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Study Method	Full time contact
Qualification	Chief Mate Yacht
Duration	20-25 weeks
Applications	Open

About the Programme

These certificates are intended for those wishing to serve in professional certificated positions on board overseas vessels registered as 'yachts'. These vessels are commonly referred to as 'superyachts' or 'megayachts'.

There are two study structure options. The combined structure offers the candidate the most opportunities for employment in both the commercial industry, and the yachting industry.

New entrants into the industry should refer to the table below titled 'Chief Mate Yacht-Yachting only structure'

NZ Commercial Operators should refer to the table below titled 'Chief Mate Yacht-Combined NZOM/Yachting Structure'

The New Zealand Certificate of Competency obtained on completion of the course should be accepted in most flag states. It has been accepted by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency as equivalent to UK certification, however, candidates will also need to take and pass an open book UK Law and Practice examination in order to receive a UK Certificate of Equivalency if they intend to operate on UK flag vessels. This additional examination can be taken during your study in New Zealand although an additional examination fee will be payable to the Scottish Qualifications Authority for this exam.

We recognise that many students in New Zealand will also wish to gain STCW certification to operate other types of commercial vessel within near coastal (200 mile) limits. We have therefore provided separate pathways to meeting the initial training requirements; one for students who wish only to be qualified for yachts and an alternative pathway for those who already hold or wish to also hold New Zealand validity certification to operate fishing or trading vessels to 500 tons within near coastal limits. This minimises the additional cost and time involved in obtaining both sets of certification.

Although the yacht certification structure encourages a step by step progression through the certificate grades from Chief Mate (Yacht) to Master (500 t Yacht) to Master (3000 t Yacht), candidates may choose to study for a Master (500 t) by also incorporating the study programme for the Chief Mate (Yacht) into their programme if they did not already hold this certificate.

Courses may also be taken prior to the completion of the seatime required. In all cases, however, students must have completed all of the required training courses, their Training Record Book and their seatime before they will be permitted to sit their final oral examination. The Training Record Book required for this qualification can be obtained from the New Zealand Maritime School. A charge of NZ$25 will be made to cover copying costs. Alternatively, an electronic version may be downloaded free from our website.

Comparison with other international yacht certification training programmes

The programme offered in New Zealand is intended to allow issue of a New Zealand Certificate of Competency. In particular, we are not offering modules towards UK Maritime and Coastguard certification. The UK recognition of the New Zealand certification is for the whole Certificate of Competency only and not for individual courses, except in the case of some of the short ancillary courses. Students must always check in advance with the Maritime Administration concerned as to whether a particular course can be accepted if they wish to attend courses in New Zealand but obtain an overseas Certificate of Competency. Generally, it will not be possible to credit courses taken in New Zealand towards certification in other countries except that many countries will accept New Zealand STCW short course certificates for survival, medical and fire fighting training.

Unlike other similar certification programmes, obtaining expensive offshore and ocean yachtmaster qualifications is not a prerequisite for entering our Chief Mate training programme. Instead, the equivalent learning is included directly into the New Zealand programme. This means that courses in New Zealand are slightly longer than those in some overseas countries but the overall cost will be much less expensive. We also believe many overseas courses to be so short that they suit only the most prepared and motivated students and result in pass rates that would fall below those we believe to be acceptable. Our course lengths in New Zealand are established from 80 years of experience in maritime training and are based on our best estimate of the time it will take for 80% of the students to reach the assessment standard required.

Any study that you may have already completed overseas may be able to be partially credited towards New Zealand certification. You must always apply formally in writing to us with full details of the training and evidence of satisfactory completion. In all cases, a fee will be payable for processing and considering your application. In most cases, we will also wish to verify your competence through an oral or written 'challenge' assessment.

Student Loans and Allowances
New Zealand students may be eligible for Student Loans and Allowances if they take a block of courses totalling at least 12 full time weeks with generally no more than a total of 3 weeks of breaks between courses. It is essential that you contact us to check whether your planned programme of study will qualify if you are intending to seek Loans and Allowances for these programmes.

For more information please contact the New Zealand Maritime School on 09 255 1463.

Offered by

New Zealand Maritime School

Entry Requirements

Applicants must meet the following entry requirements:

Maritime NZ requirements:

Please refer to the MNZ requirements in the following link
New-Zealand-chief-mate-yacht-MNZ-guidelines.pdf
and the following link for those considering the combined structure
New-Zealand-offshore-master-MNZ-guidelines.pdf

Seatime Requirements:

36 months in deck capacity on vessels of at least 12m, including 6 months performing watchkeeping under the supervision of a certificated officer.

