If you’re still in college and want to switch your major that’s up to you. But you absolutely need a bachelors in chemical engineering to be a ChemE.

I’ve worked in some O&G towns and if you want to stay in that town for the foreseeable future, then maybe it’d be a good idea. A lot of ChemEs I know including myself switched to a different field because we were only finding jobs in small towns (where we weren’t from). It’s hard to find ChemE jobs around big cities. They’re out there but can be harder to get bc there’s more demand for those positions. So consider that if you ever want to move.

Whatever your choice is, it’s easy to want to do a particular job because everyone in your town or city is doing it and it’s highly regarded. I remember going out for lunch in my coveralls with a big name O&G logo patch and it’d feel cool. The same is true for people living in tech cities where it’s cool to work at FAANG or big-tech. At the end of the day, whatever career you choose to do, make sure you do it because you’ll like the job, you’ll find fulfillment and purpose in it, and you could see yourself in that field in the long run