The three Townsend brothers received nearly identical diplomas at Spring 2014 Commencement ceremonies, distinguishable only by each of their names.
Noel, 37, Jason, 36, and Clayton, 33, all earned bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 degrees in petroleum engineering.
小蝌蚪APP淭o us, it小蝌蚪APP檚 been no big deal, but, people do seem to be kind of surprised by us all going back to school together and getting the same degree,小蝌蚪APP Jason said.
The brothers, who grew up in Hattiesberg, Miss., enrolled at UL Lafayette in fall 2011, although they had never been the types to tackle an undertaking as a group, and aren小蝌蚪APP檛 even much alike. 小蝌蚪APP淣oel is soft-spoken, reserved and a leader,小蝌蚪APP Clayton said. Jason小蝌蚪APP檚 小蝌蚪APP渁 doer小蝌蚪APP and 小蝌蚪APP渧ery assertive小蝌蚪APP he added, 小蝌蚪APP and 小蝌蚪APP淚小蝌蚪APP檓 the antithesis of that, much more passive.小蝌蚪APP
Noel put it more succinctly: 小蝌蚪APP淲e have the same mother and father, and that小蝌蚪APP檚 pretty much it.小蝌蚪APP
The three came together thanks to Jason, who said he finally decided to heed the advice of their father, a former shipbuilder for the U.S. Navy, who had been urging them all toward the engineering profession for years.
Jason had enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps after high school. An intelligence specialist, he served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He decided to approach his brothers with his idea about petroleum engineering, and mentioned it to Noel first. 小蝌蚪APP淚t was pretty easy to talk him into it.小蝌蚪APP
Noel was working as a manager at Kinko小蝌蚪APP檚 at the time. 小蝌蚪APP淚 couldn小蝌蚪APP檛 go any higher without uprooting and relocating,小蝌蚪APP he noted.
Clayton, who was working for his older brother at Kinko小蝌蚪APP檚, was soon on board, too.
Both Noel and Clayton had attended the 小蝌蚪APP of Southern Mississippi years before and left without degrees. All three took community college courses before they enrolled at UL Lafayette.
Clayton admits he didn小蝌蚪APP檛 know all that much about petroleum engineering at first. 小蝌蚪APP淚t wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 something I was very familiar with. No high school counselor ever mentioned it, and I had never read anything about it.小蝌蚪APP
Jason, who had been working as president of Townsend Brothers Inc., a mechanical contracting company in Hattiesberg, said economics quickly helped the brothers select petroleum engineering.
小蝌蚪APP淚 won小蝌蚪APP檛 fluff it, petroleum engineering jobs pay the best, by a lot,小蝌蚪APP Jason said.
According to a recent report by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, petroleum engineering is the top-paying undergraduate major. Graduates who received bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 degrees in that field in 2013 earned an average starting salary of $97,000, it states. That's about $27,000 more than the second-highest starting salary, which was earned by grads with computer engineering degrees.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the mean annual wage for petroleum engineers is $149,180. The top 10 percent earn an average salary of $186,520; the lower 10 percent make $74,240 per year.
For the brothers, their decision to go back to school is paying off.
Noel has accepted a job with Petra Consultants in Lafayette, where he will be a facilities engineer. Jason has taken a job with Weatherford International in Houston, where his focus will be on managed pressure drilling. Clayton, who wants to land a field engineering position, expects to hear back on one of his top job prospects as early as this week.
The plan is to gain experience, then eventually go into business together. 小蝌蚪APP淥ur goal is to start our own consulting company,小蝌蚪APP Jason said.
They chose UL Lafayette, Jason said, because there were no petroleum engineering programs in Mississippi. They also favored the individual attention they expected to receive, and ultimately got, at the 小蝌蚪APP.
小蝌蚪APP淭he (Petroleum Engineering) Department is outstanding. The professors are very knowledgeable, and have many contacts for jobs and internships,小蝌蚪APP Clayton said.
More than 470 students were enrolled in the petroleum engineering program this spring. Of this semester小蝌蚪APP檚 33 petroleum engineering graduates, the brothers all finished in the top 5 percent, said Dr. Fathi Boukadi, who is head of the department.
小蝌蚪APP淭hey are some of the best students, and very hardworking,小蝌蚪APP he said.