Two students in West Virginia University’s new energy land management program got some additional fuel for their educations in the form of scholarships from the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL).
Patrick Large, of Pittsburgh, and Justin Booth, of Buffalo, W.Va., are two of only 30 students to receive $5,000 scholarships from the AAPL’s Landman Scholarship Trust.
Large chose energy land management because “it’s a growing business that will be around for a while. It has great job placement, and I see a bright future for myself in the field.” He enjoys the field work the major requires, and “really likes how there are so many different routes you can take.”
Booth adds that “there is a lot of interest in students in the program from professionals in the oil and gas industry. They have visited class on many occasions to talk and share what they do with students.”
Booth also cites the opportunities inherent in a new academic program, noting that students have already established a new student organization “from the ground up. This semester, we were able to establish the Energy Land Management Association at WVU with the dedication and cooperation of all the students in the major.”
CNN Money ranked landman third in its 2015 ranking of the Best Jobs in America, citing high personal satisfaction, benefit to society, and low stress, along with strong long-term prospects for the oil and gas industry.
Landmen determine the ownership of surface and subsurface rights, negotiate contracts and leases, coordinate field exploration activities, serve as a liaison between lease owners and exploration and production companies and ensure community and environmental quality during energy development. WVU’s program, housed in the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design, is one of only ten to be accredited by the AAPL.
Energy companies with large footprints in West Virginia and the Marcellus Shale bed supported the energy land management program through its development, and many are represented on the program’s advisory board. Companies on the advisory board formed a partnership to provide $500,000 to support curriculum development and faculty.
-WVU-
CONTACT: David Welsh, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design
304-293-2394, david.welsh@mail.wvu.edu
dw/4/30/15
WVU News on the Web – http://wvutoday.wvu.edu/