Onshore Career Options for Captains
Seafarers in general have a job with extraordinary features. They usually work overseas for long periods, which puts a real pressure to their personal life and active citizenship. They work in alternating 4 hour shifts and often have to face temperature changes of over 30°C every few days. Captains in particular have a multitude of managerial, technical and administrative tasks to perform and suffer from occupational stress. For these reasons it would be beneficial for captains to know that if their life turns so, there is a possibility for them to engage to an alternative career ashore, using competencies they acquired both through formal and non-formal learning.
The Sail Ahead project aims to provide an on-line guidance tool for a second career for captains.
Results will be:
- a report of transferable skills (the result of a survey in nautical academies, using both analysis of curricula and questionnaires to students) to identify competencies acquired through formal learning, and another (resulting from a survey conducted aboard ships) to identify competencies gained through non-formal routes.
- a mapping of competencies and profiles required for at least 10 alternative career paths ashore.
- an on-line tool, which will be used by students and captains, which will help them assess the possibilities to work on shore.
Specific effort will be dedicated to dissemination. The partnership, constituted by a social partner, nautical academies, a university, a training provider and a consultancy firm, from 7 EU countries ensure both sound implementation and sustainability of the project.
Although the E.C. estimated a lack of around 36.000 European sea officers in 2006, there is reluctance among young people to work at sea. The impact of the project will be to alleviate this problem and give more choices to women and men engaged in the profession and wishing to work ashore.
