A deck cadet is a future navigating officer doing the sea service that a certificate of competency requires. It is the hardest contract of a career to get — every crewing agency wants experience, and a cadet has none — but it is also the one that opens every other door. Here is what the job is, what you need, and where to look.
What a deck cadet does on board
A deck cadet works under the Chief Officer and keeps bridge watches alongside an officer of the watch. In practice that means:
- Bridge watchkeeping under supervision — lookout, position fixing, the radar and ECDIS, the logbook.
- Cargo work — loading and discharging under the Chief Officer, draft surveys, hold and tank inspections.
- Maintenance with the deck crew — mooring equipment, life-saving and fire-fighting gear.
- The Training Record Book — every task you complete is signed off by an officer. Without a properly filled book the sea time may not count towards your certificate.
How much sea time you need
Under STCW (regulation II/1), a deck officer of the watch needs at least 12 months of approved seagoing service as part of an approved training programme with onboard training recorded in a training record book — or 36 months without such a programme. At least six months of that must be bridge watchkeeping under supervision. In practice that is one or two cadet contracts.
Documents crewing agencies ask for
- A valid passport and seaman's book.
- A seafarer medical certificate — check colour vision early: it is decisive for deck officers.
- STCW basic training: personal survival, fire prevention and fire fighting, elementary first aid, personal safety and social responsibilities; plus security awareness.
- A referral letter from your maritime academy or college — many companies only take cadets sent by a school.
- English — at least enough for a short interview; many agencies test it (Marlins or a similar test).
Where to find a deck cadet vacancy
- Cadet programmes of shipowners and managers. Large companies run their own intakes, often through maritime academies — these are the most reliable route and usually lead to a junior officer contract.
- Crewing agencies. Send your CV with the word "cadet" in the subject and your school, year and English level in the first lines.
- Job boards. Current offers are collected on the deck cadet vacancies page, with the vessel type, contract length and stipend.
A CV that gets a cadet noticed
With no sea service, the CV has to sell everything else: the academy and course, practical training and simulator hours, every STCW course with its number and expiry date, English level, and any work that shows you are reliable. Keep it to one page. You can build it from your profile and send it in the format agencies expect.
Questions at the cadet interview
A crewing interview for a cadet is short, usually in English, and checks attitude as much as knowledge. Be ready for:
- "Tell us about yourself." School, year, practical training, why the sea — one minute, no more.
- "What are the duties of a lookout?" And the basics of COLREG: who gives way, lights and shapes, sound signals.
- "What do you do if you hear 'man overboard'?" Raise the alarm, throw a lifebuoy, keep the person in sight, inform the bridge.
- "Which STCW courses do you have, and until when are they valid?" Know your own documents by heart.
- "Why our company?" Read about the fleet before the call.
Speak slowly and honestly — saying "I have not done that yet, but I know the procedure is…" is far better than inventing experience.
Never pay for a place
A cadet is the easiest person to deceive: they want the first contract badly and do not yet know how hiring works. No legitimate company charges a seafarer for a job — not for a "place in the programme", not for "processing", not for a visa. Courses and the medical are paid to a training centre or a clinic, never to whoever promises the contract.
When your documents are ready, look through the deck cadet vacancies and apply directly — the CV goes straight to the crewing manager.