Crew Training Schools

Hello Captains

I am interested in your experience and opinions in the following:
2 weeks ago I placed a Stewardess from South Africa onto a 75 feet Motoryacht for seasonal Stewardess / Deckhand work. She just did the following courses in a "no names here " Training school in 2010 :

LICENSES/ CERTIFICATES:
Practical sailing course- Day Skipper
Practical sailing course- Competent Crew
Shorebased course- RYA/MCA Day Skipper for Sail and Power Craft
National Powerboat certificate- Level
2
Super Yacht Training Certificate- Maintenance, Boat etiquette, Water Sports

STCW 95
VHF/HF Radio course
Super Yacht Introductory Stewardess course
First Aid, Level 1

now 2 weeks later I got a short feedback from the Captain that this girl did not loose her hand with big luck 2 times with a simple anchorage winch handling.

Now what is your experience with Crew just coming from a COMPETENT CREW TRAINING Center ???

Also I want to know what you would expect from a Training School and what should be trained to take a Yacht Job ??

Please use for your story's my Private Message here or my
if you do not want to post it here.

Background for this is that we will maybe create in the near future a special Crew Training on a 36m Yacht that will exactly based on Captains comments and Captains input for this special Program. SO I need your input and also suggestions for a NAME for this special Training.

On the other side it would also be nice to hear some Crew comments about what they expect from Captains and Officers and how they perform or create upgrade training courses on board ?

Thks in advance.

Hello, i am not a captain to give an opinion about, but in some way i was interested on your activities. I just wrote per Email then, have you got? Please let me know your opinions further then. Regards

Marmot

Dear Marmot,

I am just wondering for what Crew pay than ?
Hopefully the Crew learned not to throw this piece of paper in the
Yachts flush toilet what could bring the Engineer in trouble !!!

Maybe this girl spend 3000 Euro and just now with her first position
on a Yacht she get aware that she spend for nothing ?

My question is more to find a solution.

Is there enough time to train Crew ?
Is it time to think about a special course on board a Yacht and not just shore-based ?

The problem is always with smaller Yachts in the 18-25m range where the Crew has to fill different positions.

For sure you can tell me know that I have to place her on a bigger Yacht
where there is maybe some more time for a proper training but will they ever take than a position on a smaller Yacht for the next season ?? NO never !!!

So I as a Crew Agent have to decide where to place them ?

Here we have hundreds of Captains and Owners reading this forums and I am sure together we can find a solution.

Solution

Marmot,

very good questions and comments.
But I am not here to get business assistance for my Company.
I want to ask you what could be a solution in the future ?

Papers are always good and without them you never will get a Job.

My decision to place exactly this Girl was that she speaks a bit German, good looking, for sure some Papers. Now after the chat with the Captain he will give her a special on-board daily training and I am sure she will stay on board.

For my amateur opinion, everybody in this planet deserves a job nearby his/her/its dreams. Well, the girl made her efforts, this is sure, so imo a second, 3rd, 4th, 5th... chance could have been giving to her, if she correct better herself or in other words in a appropriate position that fits better to her in her daily tasks. I don't know how she is, but then why not continue trying. We are in this world not just to serve but also to learn/enjoy in our whole lives...

Thanks for the words Bill, but not very easy if others really don't want to help. C'est La Vie! Murphy Law has always a Destiny ...
and Destiny is something we really can't change >>>>>>>>>>>>
It doesn't matter how hard you do! ............................... End.

You are right Bamboo.
But also you have to consider that this girl would maybe never got a Job on a bigger Yacht with no experience. So I am often trying to bring newcomers into our business and the chance to get a first position is always good on smaller Yachts but also effects from time to time in different work what could include a winch handling. I was sure that this Girl with a lot of certificates knows how to handle an anchor or mooring winch.

Also today I got a feedback from the Training Center
Quote "
Hi Alex
Thanks for the email,
The courses we run are on 34 ft yachts without winches.
We do explain that when using winches it can be dangerous and that care should be taken when using the brake handle combined with electric controls (one person to operate winch and control)
We will from now on include a full demonstration and stress the dangers as it seems some of our students are too proud to ask for a demo or help.
I have also very recently been made aware of captains complaining that many crew now days have lots of tickets but are very poor hands on.
We are going to reschedule and add in extra deck work days to our maintenance course.
Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
Kind regards,"

Unquote""
So if I would have got this above info in advance I would have informed the Crew that they have to train her in front of a winch maneuver. Be sure.

The positive thing here that maybe one School wakes up now and will give them a special Training. GOOD for all of us. Hope more Centers will follow and put this Training into their Syllabus .

So get out to the Schools and tell them what is wrong, otherwise nothing will change.

Wait a minute. Maybe you dreamed too high already. I just said that maybe the girl made her efforts, but probably has no talent. I just think School, Certificates and knowledge to do is important, but if you do a job just for money, find it boring, your heart does not play together, you don't have talent at all, does not matter how many papers you have in your walls to help, you will fail. If you followed your dream, made huge efforts to it, have also a minimum average talent then i really don't think Salvador D'ali would be a wonderful Stock Exchange Business man, just because the money you can get is the basic enough. I saw in my many companies thousand, billions of poor managers, Prof. Dr³ that said too much blablas daily but could never solve with good and easy solutions complicate things in a practical way that was required, but they receive tousands a year while everything is corrected in hammer afterwards to get produced, you know. So if you even are a more one frustated doing a boring job, you would never do it tremendous good, but just in the obligation of.... for paying the bills. It is how today many big good names companies are insuflated of poor people there and things get 1000 times redone until in an unforeseen future to get finally an end production. I just think, doesn't matter how much papers this girl has, but if she does not do the normal daily things with real determination to be done, then really it is a pity she is in the job she is, even if with a lucky destiny situation she had helped she get so far. But like i said chance to be given is a positive flexibility, imo. But as i have ever seen management mistakes, then probably is captain mistake really to not feeling this girl better... Hope the ship is save in his hands then.. For myself i proved many times to be even better than Dr³ people, but you know, 'Discrimination for what pre-concepts people put in mind wrongly' in this world empires more. So never worked out like i wanted. Just applying a job and get accepted does not mean you would do this job 100% right wonderfully good, if you really don't like/love it. Tell me really if the 'Blue Blood' people really started from botom? no, never, i saw many boys & girls sons and daughters of biggers that really goes direct to the top and they are mentioned to be the 'bests'. Only fewer smarters really did much from the deep bottom. But anyway i don't care for this girl. Life is hard to me, so must be for her as well. BTW, what the hell a stewartess is doing like a deckhand? I mean should not she only serving a drink or choosing a wine? For that school is really bad they split both categories. So **** happens. At end money is what only really counts to people who make the decisions you are in or you are out. How world continues to be.