some advice for my daughter please!

[slartibartfast]

Hi, my 17 year old daughter is very keen on deck officer cadetship. She's currently taking A-levels. She started out with Maths, Physics and French but is finding it difficult to keep up, especially with the physics. She's thinking of taking a different subject next year rather than continuing with physics but carrying on with maths and french. She'll probably end up with an AS in Physics at something like a C. Do you guys reckon this'll be OK as she starts to contact companies for sponsorship. What do they generally look for?
She likes the look of Bibby in particular and is probably wanting to work mostly on cargo vessels rather than cruise or oil ships.

Thanks

[YoungMariner]

Hello,

A little bit of information on the Bibby website here : http://we.bibbyshipmanagement.com/Trainee-Sponsorship , "Entry Requirements: 120 UCAS Points with GCSE (Grade B or above) in Mathematics, English and Science based subject, including physics. ". I would think she'd be fine with most cadetships with her proposed change, but some more experienced in the recruiting aspect may have a better insight.

Bibby is an excellent fast growing company which offers a lot of potential to its cadets, but there are also a lot of other good companies outside. Whilst its good to have an aim, she shouldn't restrict herself just to a certain ship type or company to give herself a better chance.

In recent years it has become a very competitive career, and I'd highly recommend her getting involved with the Sea Cadets (www.sea-cadets.org) or possibly undertaking a sail training trip (www.tallships.org) to strengthen her application.

[GuinnessMan]

Hello,

A little bit of information on the Bibby website here : http://we.bibbyshipmanagement.com/Trainee-Sponsorship , "Entry Requirements: 120 UCAS Points with GCSE (Grade B or above) in Mathematics, English and Science based subject, including physics. ". I would think she'd be fine with most cadetships with her proposed change, but some more experienced in the recruiting aspect may have a better insight.

Bibby is an excellent fast growing company which offers a lot of potential to its cadets, but there are also a lot of other good companies outside. Whilst its good to have an aim, she shouldn't restrict herself just to a certain ship type or company to give herself a better chance.

In recent years it has become a very competitive career, and I'd highly recommend her getting involved with the Sea Cadets (www.sea-cadets.org) or possibly undertaking a sail training trip (www.tallships.org) to strengthen her application.

What he said, but my advice is to get her to apply to everyone, not just Bibby. More offers she has, the better choices she can make.

Oh, and get her on here and ask the questions!

[CharlieDelta]

As above and above that!

I would definitely recommend applying to as many companies as possible to give her the best chance. She may want to reconsider her dislike of tankers; many people quite enjoy them and it's good experience and good money.

[slartibartfast]

ah thanks people! Yeah she's definitely casting the net wide and asking lots of companies.... She's got great GCSE grades - all As and Bs but is just finding the physics hard at A level...It's horrible - I dropped out of the same subject to be honest! Sounds like she'll be fine to drop physics and stick with the maths... I don't want her to get so burnt out that she flunks out altogether. She suffers from slight dyspraxia which means that among other things it's very difficult to stay organised...

[GuinnessMan]

ah thanks people! Yeah she's definitely casting the net wide and asking lots of companies.... She's got great GCSE grades - all As and Bs but is just finding the physics hard at A level...It's horrible - I dropped out of the same subject to be honest! Sounds like she'll be fine to drop physics and stick with the maths... I don't want her to get so burnt out that she flunks out altogether. She suffers from slight dyspraxia which means that among other things it's very difficult to stay organised...

No problems, but still tell her to get on here! It's her that will be doing the cadetship and she should come along herself to ask questions that she has....

[FLyeyes]

THat is meeee and actually it's italian not french but details..... yeah I'm looking at the HND/HNC route, is the foundation degree better for career prospects and all that or does it not make much difference? And do you know if alot of companies will still sponsor through that route? I know Bibby doesn't but think Clyde marine and others do..? THankYOU!

[FLyeyes]

Alsoooo... is it better to go through a training thingy like clyde marine or an actual company? IF I were to go through a training thingy would there definately be a good chance of a job at the end?

[gadget123]

Alsoooo... is it better to go through a training thingy like clyde marine or an actual company? IF I were to go through a training thingy would there definately be a good chance of a job at the end?

If you have the option you are much better off if you can get a company which actually employes British officers then you will at least have the possibility of a job at the end.

[GuinnessMan]

If you have the option you are much better off if you can get a company which actually employes British officers then you will at least have the possibility of a job at the end.

Not always. The idea at the end of the day is to get your ticket, once you have that then you're sorted. Trying to get in a company which may (and I stress may) take you on at the end is a bit of a gamble and one you may not win. When I started the industry was going great, loads of ships sailing all over place, plenty of berths and lots of cadets kicking around. Within the three years of my cadetship we had the financial market crash, ship's being laid up, folks being made redundant (even cadets) and the number of bankruptcy's of major shipping firms...

To be honest, by the time you finish your cadetship, the market within the industry will be a bit better so there will probably be more opportunities available. At this point in time, worry about getting a cadetship. Once you've got the cadetship sorted, then just worry about getting to the end and getting your ticket, leave all the worries about a job at the end until once you have your ticket.

[gadget123]

Not always. The idea at the end of the day is to get your ticket, once you have that then you're sorted. Trying to get in a company which may (and I stress may) take you on at the end is a bit of a gamble and one you may not win. When I started the industry was going great, loads of ships sailing all over place, plenty of berths and lots of cadets kicking around. Within the three years of my cadetship we had the financial market crash, ship's being laid up, folks being made redundant (even cadets) and the number of bankruptcy's of major shipping firms...

To be honest, by the time you finish your cadetship, the market within the industry will be a bit better so there will probably be more opportunities available. At this point in time, worry about getting a cadetship. Once you've got the cadetship sorted, then just worry about getting to the end and getting your ticket, leave all the worries about a job at the end until once you have your ticket.

Yes it is a gamble but at least you have a chance of winning. If you train with a company who has a policy of not employing junior officers you can work as hard as you can and make the best impression in the world but you still have zero chance of being offered a job at the end.

Best hope is going for tankers, pax or offshore, seems to be very few positions available for British junior officers on dry cargo ships.

[GuinnessMan]

Yes it is a gamble but at least you have a chance of winning. If you train with a company who has a policy of not employing junior officers you can work as hard as you can and make the best impression in the world but you still have zero chance of being offered a job at the end.

Best hope is going for tankers, pax or offshore, seems to be very few positions available for British junior officers on dry cargo ships.

Aye, but right now they should worry about getting a cadetship and actually making it to the end. Worry about a job later.

[gadget123]

Aye, but right now they should worry about getting a cadetship and actually making it to the end. Worry about a job later.

Thats what I thought, took the first cadetship I could get my hands on, regretting it now.

[GuinnessMan]

Thats what I thought, took the first cadetship I could get my hands on, regretting it now.

Why are you regretting it? Who are you with?

[gadget123]

Why are you regretting it? Who are you with?

Because now I am qualified I am struggling to get a job as I have no experience on the ship types which actually employ British officers.