Please note 1: To work on
Tall Sailing Ships you need full
STCW-95 documentation and preferably at least 6 months work experience to get a "professional" (i.e. paid) job.
Deck Officers need additional sailing ship endorsement and everybody must have
current seamen's medical. Get "
Seafarer Medical Examination System"
[MSN 1765 (M)]. In Britain this certificate is commonly among seafarer's often called "ENG1", because that's the official
name of the form on which the certificate is issued.
Trainees and volunteers on
sail training ships, who are not carrying out any safety-critical roles are not required to pass this medical fitness examination.
Please note 2: Jobs Available are changing all the time. I recommend you come back every one to two weeks and check what is available. Go to the job listings on each individual website below and check for new opportunities. Positions listed indicate the kind of jobs one usually finds on each website. It's very easy if you add this page to your "Favourites" (IE) or "Bookmarks" (Firefox).
Please note 4: None of the listed recruiting agents on this page asks for any placement fee - neither in advance nor later.
Please note 5: When the crewing agent have an on-line application form, you
must use it - if you don't, your application goes straight into the waste basket.
Please note 6: Every link on this page opens in a new window. If your "Pop-up killer" is too efficient it can also stop new windows. When this happens, please press "Ctrl" and click on the link you want.
These sailing ships are called "Tall Ships" because of their very high masts. Working in the mast is not for the faint-hearted. You can be some 30 metres ( about 100 feet ) above the ship's deck, trying to work - with the ship rolling and the mast swinging back and forth.
In the northern hemisphere ( Europe, North America ) the tall ships' season usually starts in March, while in the southern hemisphere ( Australia, New Zealand ) season starts in October. Some sailing ships are cruising all year ("sailing the world") and others keep only a "skeleton" crew for maintenance during off season. These maintenance jobs are permanent fully paid positions.
Especially the bigger sailing ships with passenger accommodation need also
engineers, specifically electronics and refrigerating engineers.
- Read article about working as volunteer on Tall Ship. By going as volunteer you get that first work experience from sailing vessels that you have to have to apply for a permanent regular sailing ship deck job.
Volunteers receive full board onboard and often also a small "stipend" ("pocket money").
- Get certification requirements for Deck Officers: Masters, Captains, Skippers, Mates, and Officer of the Watch ( OOW ) on privately operated square rigged sailing vessels over 24 metres in length at the water line ( MCA ) .
- The Nautical Institute have a sailing ship officer's training scheme.
- The Tall Ships' Blog - blogs, stories, and book reviews, all about Tall Ships.
- World wide list of sail training associations.
- The American Sail Training Association is the US equivalent to the British "Brother / Sister" organisation.
- Non-discriminatory tall ship training in San Francisco, USA, especially for girls and young women.
- UK sail training organisation takes volunteers during January to October for traditionally rigged sailing vessels. Ask for an application pack including job description by e-mail or by phone.
- International paid positions on sailing ships, such as Relief Captains, Mates, Engineers, Chefs, Relief Cooks, Deckhands, and Ordinary Seamen. For more details click on "click here".
- Tall Ships' Sail training and other sailing resources worldwide directory.
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