How to Apply to Marathon Petroleum

Key Takeaways

Apply through MPC's Workday portal at mpc.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/MPCCareers and meticulously correct all auto-parsed resume fields before submitting — errors in Workday's extraction are common and can misrepresent your qualifications to recruiters
With only approximately 80+ open openings at any time, treat each Marathon Petroleum application as a high-investment opportunity: tailor your resume, match exact terminology from the job description, and research the specific division (Refining, Midstream/MPLX, or Corporate) before applying
Embed safety and environmental stewardship language throughout your resume and interview responses — at MPC, safety isn't a department, it's the cultural foundation, and candidates who treat it casually will be screened out
Prepare STAR-format behavioral interview responses mapped specifically to MPC's stated values: Safety, Integrity, Respect, Inclusion, and Collaboration — interviewers are trained to evaluate against these dimensions
Highlight any experience with energy transition, renewable fuels, or sustainability initiatives to signal alignment with Marathon Petroleum's strategic evolution beyond traditional refining
Complete your full Workday candidate profile including skills tags, location preferences, and all optional fields — MPC recruiters actively search the candidate database for future openings, and incomplete profiles are effectively invisible

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) stands as the largest petroleum refiner in the United States, operating 13 refineries with a combined crude oil refining capacity of approximately 3 million barrels per calendar day. Headquartered in Findlay, Ohio, the company ranks consistently among the top 30 on the Fortune 500 list and plays a critical role in the nation's energy infrastructure through refining, marketing, midstream operations (via subsidiary MPLX LP), and renewable fuels development. Marathon Petroleum's workforce of roughly 20,000 employees spans refinery floors, pipeline control rooms, corporate offices, and field inspection sites across the country. What distinguishes MPC culturally is its deep operational discipline paired with a genuine push toward energy transition. The company has invested significantly in renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel, signaling that it values employees who can bridge traditional petroleum expertise with forward-looking energy solutions. The culture leans heavily toward safety-first thinking — every meeting, from boardrooms to break rooms, typically begins with a safety moment. Collaboration across functions is expected, not optional, given the interdependence of refinery units, logistics networks, and commercial teams. People seek out Marathon Petroleum for its scale of impact, competitive total compensation packages, and long-term career stability. The company offers structured development programs, tuition reimbursement, and clear pathways for advancement within both technical and leadership tracks. With only 80+ open openings at any given point, MPC tends to hire selectively and strategically — making each application a high-stakes opportunity that demands thorough preparation.

