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SIFT Student Industry Field Trip

The SIFT program invites one student representative from each of the Canadian universities offering degrees in geology, geophysics and/or geological engineering to Calgary for a comprehensive introduction to the petroleum industry.

The SIFT program was created by Bill Ayrton in 1977 and is sponsored by the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists. While the first trip lasted just four days, today the SIFT trip lasts a full two weeks following the end of the winter school term.

During this two-week period, the students attend several lectures presented by experienced, well-known professionals in the petroleum industry. Topics covered in these lectures include: well logging and log interpretation, carbonate and clastic reservoirs, heavy oil, international and Canadian east coast exploration, and geophysics to name a few. In addition to the lectures, students participate in core workshop seminars, field trips to the Rocky Mountains and Dinosaur Provincial Park, a rig tour, a fly-over of the Rocky Mountains, and a student-industry wine and cheese.

Throughout the duration of the trip, students are also involved in an exploration game. The students are grouped in teams of 4 or 5, with each team representing a fledgling oil and gas company. Each company is given an initial sum of money, which they use to buy land and drill wells. At the end of the trip, the companies present their results to judges who determine the winning team for best geological interpretation and for most money earned. This game allows the students to apply techniques practiced in the petroleum industry.

 

Student Industry Field Trip (SIFT) Poster

English SIFT Poster (408kb PDF)

French SIFT Poster (423kb PDF)