Hello, I am a high school senior and it is my goal to be captain of a cruise ship or something similar. I was depressed for a long time and unsatisfied with my current life and how people were pushing me to work in finance, so I decided to do what makes me happy. I have always loved the sea and wanted to be a sailor when I was little so I decided that’s what I wanted to do.
Where/how should I go to college? I’m not sure I want to go to a maritime academy, as it may not be the college experience I want with partying etc. Maybe I could join the military, because I think it would give me experience and help me pay for tuition which I really need.
I don’t want to join the military straight out of hs because I want a college degree, and I am ineligible for NROTC because of the community college classes I took in high school. Maybe I could join the reserves or army. What should I do?
Do your 4 years in the service, which branch, doesnt matter. you might like it, my brother did… hes spent the lst 6 years in guam and his last station before retirement at 38 will be Hawaii.
If you get out, the G.I. bill will pay for your school, depending on where you are stationed, you might be able to either get your degree, or your captains liscense… or both, on the gov’t dime. Plus it will give you the disipline and expirences that are required in order to progress in the real world. Keep in mind none of this will happen over night… were talking, what 5 years investment of time for even the smallest of liscenses… its a long and bumpy road to unlimited master, many years…
That will atleast put you into the next administation where hopefully thing will change for the better. I really feel for young people in these times, no jobs, piss poor economy, and no real signs of improvement under the current leadership.
I’ll say it, your hopes of becoming a ship captain, with out a maritime academy degree are very slim.
With that said, the industry needs young people, you might get your twic and MMC and hop on a tugboat for the summer. You might like it… I did… decent money, work 6 months a year, get 6 months of vacation… Id wager most deckhands start around 35-38k a year… probally more than what youll be making after spending a ton of money on college and findng out 1)either you hate your chosen field 1) their are no jobs in said field or 3) were all out of work due to world wide economic collapse.
If your dream is to be a ship captain and you don’t go to a maritime academy you are an idiot. If you don’t go to a maritime academy because you want to go to frat parties like a regular college student you are a fucking idiot. On that note, even though they are “dry” campuses students at the academies party it up and have plenty of fun. You will be more happy in the long run going to an academy and having a good start on your career then having a few years of frat parties.
I would go to a academy and join the MMR (merchant marine reservist) program you will get cash for school and be a naval officer upon graduation and get your 3rd mate oceans ticket as well. And don’t be fooled we partied hard at the academy when I wad there.
Thanks for the replies and humor lol. If I go to Cal Maritime and join the MMR how long would it be until I can get an unlimited masters license? Do I need any education beyond a bachelors degree and is the post about moving and nationality somewhat true
Also would it be worth it to go to suny maritime or another academy instead of cma (I live in ca but want to go out of state)
[QUOTE=southbay;54336]Hello, it is my goal to be captain… unsatisfied… I decided to do what makes me happy… I have always loved the sea and wanted to be a sailor when I was little so I decided that’s what I wanted to do.
What should I do?[/QUOTE]
Sorry. I excised some of your quote. To me it sounds like you should first ‘try out’ working out on a boat before you go ‘all in’ and purchase an education. It may sound dumb, but I have seen way too many guys come out here, and HATE it. So, My advice is to ‘try it’, if only for 6 months or so (heck, even a two week trip on something) It costs about 500 bucks to get your documents as an Ordinary Seaman (OS) then beat the bushes looking for a job somewhere. Once you have figured out if you like the industry, then go back to school and get the degree.
You have aspirations to be a Captain. First see if you even like working away from: Land, Family, Friends, ‘civilization,’ TV, Internet. And see if you can stand being cooped up on one vessel for a month, with the same 5 or 10 ugly mutts as your shipmates.
BTW, the comment about changing your nationality was directed at your statement you want to be a cruise ship Captain. There aren’t ANY USA flagged cruise ships (big ones) that need a US Master graduate to run them. The foreign ones DO, but you have to be a foreigner to get the job.
Stay in CA and take advantage of the in state tuition, unless you get into kings point. At all the maritime academies you graduate with a 3rd mate unlimited, I have a friend I went with who just got his masters unlimited 6 years it took him.
[QUOTE=southbay;54336]Hello, I am a high school senior and it is my goal to be captain of a cruise ship or something similar. I was depressed for a long time and unsatisfied with my current life and how people were pushing me to work in finance, so I decided to do what makes me happy. I have always loved the sea and wanted to be a sailor when I was little so I decided that’s what I wanted to do.
Where/how should I go to college? I’m not sure I want to go to a maritime academy, as it may not be the college experience I want with partying etc. Maybe I could join the military, because I think it would give me experience and help me pay for tuition which I really need.
I don’t want to join the military straight out of hs because I want a college degree, and I am ineligible for NROTC because of the community college classes I took in high school. Maybe I could join the reserves or army. What should I do?[/QUOTE]
Go to School. The way things are changing you really need that education.
I went into the military and then worked my way up the hawespipe, but things have changed and are still changing. If I had known about what was available when I was a senior in high school I would probably have gone to Suny. Probably not Cal, but I think as long as you get your education and your license you should have no problem becoming the Captain. The trick is to decide where to go from there.
Just to add my 2 cents from the hawsepipers side… you can go to straight to work and forget about school and earn more money from the start. Now that they have changed the rules back to where you do not need classes any more and only need assessments, you will be FAR ahead of the game! If you really feel you need to go to school for a degree, then at least start at a 2 year program like the one they offer at PMI. You will save a ton of money, learn the same things you would learn at a 4 year school and again, be working and earning more money so ahead of the game. The only school worth spending 4 years in is Kings Point and that is because it is FREE!!!