Application Process

1
Identify the Right Role on Marathon Petroleum's Workday Portal
Navigate to MPC's dedicated Workday careers portal (mpc.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/MPCCareers) and use filters for location, job family, and experience level. With only approximately 14 active postings at any time, MPC's openings are limited and highly targeted — review each job description thoroughly to ensure your qualifications genuinely align before investing time in an application. Pay close attention to whether the role sits within Refining, Midstream (MPLX), or Corporate, as each division has distinct operational cultures.
2
Create or Log Into Your Workday Candidate Profile
Marathon Petroleum uses Workday as its applicant tracking system, so you'll need to create a candidate account or log in with existing Workday credentials. Complete your profile comprehensively — Workday stores your information for future applications at MPC, and recruiters can search the candidate pool for passive matches. Upload a clean, ATS-formatted resume and ensure your contact information, work history, and education fields are filled in manually as well, since Workday's parser sometimes misreads uploaded documents.
3
Tailor Your Application Materials to MPC's Industry Language
Marathon Petroleum's job descriptions use specific terminology — turnaround (TAR) management, process safety management (PSM), environmental compliance (RCRA, NPDES), and operational technology (OT) frameworks. Mirror this language precisely in your resume and any supplemental fields. If the posting mentions certifications like API 510/570, OSHA 30-Hour, Six Sigma, or SAFe Scrum Master, ensure these appear verbatim in your application materials.
4
Complete Screening Questions and Supplemental Fields
Workday applications at MPC commonly include knockout screening questions about relocation willingness, required certifications, safety training history, and eligibility to work in the United States. Answer these carefully — many are auto-scored and can disqualify your application immediately. Some roles, particularly in refining and inspection, may ask about your willingness to work rotating shifts, be on-call, or travel to multiple refinery sites.
5
Initial Resume Screening and Recruiter Review
After submission, your application passes through Workday's automated parsing and keyword matching before reaching a human recruiter. MPC's talent acquisition team typically reviews applications in batches aligned with hiring urgency — refinery operations and safety roles often move faster than corporate positions. Given the low volume of open positions, expect competition to be high and screening to be rigorous.
6
Phone or Video Screen with Talent Acquisition
Candidates who pass initial screening are commonly invited to a 30-45 minute phone or video interview with an MPC recruiter. Expect questions about your familiarity with refinery or energy sector operations, your safety track record, and your motivation for joining Marathon Petroleum specifically. Recruiters often assess cultural alignment around MPC's core values — safety, environmental stewardship, integrity, and respect — so prepare to demonstrate these through concrete examples.
7
Technical and Panel Interviews with Hiring Teams
Final-round interviews at Marathon Petroleum often involve a panel of two to four people, including the hiring manager, a technical subject matter expert, and sometimes an HR business partner. For technical roles like Inspection Technician or OT Engineer, anticipate scenario-based questions involving process safety incidents, equipment failure analysis, or regulatory compliance challenges. Corporate roles like Scrum Master or Senior Solution Architect may include a case study or technical presentation component. Background checks, drug screening, and potentially a physical fitness assessment are standard for refinery-based positions.

Resume Tips for Marathon Petroleum

critical

Lead with Safety and Compliance Metrics

Marathon Petroleum's identity is built on operational safety. Regardless of your function — IT, HR, environmental, or operations — weave safety consciousness into your resume. Quantify your impact: 'Maintained zero recordable incidents across 18-month turnaround cycle' or 'Reduced environmental non-compliance findings by 40% through revised audit protocols.' MPC recruiters are trained to spot candidates who treat safety as a core value, not an afterthought.

critical

Match MPC's Exact Terminology from Job Descriptions

Workday's search and filtering functionality relies heavily on keyword matching. If the job posting says 'Turnaround (TAR) planning,' use that exact phrase — not 'shutdown management' or 'maintenance planning' alone. Similarly, use 'Process Safety Management (PSM)' rather than just 'safety programs,' and 'RCRA compliance' rather than 'waste management regulations.' Pull five to eight key terms directly from each posting and integrate them naturally into your experience bullets.

critical

Use a Clean, Single-Column Format for Workday Parsing

Workday's resume parser struggles with multi-column layouts, tables, headers/footers, and graphics. Use a single-column format with standard section headers (Professional Experience, Education, Certifications, Skills). Save as a .docx or .pdf — but test both, as Workday occasionally handles one better than the other. After uploading, always review the parsed fields in your Workday profile to correct any extraction errors before submitting.

recommended

Highlight Cross-Functional and Multi-Site Experience

MPC operates 13 refineries and an extensive midstream network, which means many roles require collaboration across sites and functions. If you've worked across multiple plant locations, managed geographically distributed teams, or coordinated between operations and corporate, make this explicit. A bullet like 'Coordinated inspection schedules across four Gulf Coast refinery sites, standardizing reporting protocols' resonates directly with MPC's operational model.

recommended

Showcase Relevant Certifications Prominently

Marathon Petroleum roles frequently require or prefer industry-specific certifications. Create a dedicated 'Certifications & Licenses' section near the top of your resume. For inspection roles, highlight API 510, 570, 653, or ASNT certifications. For environmental positions, emphasize CHMM or PE licenses. For IT and digital roles, list Salesforce certifications, SAFe Agilist, AWS, or CISSP as relevant. If you're in-progress on a certification, note the expected completion date.

