Courses, Certificates, Experience and Tips.
I'm going to explain the slightly more serious side of yachting and what you'll need as the basics before even thinking about applying for a job.
Minimum tickets below :
ENG1
STCW10
Cooks Ships Certificate
ENG1
First things first.
Find and book in for an ENG1 medical and your STCW now! Don't delay as there's always limited places and spaces. I recommend doing your medical first which is around $100USD to make sure you don't have any pre existing conditions that will prevent you from working on a yacht.
STCW10
What is an STCW10 you ask. It's stands for "Standards of Training, Certification and Watch Keeping". I wont go into detail as there's already so much information out there. But I will tell you it's great fun and will cover firefighting, surviving at sea and now piracy as an add on. The cost is around $1000USD and goes for 5 full days. The certification will last 5 years and can be done in most countries around the world. Some links below to each country.
Europe : Bluewater Antibes and Nice, France
America : Bluewater Fort Lauderdale
Australia : AMSA Australia All States
South Africa : Maritime Safety South Africa Cape Town
Ships Cook Certificate
Your next step, and I highly recommend this to give you an advantage over your competition. A Ships Cook Certificate and is needed to verify if you are able to abide by food health and safety procedures while working in the galley. It prove's you know the basics as a chef. The course runs for 3 days and is around $1000 - $1500USD. Just on a side note. It is only mandatory for a chef cooking for 10+ crew.
If you're a fully qualified and trained chef please read below.
Qualified Australian chef : If you're a fully qualified chef you are able to fast track your certificate. If you hold an AMSA endorsed ENG1 and a certificate III in commercial cookery. LINK HERE
Qualified UK chefs : You are able to contact MCA and prove you are a qualified chef and again for a small fee to get the SCC. LINK HERE
Qualified American chefs : Currently i'm unable to find enough information.
Where to do your ships cook certificate in each country
Europe : Secrets De Cuisine France
UK : Tante Marine
America : Blue Water Yachting Fort Lauderdale
Australia : Unavailable - must be qualified chef
South Africa : Super Yachting South Africa
Anything after those certificates is a bonus!
I'd recommend any dessert based course like El Mon Dolc De Claudia, bakeries, michelin stages or volunteering at a restaurant that you think may benefit you in your potential position. There are also yacht chef focused schools like My MuyBueno and Galley Gang which are two of my favourites. Also one of the larger schools is Ashburton Chefs Academy. Hit them up to see what courses they have got going!
Then you have other things you can do like mentioned in the previous post. My Padi Dive Master certification really helped me get a position on my first super yacht. It also shows what kind of a crew member you are and how you will get on with the other crew with similar interests. Others include kiteboarding, wakeboarding, spearfishing, tender licence, jet ski license, advanced first aid, yoga teacher, swimming instructor, sailing instructor and anything you think may benefit the vessel can really put you ahead of the crowd!
You will then want to go ahead and get your CV or Resume looking good. Try to really differentiate yourself from others. Personally when I'm looking through CV's for a crew chef I look for longevity, experience, size of previous vessels if any and a good selection of references to call. Accompanied with a quirky introduction letter and little bit about yourself, this can make a huge difference. Briefly explaining your current location, age, all certificates up to date, where you are from and why you would fit the position. An awesome looking food portfolio, menu plan for both guests and crew separated is almost always a must!
Get some awesome templates HERE
Now you know what it takes, what it costs and what you are signing up for!
Yachting isn't for everyone, but everyone I have ever talked to within the industry has no regrets!
What are you waiting for? Head on over to my next post which explains, when, where and how to get a job.. HERE