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Green Junior Engineer/Deck looking for guidance/work

Discussion in 'Yacht Crews' started by Henry H, Jan 20, 2016.

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  1. Henry H, Jan 20, 2016
    #1
    Henry H

    Henry H New Member

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    Jan 20, 2016
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    Location:
    Cornwall England
    Hello everyone!, ill try to keep this as short and sweet as possible, my names Henry, im 21 and finally hit a point of deciding what I want to do/get out of in life. which will hopefully be assuming a position on a super yacht. My qualifications are as follows

    - STCW 95
    - RYA Powerboat level 2
    - RYA PWC
    - ENG 1
    - MCA Approved engine course

    Im ideally looking for a "Junior" engineer position so that I can gain valuable experience about engineering on board a super yacht off someone who has been in the industry. I'm completely green to yachting but I guess everyone's got to start somewhere?. My career history is working since the age of 16 at the Eden project in Cornwall, England, & I've got a strong hospitality background. I enjoy working hard and doing any job I partake in to the best of my ability.

    Now ive just recently finished my RYA 1 day diesel & then AEC engineering course with Ray Park at the UKSA in Cowes, isle of Wight & im extremely keen to start building upon the skills that I have learnt, Now I'm not in this for the money, more for the learning and the guidance & whilst I am green to the industry, I'm a good listener, a hard worker and will follow orders without question and carry them out with enthusiasm. While I may not be able to fix a diesel engine on my own or diagnose every fault by my experience I really do think I can be a valuable asset to the team.

    My plan so far is to fly out to either Antibes or Palma in april but obviously I would love to be able to secure a position before then as going it alone is naturally nerve racking, but I understand it might be what I have to do.

    I'm currently located in England, but im willing to travel globally at my own expense. I'm also looking for a job with longevity and not to jump ship after a year.
    Any advice/help/job offers would be massively appreciated

    & thank you for everyone who takes the time to read my post! any questions please feel free to contact me

    - Henry
  2. Henry H, Jan 20, 2016
    #2
    Henry H

    Henry H New Member

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    CV

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  3. olderboater, Jan 20, 2016
    #3
    olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

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    You've presented yourself excellently in your posts.

    I'd be curious as to what led you to thinking yachting was the career you wanted. Then what leads you to engineering over deck? I ask the second question as your hospitality background and experience is very good in terms of preparing you for many deck positions. Are you interested if an opportunity arises to get work on a yacht but not in an engineering department?

    As to engineering, it is often easier to build up experience in the commercial part of the business as opposed to yachting. A way to get more experience in less time.

    As to moving forward in yachting, the best advice I can give is associate with as many in the industry as you can and carry yourself well in doing so. If you can just get to know one or two people in the industry then perhaps they will hear of someone who knows someone who is looking for someone. I don't have the knowledge to tell you specifically where to hang out and make introductions in Antibes or Palma but I suspect it's much like Fort Lauderdale. Crew houses, restaurants near the shipyards, restaurants at the shipyards where crew eats while boat being serviced. Like most professions, a lot of finding the right job is a matter of who you know. A lot of careers are started from being in the right place at the right time and doing the simplest day work. Whether it's a captain needing help preparing a boat for a charter or an engineer needing help carrying batteries or cleaning the bilge, it's a chance to meet and impress.

    Also, jobs at shipyards or marinas can get you a step closer to the industry and those who might be looking for someone.

    Then, be ready to go at a minute's notice. Have your passport current and all your STCW documents handy.
  4. Henry H, Jan 20, 2016
    #4
    Henry H

    Henry H New Member

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    Location:
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    Thank you for your kind words, and also all of your advice. it is greatly appreciated.

    I have had a family friend who served 20+ years in the Royal Navy and then went onto become a chief engineer on a super yacht. his daughter is the same age as me and spent a year on "his" yacht and loved it, I was feeling a little stir crazy staying in the same job im in (no way to progress any more than I had) and he gave me some information, I looked into it and ive been driven ever since. in my opinion I feel that the super yacht industry has personal and financial rewards that no other job can offer.

    He has been helping me through everything and has very good standing in the industry but as of yet nothing has come up, I didn't want to survive on hand outs though so rather than waiting for him to come up with something id like to make some progress on my own.

    While I say that I would like a junior engineer position, I would lend my hand to anything and would jump at the chance of a deck position, I started to train in engineering as I figured it would make me more employable being so green in the industry.

    That's great to hear and really helpful. If I cant get anything before april then im going to head out and just see what I can do! the way I see it is as long as im improving on myself and getting experience then good things will happen.

    thank you again for your reply
  5. olderboater, Jan 20, 2016
    #5
    olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

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    Until then, don't overlook the possibilities in the UK. Not as many positions available but not as many people going after them. Docks are easier to access than in Antibes. I'd ever see if I could get a tour of one of the manufacturing facilities like Princess or Sunseeker.

    One other option worth considering, in my opinion, is a maritime college such as Warsash or Southampton. I know several of the colleges in the UK have marine engineering majors. I just don't know enough to recommend one or another. There are generally intern positions or work/study situations available too. We just hired a young engineer who did her undergraduate at California Maritime and her graduate at the University of New Orleans. She got a lot of great experience while going to school with tours on their ships plus commercial and Coast Guard, graduated with a license, upped it through grad school, and took it up another step with a year commercial. Your current job experience in hospitality dovetails very well in allowing one to work while going to school.
  6. Henry H, Jan 21, 2016
    #6
    Henry H

    Henry H New Member

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    Location:
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    I'll definitely have a better look at job opportunities a bit closer to home then. There is a princess yachts around about an hour from me which could be worth contacting.
    As far as the college/university ill have a look into that as well, as I do think the one thing thats setting me back is experience.

    Thank you again for your replies! and if you did ever hear of anything in the future please let me know

    - Henry
  7. Natural9, May 26, 2017
    #7
    Natural9

    Natural9 New Member

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    Henry,

    I stumbled across this old post and was wondering if you had a status update on your new career? -Scott