Deck Cadet - Merchant Navy
Become: Deck Cadet - Merchant Navy
Higher National Diploma Route:
A minimum of 4 GCSE Grades A-C, in Maths, a Science based subject, English and at least one other acceptable subject.
Foundation Degree Route & Scottish Professional Diploma Route:
120 UCAS points as a minimum in acceptable subjects at A Level (acceptable alternatives would include a National Certificate/Diploma in Electronics/Electrical or similar qualifications).
About: Deck Cadet - Merchant Navy
This is a role unlike any other, as a Deck Cadet you will be training to become a fully qualified Deck Officer. Deck cadets will split their time between 'phases' at a Maritime Academy and periods at sea. By the end of your three year cadetship you will have at least 12 months at sea and be ready for your final examination.
Deck cadets can have a wide variety of tasks to complete at sea, such as chipping (chipping rust off metalwork) through to navigational watchkeeping under the supervision of the Officer of the Watch on the bridge. You’ll also shadow more senior crew and help with a range of tasks, for example: cargo watch – monitoring the operation of pumps, flow of cargo, tank levels; safety rounds; maintenance of equipment. Depending on what sort of ships you do your training on you could find yourself working in Singapore one day and South America a few weeks later.
The trips vary in length from a few days away on ferries to a few months on larger cargo ships, every trip comes with an equal or almost equal amount of time off so there's plenty of time for R&R!
Deck Cadets will usually obtain a Foundation Degree (or Scottish equivalent) whilst undertaking training in addition to their professional qualification. You may also have the option to 'top up' to a full Bachelor of Science if you wanted.
All training is paid for and cadets receive a 'training allowance' whilst training to cover their accommodation and living expenses. These allowances generally vary from around £12,000 to £18,000 per year meaning you won't usually need a student loan. Travel the world, study and get paid for it!
Case Study
Name: Derek Morrison Age: 34 Job role: Deck Cadet Company: Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics and Bibby Ship Management Company website: http://www.2wglobal.com/ http://www.bibbyshipmanagement.com/ Qualifications Required: GCSE’s / A-Levels Average Position Salary: £500 - £1000 per month
I didn’t get great grades in school; they weren’t bad but equally weren’t good enough to get into University. I ended up opting to do a HNC and moving to Glasgow, starting a job in insurance. After 12 years there I claimed an optional redundancy and wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to do but I was adamant my ‘office days’ were over.
A friend of mine suggested the Merchant Navy and initially I laughed off the idea, assuming I would be stuck in the crows’ nest on lookout duties! I spoke with a few friends in the Merchant Navy though and my interest developed. After attending an “Access to Merchant Navy” course at my local college I started applying for positions with companies. I left it quite late for a January 2014 intake but Bibby Ship Management invited me for an interview in Glasgow.
I got offered a Deck Cadetship a week later and started in Jan 2014. My first college phase was a real eye opener; it felt very strange being back in the classroom but it was really enjoyable. I was particularly in my comfort zone with maths based subjects like Navigational Maths and Celestial Navigation, while I also really enjoyed bridge watchkeeping and Chartwork. There were also plenty of short courses to do, which were all fun, but Basic Fire Fighting was my favourite and was quite exciting.
My first sea phase also went really well. I had no idea what to expect, but Lee, my training manager at Bibby Ship Management, called me the week before I joined and gave me a pre-sea briefing, providing good advice on my Training Record book. I joined MV Tijuca in Southampton and spent four months on board, travelling the world. The experience was more than I expected, with a great crew, good food, a pool, a gym and lots of entertainment to pass the time – including karaoke and BBQ’s! I learned so much during the initial four months, which has driven me on and made me realise this was always the career for me.