recommended

Quantify Operational and Financial Impact

MPC is a Fortune 30 company managing billions in refinery throughput — they value candidates who think in terms of measurable impact. Replace vague descriptions with quantified results: 'Optimized crude unit scheduling to increase throughput by 2,500 BPD' or 'Implemented Salesforce automation reducing ticket resolution time by 35% for 500+ internal users.' Even for support roles, frame contributions in terms of efficiency gains, cost avoidance, or error reduction.

nice_to_have

Include Energy Transition and Sustainability Keywords Where Genuine

Marathon Petroleum is actively investing in renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel, and carbon reduction initiatives. If your background includes renewable energy projects, emissions reduction work, sustainability reporting (GRI, SASB), or environmental justice initiatives, include these prominently. This signals alignment with MPC's evolving strategic direction beyond traditional refining.

nice_to_have

Tailor Your Resume Summary to MPC's Specific Division

Rather than a generic objective statement, write a two-to-three-sentence professional summary that directly references the division and role type. For example: 'Refining economics professional with 8 years of experience in LP modeling, margin optimization, and crude slate analysis for 200,000+ BPD facilities. Seeking to leverage deep downstream expertise within Marathon Petroleum's refining planning organization.' This immediately tells the recruiter you understand MPC's operational context.

ATS System: Workday

Marathon Petroleum uses Workday Recruiting (hosted at mpc.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com) to manage its entire hiring pipeline from job posting through offer. Workday parses uploaded resumes into structured data fields, enables keyword-based candidate searching by recruiters, and automates screening through configurable questionnaires. Your application data persists in MPC's Workday tenant, meaning recruiters can discover your profile for future openings even if you're not selected for the role you initially applied to.

Always review and manually correct the auto-populated fields after Workday parses your resume — the system frequently misassigns job titles, dates, and company names
Use standard section headers like 'Professional Experience,' 'Education,' and 'Skills' so Workday's parser maps your content to the correct profile fields
Avoid tables, text boxes, columns, and embedded images — Workday's parser often skips or scrambles content inside these elements
Include exact keywords and phrases from the MPC job description, as Workday allows recruiters to search and filter candidate pools by specific terms
Submit your resume in .docx format for the most reliable parsing, though .pdf is also accepted — avoid .pages, .odt, or image-based PDFs
Complete every optional field in your Workday profile, including skills tags and preferred locations, to maximize visibility in recruiter searches across MPC's organization
Apply to roles individually rather than mass-applying — Workday tracks application volume and hiring managers may view excessive applications as unfocused

Complete Workday Resume Guide →

Interview Culture

Interviewing at Marathon Petroleum reflects the company's broader culture: disciplined, safety-conscious, technically rigorous, and collaborative.

Most hiring processes involve two to three rounds, though highly specialized refinery roles or senior leadership positions may add a fourth. The initial screen is typically conducted by a Talent Acquisition specialist who evaluates baseline qualifications, salary expectations, relocation flexibility, and cultural alignment. Expect direct questions about why you want to work in the petroleum refining industry specifically and what you know about MPC's operations and strategic direction. Demonstrating that you've researched Marathon Petroleum's refinery footprint, renewable fuels investments, or midstream network signals genuine interest. Subsequent rounds commonly involve a panel format with two to four interviewers. For operations and technical roles — such as Inspection Technician, Environmental Manager, or OT Engineer — prepare for scenario-based and behavioral questions rooted in real refinery situations. You might be asked how you'd handle a process safety incident, manage competing priorities during a turnaround, or respond to a regulatory inspection finding. For corporate and technology roles like Senior Solution Architect or Scrum Master, expect a mix of behavioral questions, technical deep-dives, and possibly a presentation or whiteboarding exercise. Marathon Petroleum heavily uses behavioral interviewing structured around its core values: Safety & Environmental Stewardship, Integrity, Respect, Inclusion, and Collaboration. Prepare STAR-format (Situation, Task, Action, Result) responses that explicitly connect to these values. A response about resolving a team conflict, for instance, should touch on respect and collaboration — not just the outcome. Culture fit signals MPC looks for include a genuine commitment to safety as a personal value (not just a compliance checkbox), comfort with structured processes and governance, willingness to mentor and develop others, and adaptability across functions or locations. Candidates who come across as collaborative problem-solvers rather than lone-wolf experts tend to resonate well. For refinery-based positions, be prepared to discuss your physical ability to work in industrial environments, your flexibility around shift schedules, and your willingness to travel to multiple MPC sites.

