A Career in Shipping
The Merchant Navy is the collective term for the British shipping industry.
The work
Opportunities exist in navigation, engineering, catering and hospitality. The
shipping industry offers excellent training schemes, with great potential for
progression. Over 95% of the UK’s imports and exports go by sea and British
shipping has one of the most efficient and diverse fleets in the world.
The skills
The courses all have a high maths and science based content so knowledge of these
subjects is essential.
You also have to be able to meet the seafarers’ medical and eyesight
requirements.
The following general skills are essential:
- Numeracy and literacy
skills
- Absolute desire to go to sea
and an interest in ships
- A willingness to obey orders
and a strong sense of responsibility
- Initiative
- Strong leadership and absolute
integrity
- Reliability - ability to work
without supervision
- Ability to work long hours and
a willingness to be away from home for long periods
Entry requirements
Entry requirement vary depending on the area of work you are interested in with
direct entry options straight from school through to graduate opportunities.
The main entry route for Officer Training is the 3 year Foundation Degree-based
programme or Professional Diploma in Scotland, which is A level/Highers entry and
requires 120 UCAS points in unspecified A levels/Highers. You will also be expected to
have good grades in GCSE or Standard grades English, maths, physics/combined science.
However there is also the HNC/HND route which requires GCSE Grades A-C/Scottish
Standard grades at levels 1-3 in English, Maths, a science-based subject and at least
one other subject.
There are apprenticeship opportunities in shipping-related occupations, so it is
worth visiting the Apprenticeship websites to see what is available (there are separate
sites for each of the four nations):
Salary and career development
Salaries will vary according to the job role and so it is difficult to provide
general salary range. It is an excellent career for those seeking training and
development opportunities, with training conducted on land at a nautical college or
university and on board ships.
The recruitment of school leavers into the Merchant Navy to train as officer cadets
is co‑ordinated centrally by the Merchant Navy Training Board.
It is a structured programme with alternating periods at college and at sea, obtaining
the relevant nationally approved qualifications and professional maritime
certificates.
Employers
British Merchant ships operate all around the world and include modern ferries,
large container ships, luxury cruise liners, oil, gas and chemical tankers and support
vessels for the offshore exploration industry. The ships are operated by individual
companies and trade worldwide.
Opportunities exist in a wide range of sectors from merchant shipping, to ports,
through to ship management. The contacts provided below will help you to identify
potential employers.
Contacts
There is a number of professional bodies and trade associations relevant to the
shipping industry: