Erik Omar Lopez

Country: Mexico
Degree: Master of Petroleum Engineering
Faculty: Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology

Studying at the University of Adelaide has been a fantastic experience. Three things that have made really rewarding have been:

• the multicultural environment, you can really expect to work together with people from all parts of the world
• quality teaching and the facilities, the teaching staff includes industry professionals and highly regarded researchers
• campus experience.

To be able to undertake a degree that I feel genuinely passionate about has been a rewarding experience. The structure of the degree has been in intensive mode. This learning method has been challenging at the beginning but as the program evolved, I have developed skills to allow me to cope with the intense pace and focus better on what I need to learn.

...there is significant research activity going on at the ASP, which attracts really high calibre teaching staff from Australia and overseas as well.

Erik Omar Lopez

Why did you choose your degree?
I majored originally on Electronics engineering but after a couple of years, I transitioned into the energy sector, which is an industry that I feel genuinely passionate about. On oil and gas, I have worked for a few years in North America and Middle East, and last year, I decided that it was time to go back to school and learn about the particular subject of Reservoir Engineering. Undertaking a Master in Petroleum Engineering would allow me to get the skills and knowledge I was interested on

Why did you choose to study at the University of Adelaide?
I chose to study a Masters in Petroleum Engineering at the University of Adelaide because the ASP (Australian School of Petroleum) is located on campus. The different programs content at the ASP are well balanced on important aspects like academia, government and industry and in my case, the coursework option was a better and more convenient choice, given that I already have work experience. On the other hand, there is significant research activity going on at the ASP, which attracts really high calibre teaching staff from Australia and overseas as well. 

What do you enjoy about your degree/time at uni?
Overall, studying at the University of Adelaide has been a fantastic experience. If I had to highlight a specific aspect, I would say three things have been really rewarding:
- Multicultural environment: You can really expect to work together with people from all parts of the world
- Quality of the teaching staff: In my case, the teaching staff includes industry professionals with more than 30 years in industry, or highly regarded researchers that have contributed significantly to the development of the oil and gas sector.
- Top notch facilities and a gorgeous central campus (North Terrace): The campus is just amazing, lots of green areas and beautiful buildings. Class rooms, laboratories, etc. are just appropriate and more than enough to make you feel comfortable and provide you the best environment as a student.

What have been some of the challenges you have faced?
All my lectures are in what is called intensive mode, meaning that every one of them runs for 6 consecutive days, from Monday to Saturday, from 9am to 5pm. This means there is a significant amount of information that you are exposed to during each class and, as a result, there is a lot of self-study and research to do in order to complete assignments and prepare effectively for examinations. This learning method was challenging at the beginning but as the program has evolved, I have managed to develop skills that have allowed me to cope with the intense pace and focus better on what I need to learn.