Oil giant BP is stepping up its recruiting efforts for engineering, science and business professionals by tripling the number of college graduates it hires annually. This year, the energy giant plans to hire 900 of these graduates around the globe, triple the number it recruited in 2009. Next year, BP will begin hiring 1,000 annually. “We’re seeking mechanical, electrical, civil and chemical engineers,” says Robert Wine, a BP spokesman. He noted that IT-related engineers will also be hired, though they will represent a small minority. BP is ramping up its hiring of engineering grads because of the aging population of its existing workers and a need to keep the pipeline of moving. Those hired are placed in BP Challenge, a three-year training program. In those years, they’ll go through annual rotations to develop their technical skills as it relates to BP’s work, learn about BP’s business and gain some exposure to softer skills, such as communications and working in teams. During the program, some of the hires will work in their home countries as well as overseas. Once they’ve completed the challenge, the recruits are assigned to the company’s upstream business, which involves the design, building and operating of the oil platforms and other aspects of BP’s operations. “They continue to be mentored through this process,” Wine says. “No one is left in the lurch after they go through their training.”