when will they revise the course? Has anyone heard anything? Lot’s of obsolete material.
A new revised pool of questions was just released within the last couple weeks or so. Probably still a good bit of out of date information but at least it has actually been recently updated. The link below is to the revised FCC question pools.
The FCC is much faster than the USCG on question pool updates. Its a good thing that the FCC is in control of GMDSS questions. The USCG cargo questions are virtually all from the pre-container era. If the USCG did the GMDSS questions they would probably ask mostly about vacuum tubes and hand crank magnetos.
I was surprised to hear that STCW GMDSS courses are almost the same worldwide. The major difference being that in non-English speaking countries they also receive an extra 50 hours of English lessons. Also, I hear that the US STCW GMDSS course is the only one in the world that still teaches how to send a radiotelex.
Because of STCW, we are stuck with an 80 hour course. However, if we are going to spend that kind of time and money, the USCG should at least require the schools to have the best new equipment, and enough of it.
[QUOTE=tugsailor;94797]The FCC is much faster than the USCG on question pool updates. Its a good thing that the FCC is in control of GMDSS questions. The USCG cargo questions are virtually all from the pre-container era. If the USCG did the GMDSS questions they would probably ask mostly about vacuum tubes and hand crank magnetos.
I was surprised to hear that STCW GMDSS courses are almost the same worldwide. The major difference being that in non-English speaking countries they also receive an extra 50 hours of English lessons. Also, I hear that the US STCW GMDSS course is the only one in the world that still teaches how to send a radiotelex.
Because of STCW, we are stuck with an 80 hour course. However, if we are going to spend that kind of time and money, the USCG should at least require the schools to have the best new equipment, and enough of it.[/QUOTE]
The Coast Guard neither develops thge courses or writes the tests in them, nor is a school required to use the MODEL question pool. They can write their own. If you are not happy with a specific school’s course, talk with your wallet.
The 70-hour minimum course duration is probvably the shortest that any country accepts for STCW. The IMO Model Course for GMDSS, closely followed in the rest of the world, is 140 hours long.
[QUOTE=Louis;94780]when will they revise the course? Has anyone heard anything? Lot’s of obsolete material.[/QUOTE]
Schools can revise their course any time they wish.
[QUOTE=tugsailor;94797]I was surprised to hear that STCW GMDSS courses are almost the same worldwide.[/QUOTE]
I could be wrong, but isn’t that the point of the STCWs? Standardization across all 133 IMO signature nations?
[QUOTE=lymanlouis;94898]I could be wrong, but isn’t that the point of the STCWs? Standardization across all 133 IMO signature nations?[/QUOTE]
Maybe I’m just a bleary-eyed romantic but I’d really like to believe you’re right. Whether that’s how it works in real life or not, I don’t know, but I do believe that’s how it was originally intended…