Offshore means ships and units that serve the oil, gas and wind industries at sea. Many seafarers move there for the rotations — often equal time on and off — and day rates that are usually higher than in the merchant fleet. The way in is different from the merchant fleet, so here is what you need.
The vessels
- PSV (platform supply vessels) carry cargo, fuel and water to platforms.
- AHTS (anchor handling tug supply) move rigs and handle their anchors.
- SOV and CTV serve offshore wind farms — SOVs house technicians for weeks, CTVs take them out for the day.
- Construction, diving support and survey vessels, jack-up and installation units.
Most of them use dynamic positioning (DP).
The certificates offshore employers ask for
On top of your STCW certificates and a seafarer medical, offshore usually requires:
- OPITO BOSIET (Basic Offshore Safety Induction and Emergency Training) with CA-EBS — sea survival, helicopter underwater escape (HUET), fire fighting and first aid. It is usually valid for 4 years and renewed with the FOET refresher.
- An offshore medical — for UK and North Sea work the OEUK certificate, usually valid for up to 2 years.
- For wind farms, GWO Basic Safety Training — first aid, manual handling, fire awareness, working at heights and sea survival, valid for 24 months.
- For officers on DP vessels, a DP certificate — see our guide to the DP operator course.
Requirements depend on the region and the client, so check what each vacancy names before paying for a course.
Getting the first contract without offshore experience
- Start from a related rank. Deck officers, engineers, ABs and motormen with merchant experience are hired into offshore every day; what they lack is the offshore certificates, not the seamanship.
- Get BOSIET/GWO first — without them an agency often cannot even put you forward.
- Show the relevant experience — crane work, mooring, towing, DP hours, high voltage for engineers and ETOs.
- Apply to offshore-focused agencies and watch the offshore vacancies.
A CV that puts the offshore points first helps — use the offshore CV template. And remember: offshore training is paid to a training centre, while the job itself costs a seafarer nothing.