Finding jobs on yachts and sailing ships
As a complete novice, without any previous sailing experience, you can still find suitable positions on private yachts where the employer will teach you the basics. These types of positions are usually low paid or non-paid, but remember you have food and board included, and you get to travel, and gain valuable sailing experience and sea miles. If you wish to crew on commercial yachts, passenger carrying vessels (Charter vessels), in international waters, the minimum requirement is STCW 95.
STCW stands for “Standards of Training and Watchkeeping” it is the certification which comprises the “Basics of Safety Training”. Basic Safety Training Course is a 5-day course, or the course can be split over a couple of separate days depending on where you take the course.
The course normally breaks down as follows:
- 2 days of Basic Fire-fighting
- 1 day of First Aid
- 1 day of Sea Survival
- 1 day of Personal Safety & Social Responsibility
It is a statement of your seriousness and motivation about yachting if you enrol yourself on to these courses. A novice crewmember that already holds STCW certificates is a step ahead of many. You could first choose to crew on a private yacht, without gaining STCW 95, then after some sailing experience, and sea miles, you could then gain the STCW 95 certification.
You can then apply for professional crewing positions on commercial and non-commercial yachts, and increase the number of opportunities available to you in the yachting industry.
Apart from on Season Workers you could also try specialist sites for job listings on dedicated maritime job websites like Crewseekers, Yotspot, or Bluewater.
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