Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

[Guest]

How easy is it to change from one to the other after you've started your cadetship?

I heard about one or two cadets changing from one to another - maybe from engineering to deck.

but I can't imagine even mentioning it at all to my training manager. I just think I would get into trouble (e.g. sacked) even for asking. or laughed at.

the trouble is, if you started doing one training program, and then found that you didn't enjoy some of it, or weren't good enough at some part of it so that you thought you might fail, but you still really want to work at sea, what can you do?

has anyone ever changed or talked to anyone who's changed from deck to engine or engine to deck?

[alistairuk]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

You can't "change" once you have started your course, you would need to redo the entire course (with possible exception of not having to redo some of the stcw short courses if you have already done them). Although it does stand to reason that if you changed your mind within the first week or two of college then assuming your company agreed it wouldn't be too much of a problem to switch courses - but beyond this it would be impossible to switch directly as you would have missed too much.

There have been (very few) people who have quit one company after starting and then managed to get re hired a year or two later with another company - but again this depends on luck and whether you are already registered with SMART (the scheme that gives the companies money to pay for your cadet ship - if your already registered through your old company they normally won't take you on as they won't get funding for you).

There used to be a joint engine/deck scheme but this hasn't been offered in the UK for years.

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[Steve]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

A guy I started college with as a deck cadet didn't like the experience of his first trip on deck and switched to engine. He was with Clyde Marine/Zodiac.

[Lewis]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

You'd think the system should be built like that. Give people an experience of both then get them to make up their mind. You can do all the research you like but i bet nothing compares to the real thing.

What about once you qualify is it possible to switch?

[Steve]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

Sure, but you'd be starting again from scratch. There is no professional crossover in the training, other than some of the basic ancillary courses.

The system isn't built like that because 1) most people do know what they want to do and 2) it would cost more. Seafaring is primarily a commercial enterprise. It's all about the bottom line. Cadets are discouraged from starting one path and switching over, or moving between companies, because all these things cost someone $$,$$$s.

[mnwanabe]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

surely it cant cos that much, anybody here actually changed?

[mnwanabe]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

ok so ive got into clyde, passed medical and im thinking id like to switch from engine to deck..what are the chances? and if i said to them about it could they use it against me? like terminate my contract or anything?

[dawg]

Re: Switching from Deck to Engine or Engine to Deck

I think it happened once in Warsash during the September '10 intake... an engineer switched to deck after a couple of weeks in the workshop, dunno who he was with though.