Deck cadet
Navigation, cargo work, stability and bridge watchkeeping, leading to an MCA Officer of the Watch (Deck) certificate and a career path towards Chief Officer and Master.
Career Guidance
Merchant Navy cadetships: how to get one
Everything a school leaver or career changer needs to understand the routes, the entry requirements and the application — written by Master Mariners who have sat the exams and sailed the ships.
What a cadetship actually is
A merchant navy cadetship is a sponsored training programme, usually around three years, that alternates college phases ashore with sea phases on board commercial ships. You are paid a training allowance rather than an officer's salary, your fees are covered by the sponsor, and you finish with an MCA certificate of competency that is recognised worldwide.
Engineering cadet
Propulsion, auxiliary machinery, electrical systems and maintenance, leading to an Engineer Officer of the Watch certificate and a path towards Second and Chief Engineer.
ETO cadet
Electro-technical officer training focused on automation, control and electrical systems — a smaller intake, but in demand on modern tonnage.
Applying, step by step
1. Check the entry requirements
Sponsoring companies typically ask for GCSEs at grade 4/C or above in maths, English and a science, with many programmes wanting A-levels, a BTEC or equivalent. You will also need an ENG1 seafarer medical and to meet the eyesight standard before you can go to sea.
2. Apply to a sponsoring company, not just a college
Cadetships are sponsored. You apply to a shipping company or a training provider that recruits on their behalf; the sponsor pays your college fees and places you on their ships for the sea phases. Applications usually open the autumn before a September intake, and popular sponsors close early.
3. Build a maritime CV that stands out
Keep it to two pages. Lead with your academic grades, then evidence of practical, safety-minded, team work — sailing, cadet forces, Duke of Edinburgh, engineering projects, part-time work with real responsibility. Say clearly which route you want and why; a deck application that reads like it could be for any job rarely progresses.
4. Prepare for the interview and assessment
Expect questions on why you want to go to sea, what life on board actually involves, and how you cope away from home for months at a time. Know the sponsor's fleet and trade. Numeracy, mechanical reasoning and teamwork exercises are common in assessment days.
5. Plan for life after the cadetship
Your cadetship ends with MCA oral examinations. Candidates who prepare for orals throughout their sea phases — keeping a solid record book and revisiting the syllabus — walk in far more confident than those who start six weeks before.
Requirements vary by sponsor and change between intakes — always confirm current entry criteria with the sponsoring company and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Want a second opinion on your application?
We offer maritime career guidance and CV review from our centre in Rainford, St Helens, near Liverpool — or online, wherever you are.