Where do I start? What
do I need to study? Am I guaranteed a job?
Leaving something familiar and launching yourself into
something unfamiliar is daunting at best. Before I travelled to America I had
been out of South Africa (not including our mandatory family trips to Zimbabwe)
once. Mad. I left my friends and family and my job to fly to a country I had
never been to and join an industry I knew very little about. Some may call me
brave, I call it being on the receiving end of some dumb luck.
To start off with you will need to decide where you want to
begin your career. The seasons start at a different time each year (not vastly
different) depending on the failures or successes of the previous season. For
example the Caribbean season, which runs in the winter months, this year was
rather dismal for many boats with very few charters booked and not too many
trips happening so many boats headed back to Fort Lauderdale early to undergo maintenance
work in the shipyards before heading over to the Mediterranean to try and get
an early start on their seasons and sneak some early charters in.
Mid April to May is probably the best time to position
yourself in one of the yachting hubs, either Fort Lauderdale in Florida or
Antibes in France. If you choose to go to the Med then lace up your boat shoes
because you need to be hitting the marinas for a spot of dockwalking every day.
Dockwalking is the easiest way for a green (newbie) yachty to get a job,
basically you walk up and down the docks handing your CV to anyone who will
take it. You definitely need to visit the crew agents but they often require
references before they represent you, early on in your career references come
from the temporary (day) work that you secure from dockwalking.
 |
| 17th Street Causeway: You do not want to be walking over that bridge every day. |
If you choose to travel to America then you need to
understand that dockwalking is completely out of the question. Completely. CBP
will deport you. This is not a joke. Also the marinas in Fort Lauderdale are
pretty spread out. You will spend an entire day getting to all of them. Signing
up with agencies is crucial in Florida, most of them also have a daywork
register that you can sign up to, captains looking for workers tend to contact
agents rather than accept dockwalkers. It is illegal for a foreigner to seek
work in the US.
Depending on where you choose to travel and depending on the
country you are a citizen of you will probably need to put some time into
researching what visa you need. I do not want to go into too much detail here
because there are so many grey areas you need to navigate when applying for
your visa. It is tricky and it is best even if you know what you are doing. If
you are coming to the US you will need a B1/B2 visa unless you are from Canada.
Even citizens of countries who participate in the Visa Waiver Program will need
to apply for one, you cannot work in the US, even on a foreign flagged vessel,
if you do not have a magic B1 stamp in your passport. Unless you are from
America of course.
If you are travelling to Europe, and you are not part of the
Visa Waiver Program, you will need to
look into applying for a Schengen Visa. The rules are slightly different and I
strongly advise seeking the assistance of an agency that specializes in visa
applications. Schengen visas are valid for a year at most so that is something
to consider when deciding which route you would like to take.
I strongly suggest that you spend quite a bit of time researching visa applications, most Embassy websites contain all the necessary information you need but also use a little common sense, try find travel sites or speak to a Travel Agent.
To work aboard a yacht you are legally required to complete
your STCW 95 Course. This is a week long, safety and social responsibility
course. You will not be able to get a job on a boat without one. You will also
need an ENG 1 medical certificate. This medical needs to be performed by an RYA
affiliated doctor, the certificate you are issued with is valid for a
year. Once you have your STCW and your
ENG 1 you are eligible to seek employment aboard a yacht in an entry level
position however there are an increasing number of boats out there that require
their deck crew to be in possession of a Yachtmaster Offshore ticket. This is a
far more difficult and in depth course than the STCW, you will be required to
have completed a certain number of sea miles before you can take part in the
course and have an aptitude for boat handling and navigation.
In addition to completing these and various other
(Introductory Stewardess / Deckhand) courses you should also have some sort of
marine / hospitality background – meeting these criteria will set you up in
good stead to quickly gain employment on a boat. There are no guarantees and I
have heard of many newbie yachties who have come over to the States only to
find themselves without a job and with a dwindling bank account after 3 months
and have been forced to return home. If you do land a job though make sure you
stick it out for at least a year. Nothing looks better on your CV than
longevity.
I have only ever taken (or known people who have taken) courses in South Africa and America, google should be able to throw some schools at you if you are stuck and you are welcome to ask my opinion of them if you are not sure.
Right, next week I will discuss Crew Agents and Interviews.
Comment or tweet for any more information.
No comments:
Post a Comment