If you’re the type of person who has always felt right at home on the open water, you’ll be pleased to know that there is a wide range of different career options available for you to choose from. The factor that you need to keep in mind, however, is one of licensing. You can’t just put your personal experience on a resume and expect to get a job on a commercial vessel of some type. Not only would it be incredibly dangerous because you lack the appropriate experience in that environment, but it would also be illegal. By pursuing the correct licence, however, you open yourself up to a potentially limitless number of possibilities depending on your comfort zone.
Your Coxswain Licence
If you pursue and receive your coxswain licence, for example, it gives you the opportunity to both command and operate any vessel that is up to 12 metres in length on inshore waters in Australia. You will also have the ability to operate inboard and outboard motors and you will be aware of all health and safety regulations that are required when working for the public. Many different types of smaller commercial vessels would fit right into this category, including some smaller craft that you could use to give guided tours or to go on whale watching excursions, for example.
Your Marine Engine Driver Licence
If you had something a bit larger in mind, like being the chief or second engineer on a craft that had a propulsion power of greater than 750 Kilowatts, you would definitely want to start pursuing your marine engine driver licence right away. This licensing teaches you about a wide range of different skills that you will need to work on a vessel of this size on a daily basis. These include but are not limited to things like basic survival skills, hull maintenance, how to safely operate the type of machinery that you are likely to find on the craft’s deck and more. There are many larger commercial vessels and even vessels that would fall under this size and it would enable you to operate everything from ferries to the types of large vessels that are used for things like whale watching tours and things of that nature on a regular basis.
Between whale watching tours, ferries, commercial vessels and more, there has never been a better time to pursue your career on the high seas and get the training and licences that will allow you to live the exciting life that you’ve always dreamed of. When you do determine that the time is right for your personal situation to develop your career on the open water, consider Maritime and Safety Training for all of your educational needs. We offer a wide range of different courses for you to choose from depending on which direction you’d like to take. Our courses are convenient, easy ways to get the appropriate licence for the career path that you’ve always had in mind.