What Marathon Petroleum Looks For

Demonstrated safety-first mindset — candidates who can articulate specific examples of proactively identifying and mitigating safety risks, not just following existing protocols
Deep technical expertise matched to the specific role, whether that's API inspection codes, Salesforce platform architecture, refinery LP modeling, or environmental permitting (RCRA/NPDES/CAA)
Cross-functional collaboration skills, reflecting MPC's highly interdependent operational model across 13 refineries and extensive midstream assets
Adaptability and willingness to relocate or travel, as many MPC roles support multiple refinery or pipeline sites across the Gulf Coast, Midwest, and West Coast
Alignment with Marathon Petroleum's energy transition strategy, including familiarity with renewable fuels, carbon reduction, and sustainability reporting frameworks
Structured problem-solving and continuous improvement orientation, with preference for candidates experienced in Lean, Six Sigma, or Agile methodologies appropriate to their function
Strong communication skills that bridge technical and business audiences — MPC values employees who can translate complex refinery operations or IT systems into clear stakeholder language
Integrity and ethical grounding, particularly important given the regulatory scrutiny and community impact of petroleum refining operations

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does the Marathon Petroleum hiring process typically take from application to offer?

Based on common patterns reported by candidates, Marathon Petroleum's hiring process typically spans three to six weeks from application submission to offer, though this varies significantly by role type. Refinery operations and safety-critical positions often move faster due to operational urgency, while corporate roles like Scrum Master or Senior Solution Architect may take longer due to additional technical evaluation steps. Panel interview scheduling across multiple stakeholders can also extend timelines. After submitting your application, you can track its status directly in your Workday candidate portal — MPC generally updates disposition statuses, though some candidates report delays in status changes.

Does Marathon Petroleum require a cover letter with applications?

Marathon Petroleum's Workday portal does not typically require a cover letter as a mandatory upload, but many roles include an optional attachment field where you can submit one. For competitive corporate positions or roles where you're pivoting from a different industry into petroleum refining, a targeted cover letter can meaningfully differentiate your application. If you include one, focus on why Marathon Petroleum specifically — reference their refinery operations, energy transition investments, or specific division — rather than writing a generic letter about the oil and gas industry. Keep it to one page and mirror the same keywords you've embedded in your resume.

What resume format works best with Marathon Petroleum's Workday ATS?

Use a single-column, cleanly formatted resume saved as a .docx file for the most reliable parsing in MPC's Workday system. Avoid tables, text boxes, multi-column layouts, graphics, and headers or footers — Workday's parser routinely misreads or skips content inside these elements. Use standard section headers (Professional Experience, Education, Certifications, Skills) so the parser maps your content correctly. After uploading, critically review every auto-populated field in your Workday profile before hitting submit. Errors in dates, job titles, and company names are common and can create a negative impression if left uncorrected.

What types of roles does Marathon Petroleum hire for most frequently?

Marathon Petroleum's hiring spans a wide spectrum, but the most consistent demand areas include refinery operations (process engineers, inspection technicians, turnaround specialists), environmental health and safety (environmental managers, PSM coordinators), corporate technology (Salesforce architects, OT engineers, Scrum Masters), and logistics (transport drivers, pipeline operators). The company also regularly hires for commercial roles in refining economics, crude trading support, and supply chain planning. Given that MPC operates 13 refineries and an extensive midstream network, many positions are site-based in Texas, Louisiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and other refinery-adjacent locations. Corporate roles are typically based in Findlay, Ohio, or San Antonio, Texas.