I personally went the hawsepipe route years ago. I got my AB (could have got QMED too) through a 2 year school and have been working my way up since then. Now the same sort of program I got my AB through will get you a mates license!!! I did not have the money to go to university and could not get financial aid. Also, I did not want to put myself in thousands of dollars of debt. I already knew this was what I wanted to do.
Later, after I had already been working for a long time, I had to go back to sailing AB from 1600 ton master because of some screwups with the USCG. After I got my 3rd mate unlimited, I went back to university since my grandmother had finally convinced me I needed a college degree in order to “do anything” with my life. So, I went back to school, started with chemical engineering, decided after 3 years of that it would never be what I wanted to do and finished with a degree in math just to get out of school. I have NEVER seen a single job for someone with a math degree in the 10 years since I got it!!! Total and complete waste of time and money!!! I would have to go back to school for 2 years in order to teach (and take a 75% pay cut from sailing and work longer)!!!
IF you want to sail, you do NOT need any college degree. If you want to do something else, then maybe you do! All I know is: I know a lot of people with college degrees working for minimum wage jobs and not having anything to do with thier degrees and thousands and thousands of dollars in debt!
If you go to get a college degree, the only ones worth the time and money are the ones that will get you a GOOD job: engineering, medicine, maybe computers, other than that, you are probably wasting your time.
If you go straight to work, you can get your master unlimited in less than 10 years. That is not really a long time. I know quite a few people with that license younger than 35 years old so it is very possible (tho those people I know DID go to the academy, it makes it easier but you have to be able to afford it somehow!).
If your goal is an unlimited license and you want to sail deep sea then I say go to school. The “earn while you learn” is certainly a plus for the hawsepipe route, but there are too many unknowns along the way. Only by going to an Academy will you know that you will be sitting for a 3/M unlimited, oceans in 4 years. If you hawsepipe it you have to constantly be worried about getting on a ship/boat of the right size and route and how much time do I have … etc. Plus there is the constantly moving target of the NMC.
I say go straight to the 3/M since that is where the real learning begins anyway.
Go to school, Go to work, go into finance, etc etc etc. Doesn’t get clearer does it?
The issue is YOU. What do YOU want to do?
I think for starters you need to research what specific maritime industry you want to enter. Then, look up (either on this website, or others) the names of the titles you are seeing here. CM, 3M, Master, tug, ship. I’ll give you some more: Inland license, ocean license, tug and barge, deep sea, Union, non Union, brown water, bluewater.
It is NOT necessary to attend a 4 year college to work on brown water. You can attend a 2 year SUNY program, or similar to get a limited tonnage license and get earning money faster. Although as some have said, the requirements to get ANY licenses’ are getting more and more stringent each year, a maritime college covers all the bases (education, and course wise) to qualify you as a mariner.
IMHO the 4 year ‘Marine Transportation’ degree is useless outside the industry. You could go get a 4 year degree in accounting and work in several industries, in various capacities. So before you pitch in to the marine field make sure it is acceptable to YOU.
Your comment that you want to be a captain of a cruise ship (or similar) indicates you don’t understand the true condition of these types of jobs for US licensed mariners. The US ‘cruise ships’ are small (comparatively) and don’t require a big license. Take the time to learn about the industry before you commit.
If you want to be a full sized cruise ship captain you need to do the following:
Go to one of the below:
King’s Point (US Merchant Marine Academy)
SUNY Maritime
Mass Maritime
Maine Maritime
Texas A&M Maritime
Great Lakes Maritime
Cal Maritime
You will not be able to make it without going to one of these schools. Hawspipers as ship captain will soon be a thing of the past. Once you finish school you will have a 3rd Mates Oceans licnese and you can start climbing the ladder from there making big bucks along the way. I know a few academy guys, they all had plenty of fun drunken adventures you wont miss out on that.
If you are talking about being a captain on a harbor cruise boat just get a job on it as a deckhand, get your sea time, get a 100 ton license and go for it.
For what its worth I would go with c.captain’s route…
Thanks for the replies everyone. The route I think I will take is to go to cma or suny maritime for 4 years and join the MMR. I want to work on bluewater, and I meant a large cruise ship that goes australia or norway etc. Would a US license be invalid for that?
Can anyone reccomend books or other resources about the industry, or message me about your career and how you got there
[QUOTE=southbay;54537]Thanks for the replies everyone. The route I think I will take is to go to cma or suny maritime for 4 years and join the MMR. I want to work on bluewater, and I meant a large cruise ship that goes australia or norway etc. Would a US license be invalid for that?
Can anyone reccomend books or other resources about the industry, or message me about your career and how you got there[/QUOTE]
It just depends on the flag of the ship. Most flags of convenience are convertable. For example two vessels I have worked on have had different flags. One Panama and the other Singapore. You have to fill out an application and submit for a license conversion. The respective flag country will inspect your documents and confirm you have the proper training, etc. Then they will issue the license for that Country. So, right now I have a US license, Singapore license and a Panamanian license. Getting them after the fact is no big deal either. Most people will hire you with the US License with the understanding that the conversion will be soon to follow and they normally set up the conversion for you. I do not have any experience with cruise ships, but I am guessing it is the same as any other vessel.
[QUOTE=southbay;54376]Thanks for the replies and humor lol. If I go to Cal Maritime and join the MMR how long would it be until I can get an unlimited masters license? Do I need any education beyond a bachelors degree and is the post about moving and nationality somewhat true
Also would it be worth it to go to suny maritime or another academy instead of cma (I live in ca but want to go out of state)[/QUOTE]
If you really want to have fun: Go to Cal, graduate with your 3/M license. Get a job on SFO harbor tugs, work your way up to master. Do a few years on the tugs and get your SFO pilotage. Apply for the SF Bar Pilots. Get into the Pilots. Make a lot of money driving ships to and fro. Screw the cruise ships, as mentioned above you’d have to be from another country.