STCW training - coast guard license preparation
STCW Certification Course - Maritime Professional Training - SOLAS - Continuing Education
Six Pack Captain License - Bridge Simulator - Z Card - Merchant Mariner Document
Professional Training is a big part of the commercial mariner's career development.
The importance of maritime industry training is evident from the number of state
academies, community colleges, vocational schools and technical institutes that
offer Coast Guard license preparation courses and other programs for deck officers,
engine officers, and non-licensed personnel.
Continuing Education and professional training offer a number of benefits. We know
they cost money in terms of tuition, and that's obviously not a benefit. But continuing
education, whether in the form of on-line distance learning courses or live
classroom venues, can enhance professional development. It can contribute to
career advancement. It can reduce human error accidents, especially with facilities
that employ bridge simulators. And as an incidental benefit, this facet of the industry
can create job opportunities for instructors, lecturers, and program administrators.
There's a job opening for
Director - Center for Maritime & Professional Training at
Massachusetts Maritime Academy, located on Buzzard's Bay. Candidates can also
submit a curriculum vitae or resume for a
Marine Instructor position at Fletcher
Community College, in Huoma, Louisiana.
Is this a special resort where tugboat mates relieve stress by operating radio controlled
tugboats for fun? Not exactly… but it is how serious mariners train at a facility in France called
Port Revell. The specialized training center offers "hands-on" instruction for pilots and captains in
navigating large, deep draft vessels in crowded ports. It might look like fun, but it's a very serious
lesson plan designed to sharpen seamanship skills.
Massachusetts Maritime Academy
operates a similar program. Read more below about an interesting job opening with them.
We'd like to think that the trend in maritime schools investing more to develop such
programs for self-improvement and betterment could result in positions for
experienced veterans who want to come ashore to teach such classes.
As the complexity of modern vessels evolves further, workers in the industry will be
burdened with learning new technologies. And it isn't just about electronic chart systems for
ECDIS compliance under IMO. Just look at this computer display for a large V-12 diesel engine,
showing flow charts and critical operating parameters. The experienced chief with a flashlight
in his back pocket will never be obsolete. But the new generation of engine room personnel
will need to be familiar with this type of diagnostic tool to troubleshoot why no. 4 cylinder is
running hot when there's nothing wrong with the seawater circulating pump.