Hi everyone,
I noticed through some googling that there seems to be an invariably common question as to how long it takes to process a new license so I thought I’d share my ongoing experience of obtaining my (small) 100 ton master’s license with the assistance towing endorsement.
While I can’t comment to the relation of the license type to processing time I can share my experience and publically thank everyone involved in the process for their diligence.
I’ll try to update my post as the situation progresses, but I wanted to comment that so far it has been a great experience working with my local REC and the NMC and that at this point I’m very happy with the whole process so far. The REC was great and the NMC seems to be making efficient work of my application and keeping me up to date via email as to the status.
[U]10/19[/U] - Application, medical, proof of TWIC, Drug screening, sea service, and character references submitted to my local REC. NOTE: I was glad I submitted it in person, I was on the spot for error checking and was able to be sworn in and correct a few mistakes on my application which could have delayed the process. If it’s practicable, I suggest submitting in person.
[U]10/21[/U] - MMC Application in transit.
[U]10/27[/U] - Medical ready to be screened, assigned to the screener, passed medical, approved for issuance, and issued. The medical was shipped to me via 1st class mail on this day.
[U]10/28[/U] - Being evaluated for professional qualifications.
Updates follow as my status changes.