The yachting industry is highly competitive, so if this is the direction you want to take your career, gaining some skills can give you the edge you need to be competitive.
One school that has stood out over the years is the Maritime Professional Training Institute. Over the years they have developed programs specifically designed with student's success in mind.
Read on to learn more about MPT.
History of the School
Students have benefitted from the private maritime school MPT since 1983. This makes them one of the oldest in the state and possibly the country.
Over the past 36 years, thousands of students have passed through the school gaining the skills they need to go on to become successful yachting professionals and commercial mariners.
Today the school attracts students from all over the world including Canada, Spain, Nigeria, Australia, Poland, Lithuania, and Romania. About 12,000 students receive training from the school each year.
Location
The school is located in the beautiful city of Fort Lauderdale. This is wise considering the city also happens to be the yachting capital of the world.
When you complete your training, you are right where you need to be to secure employment. Many students use this proximity to network and secure employment before they complete their courses.
There is also an international airport located within five minutes of the school. Plus you're just minutes from Florida's famous beaches for when you need a break from studying.
Another point to note about the location is that Port Everglades is also just minutes away. This is the hub for marine traffic with more than 4,000 marine vessels calling on the port each year.
Get Social
If you aren't quite ready to sign up for classes, MPT offers a glimpse into student life through their Facebook page and YouTube page. You can browse through both for posts and videos about the school, the latest events, and yacht industry life.
Courses
The first step in talking about courses is to divide them into two main categories. Do you want to work in the yachting and passenger vessel area of the industry? Or are you more interested in working in the commercial area?
Once you know that you can decide what type of vessel you want to work on. Then you can decide what position on the vessel you want to perform.
STCW Programs
This is training based on the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers. Everyone that completes this program will learn the basics of safety and familiarization training.
You'll learn the basics of firefighting, survival techniques, first aid, general personal safety, and social responsibility. Learning these skills ensures that everyone working in the marine industry understand the potential hazards and knows what to do in the event of an emergency.
The code requires that the course include at least five days of instruction. Then you must renew every five years. You may be able to waive renewal if you can show you have one year of service on a vessel 200grt.
This is the course that virtually everyone starts with when interested in the maritime industry. This is because it provides a solid foundation for safety before you start learning specifics.
USCG Programs
These programs train you to obtain a captain's license or become a mate, or able seaman. There are a few variations, so you need to decide if the full course or just the mini basic course is better suited to your needs.
The USCG Mate program is going to give you all of the required courses you need to upgrade from Able Seaman to Third Mate Unlimited. The USCG Mate mini-course is a 9-week crash course that will give you the required courses and exam prep.
For those interested in the Able Seaman course, it is a 3-week national certification. The program includes personal safety, first aid and fire basics, and survival techniques. You will also gain proficiency in rescue boats and survival craft.
The USCG Master Oceans Upgrade will teach you advanced skills of maritime navigation. You will learn radar observer skills, bridge management, and terrestrial navigation.
There is also a section of the course dedicated to advanced firefighting training and advanced rescue craft operation.
PYA Programs
We are now going to move into the private yacht training. There are three main training programs that fall under the PYA programs offered by MBT.
The first is an introductory steward(ess) training program. It lasts five days and gives you a strong introduction into the career of service on a yacht.
You will learn about the interior of yachts, how they are set up and operate. Then you will learn about basic food service. Finally, you will learn about the basics of wine and cocktail service.
The next step up in training is the Senior Steward(ess) training. In this course, you will learn advanced interior service. You will also receive training on the administration and HR management of a yacht.
Then your bartending skills will get amped up with advanced bartending and mixology and wine appreciation. Finally, you will learn what it takes to maintain a yacht through housekeeping, valet, and laundry service training.
The final program in the PYA programs is the USCG Chief Mate course. This will teach you everything you need to know about cargo operations, ship handling, stability, meteorology, and watchkeeping. You will also learn about maritime law and master license preparation.
MCA/RYA Programs
The final set of programs fall under the category of MCA/RYA programs. These courses focus on the operation of vessels.
The STCW BST 200 Ton program is a 3-week course that will prepare you for the basic safety standards. You will also learn Yachtmaster skills for yachts 200 tons and over.
There are two, five-week courses that offer engineer training. The MCA Y4 program offers training for marine diesel engineering, operational training, and auxiliary equipment training. While the MCA Y2/Y1 course offers training in general science engineering, marine engineering, and other generalized basic skill building.
The MCA OOW 3,000 Ton course is an 8-week program that includes both classes and written exams. The course includes GSK, MCA, and ECDIS.
The final course option in this program group is the MCA Master 500 to 3,000 Ton program. It is seven weeks of training to upgrade you from OOW to Master.
This course will include training in MCA business and law. It will also train you on MCA meteorology, seamanship, navigation, and radar. You will also get a refresher class for the navigation course and exam.
Career Prospects
The yacht industry brings $11.5 billion annually and 136,000 jobs to the Fort Lauderdale area.
Then you need to consider the annual international boat show that brings over 1,500 exhibitors from 52 countries! Over 105,000 visitors flood the city for the show. That is plenty of networking opportunity for anyone looking to further their career.
MPT also offers a comprehensive job board. Here you can look through opportunities and work with the school to find placement.
S.M.A.R.T. Center
MPT recently opened the Simulation for Maritime Assessment, Research, and Training. This is a 25,000 square foot facility offering student simulators a "real world" training environment in three of their Full Mission Bridge Simulators.
The simulators can test your skills navigating almost any waters in the world. Then they can adjust some of the factors such as the environment, engine faults, weather, and emergencies both on and off the vessel.
Each bridge simulator cost the school $1.5 million. This is well worth it though to have the latest state of the art technology when training for your future career.
Lifeboat Facility
Knowing how to deploy lifeboats quickly and safely is the difference between life and death in an emergency. What better way to learn than to actually practice deployment.
MPT now has a state of the art $500,000 facility. The facility features a special crane and lifeboat that allows students to practice deployment in a real-world situation.
Start Your Maritime Training
Whether you want to work on a passenger yacht or in the commercial field, your first step is to gain some training. You need to learn about safety procedures for the vessel you plan to work on. Then you need to learn about the expected duties of the position you hope to obtain.
A school like MPT can help counsel you through the process from determining your strengths and interests to day one of your career. Maritime training will give you the skills you need to stand out and succeed in your future.
Once you finish training, we can help you locate crew housing here in Ft. Lauderdale. That way you are available and ready to start your career in yachting!