How should I prepare for a behavioral interview at Marathon Petroleum?

Marathon Petroleum structures behavioral interviews around its core values: Safety & Environmental Stewardship, Integrity, Respect, Inclusion, and Collaboration. Prepare at least two STAR-format stories (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for each value area. For safety, have a compelling example of proactively identifying a hazard or stopping work due to a safety concern. For collaboration, describe leading or contributing to a cross-functional team under pressure. MPC interviewers tend to probe deeply — expect follow-up questions that test whether your example is genuine and detailed. Practice articulating not just what you did, but why you made specific decisions and what you learned.

Does Marathon Petroleum offer remote or hybrid work arrangements?

Marathon Petroleum's remote work policies vary significantly by role and division. Refinery-based positions — inspection, operations, environmental, and maintenance roles — are inherently on-site and often involve shift work, on-call schedules, and multi-site travel. Corporate roles in IT, finance, HR, and commercial functions have increasingly offered hybrid arrangements, though MPC's culture tends toward in-office presence given the operational nature of the business. Job descriptions on the Workday portal typically specify location requirements and any hybrid or remote flexibility. If flexibility is important to you, look for language like 'remote eligible' or 'hybrid' in the posting, and confirm expectations during your recruiter screen.

Can I apply to Marathon Petroleum with limited oil and gas experience?

Yes, but your approach must be strategic. Marathon Petroleum does hire candidates from adjacent industries — chemical manufacturing, power generation, utilities, heavy industrial, and even enterprise technology — but you need to translate your experience into MPC's operational language. A Salesforce architect from healthcare, for example, should emphasize experience with complex enterprise integrations, regulatory compliance workflows, and large user bases — all relevant to MPC's technology environment. For technical refinery roles, the bar is higher: relevant certifications (API, ASNT) and direct process industry experience are typically required. In your resume and interviews, explicitly bridge your background to petroleum refining contexts rather than expecting MPC to make that connection for you.

What benefits and development opportunities does Marathon Petroleum offer?

Marathon Petroleum offers a competitive total compensation package that commonly includes medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with company match, pension plan eligibility for certain roles, and an employee stock purchase program. The company is also known for investing in professional development through tuition reimbursement, technical training programs, leadership development tracks, and support for industry certifications. Many employees report that MPC's scale — as the nation's largest refiner — provides meaningful lateral and upward mobility across divisions, refineries, and functions. The company also emphasizes mentoring relationships and structured onboarding, particularly for early-career hires entering refinery operations.

How competitive are Marathon Petroleum positions given the low number of active openings?

With approximately 14 active postings at any given time across a Fortune 30 company, Marathon Petroleum positions are highly competitive. MPC tends to hire strategically rather than in volume, meaning each opening often represents a well-defined need with a clear candidate profile. This makes tailoring your application essential — generic resumes submitted in bulk will not succeed. Focus your effort on the one or two roles where your qualifications genuinely align, invest time in customizing your resume and Workday profile for each, and prepare thoroughly if you advance to interviews. Candidates who demonstrate deep knowledge of MPC's operations and specific enthusiasm for the role consistently outperform those with broader but less targeted applications.

Sample Open Positions

Check Your Resume Before Applying → View 80 open positions at Marathon Petroleum

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Sources

Marathon Petroleum Corporation — Careers — Marathon Petroleum Corporation
Marathon Petroleum Corporation — About Us — Marathon Petroleum Corporation
Marathon Petroleum Corporation — Glassdoor Reviews and Interview Insights — Glassdoor
Marathon Petroleum Corporation — Sustainability Report — Marathon Petroleum Corporation