The instructor was Prof. Dr. S.M. Luthi. It was a conversion course, covering the introduction, historical development of petroleum industry, oil and gas composition, carbon cycles, migration from sources to introduction, rock properties and basin types. Once I had gone through the lectures, I was interested in the industry more than ever. I had the basic knowledge of Reservoir Geology and I wanted to explore further. From oil prices to technological reforms happening in the industry, I used to read everything that came across. I had already chosen Electrical Engineering but I always knew that I can join Oil Industry even with this degree. So, at the time of graduation I started searching Oil Firms taking Engineers in their Controls and Instrumentation Department. My dream came true when I got an offer from XYZ; a subsidiary of XYZ.

Being a part of one of the busiest operators of oil and gas industry in the country had already given me a good start. Since I was in the instrumentation and controls department, I used to visit well head surface facilities a lot. Instrumentation is a core part of latest WHSF now a days. From choke control to SSSV and SSV and from well production to well safeties, it is all about instrumentation. This fact gave me the confidence to explore further. We used to have constructive discussion with engineers from various departments about the whole value chain process from exploration to production. I got to know about drilling a well and analyzing its mud samples retrieved from reservoirs. I learned about what goes in a life cycle of drilling a well, how cementing is done, why wire line technology is used and how well logging is done so as to keep track of reservoir formation. It was the first time I came to know that the well pressures are so immense that the hydrocarbon flows out itself. During several meetings arranged with Chief Operating Officer of the company as part of my training, I listen to the words "reservoir and its formation" repeatedly. It caught my attention and for detailed study I started taking a look at XYZ. The study intrigued more curiosity.

The safety inductions carried out by HSE during my training period at the production facility gave me a deep insight towards personal protective equipment (PPE), fire hazards, and hazops and safety measures practiced in this industry. At this point I came to know that our reservoirs are H2S free. The real test came when a mishap occurred and at our production facility and I was chosen for Process Safety Management Team (PSM) by my boss to assist him during the whole work. This period not only helped me sharpen my skills but it also gave me an opportunity to know how work flows in HSE department practically.

My quench didn't end here and I started searching for best opportunities I can get to know about oil and gas. After a lot thinking and surfing over the internet, I realized that there is so much that I can learn in this field. A desire to pursue my career in petroleum engineering sparked and for this purpose I find XYZ as the best choice. Having a consortium of XYZ universities, while providing an opportunity to attain a degree in Master of Science in Petroleum Engineering from the XYZ, one of the world centers of excellence in education, training and research in petroleum engineering, with strong links to industrial leaders in the sector, XYZ will fulfill my desire.

The conversion from being Electrical Engineer to petroleum engineering seems like a challenge but I believe that I am fully capable and always up for taking new challenges. During my final year of engineering, I was having some trouble in choosing my senior year design project. One day, my Head of Department called me to his office and told me that there was a very interesting, but tough, research and development project that he thought I should do. It was a challenge given to me, and my search for an appropriate project was over. It turned out to be a really interesting project and most importantly taught me what doing research was all about. We had two research problems for which we had to propose optimized solutions. I had regular meetings with my research advisor and updated him about my progress after going through other research papers regarding the unfamiliar subject matter. We wrote research papers on each of the problems, which we could not publish, but it was an interesting experience regardless of the result and, importantly, taught me about research in unfamiliar areas, its gratification and its pitfalls.

XYZ is one of the most prestigious engineering schools in the country, which is currently ranked first by the Higher education commission of Pakistan. I was amongst the top twenty students in a class seventy during my undergraduate studies at XYZ. I was also involved in many co-curricular activities. As my academic record testifies, I believe that I have a strong command not only over basic engineering concepts like Mathematics and Physics but also computer programming. My programming skills got really well polished during my bachelors. I worked in various object oriented programming languages and due to my excellent programming skills. In most of my semester projects I was the team leader and had to organize meetings and set the milestones for rest of the group. I also delivered individual assignments during my academics and professional career on time.

Other than my academic achievements, I actively participated in extracurricular activities. I was a member of a Society of sports arts and literature. Exercise and sports always attracted me and I was a member of the cricket, squash and swimming teams of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering. I have also kept good social relationships during my professional life and tried to take a leading role. During my career as an instrumentation engineer I was selected as a Planning engineer on basis of my administrative and management skills.

The Institute of Petroleum Engineering at XYZ University has one of the best programs of petroleum engineering in the world. It provides unique learning experience and opportunities for graduate students. The institute provides excellent research facilities available for working with the cutting edge technologies being developed in the field of petroleum engineering, with some of the pioneers in the field working as faculty members. It seems to be a perfect place for me, which can provide me with an excellent platform to achieve my goals. By selecting me to study at your prestigious school, you will give chance to an ambitious and motivated student who wants to devote himself to energy industry. I believe that I can perform well and prove to be a valuable asset to your institution. Thank you very much for your time and attention.