Minimum Age:

19 years old.

Further Requirements:

Note that you must complete and submit a Training Record Book before you can be examined for the oral examination.
NOTE: You must apply for and receive a MARITIME NZ Examination Permit before you can take the final oral examination.

Programme Summary

Chief Mate (Yacht) - Yachting Only Structure
This programme of study is appropriate for those who desire only ‘yacht’ certification.

Occurrence	Course	Length (weeks)	Dates	NZ Fee	Intnl Fee
942.511	Proficiency in Medical First Aid (opt 1)	1	13/05/13 – 17/05/13	$546	$936
942.545	Proficiency in Survival Craft (opt 1)	1	20/05/13 – 24/05/13	$524	$942
943.508 943.509	Chief Officer (Yacht) Navigation & Radar	4	27/05/13 – 21/06/13	$439 $317	$894 $666
942.206 943.514 43.528	STCW Personal Safety & Social Responsibilities Chief Mate (Yacht) General Knowledge Chief Mate (Yacht) Seamanship	3	08/07/13 – 19/07/13 Exam week 22/07/13 – 26/07/13	$327 $530 $477	$779 $1110 $885
942.545	Proficiency in Survival Craft (opt 2)	1	29/07/13 – 02/08/13	$524	$942
942.544	Basic Fire Fighting (opt 1)	1	06/05/13 – 10/05/13	$835	$1437
942.544	Basic Fire Fighting (opt 2)	1	29/07/13 – 02/08/13	$546	$936
942.511	Proficiency in Medical First Aid (opt 2)	1	05/08/13 – 09/08/13	$546	$936
943.506 943.527	Ocean Navigation (6912) + Ocean Seamanship (6913)	4	12/08/13 – 06/09/13	$560 $467	$1260 $1049
942.525 942.428	GMDSS (incl GRTOC)	6 days	16/09/13 – 21/09/13	$398	$882
942.546	Advanced Fire Fighting	1	23/09/13 – 27/09/13	$835	$1437
943.511 943.512	Electronic Navigation Aids (Yacht) + Tides	2	30/09/13 – 11/10/13	$363 $156	$770 $330
	Chief Mate Yacht Orals	1	Exam week 14/10/13 – 18/10/13

Chief Mate (Yacht) - Combined NZOM/Yachting Structure
This programme of study is appropriate for those who desire NZOM in addition to ‘yacht’ certification.

Occurrence	Course	Length (weeks)	Dates	NZ Fee	Intnl Fee
942.511	Proficiency in Medical First Aid (opt 1)	1	13/05/13 – 17/05/13	$546	$936
943.425	Meteorology	1	20/05/13 – 24/05/13	$327	$735
943.423 943.424	NZOM Coastal Navigation & NZOM Passage Planning	3	27/05/13 – 14/06/13	$467 $233	$1049 $525
943.337	Restricted Radar Certificate	1	17/06/13 – 21/06/13	$586	$985
943.530 943.613	NZOM Stability & Bridging Stability (NZOM to Yacht)	2	24/06/13 – 05/07/13	$467 $317	$1049 $666
943.510 943.515	Bridging Courses: NZOM – Yacht Navigation & General Knowledge	2	08/07/13 – 19/07/13 Run with NZOM General Knowledge	$317 $377	$666 $783
942.206 943.531 943.532 943.528	STCW Personal Safety & Social Responsibilities + NZOM Chief Mate (Yacht) Seamanship Orals	3 + 1	08/07/13 – 19/07/13 Exam Week 22/07/13 – 26/07/13	$327 $420 $528 $477	$779 $945 $990 $885
942.545	Proficiency in Survival Craft (opt 2)	1	29/07/13 – 02/08/13	$524	$942
942.544	Basic Fire Fighting	1	29/07/13 – 02/08/13	$835	$1437
942.511	Proficiency in Medical First Aid (opt 2)	1	05/08/13 – 09/08/13	$546	$936
943.526 943.527	Ocean Navigation (6912) + Ocean Seamanship (6913)	4	12/08/13 – 06/09/13	$560 $467	$1260 $1049
942.545	Proficiency in Survival Craft (opt 2)	1	09/09/13 – 13/09/13	$524	$942
942.525 942.428	GMDSS (incl GRTOC) (opt 1)	6 days	16/09/13 – 21/09/13	$398	$882
942.546	Advanced Fire Fighting	1	23/09/13 – 27/09/13	$835	$1437
943.511 943.512	Electronic Navigation Aids (Yacht) & Tides	2	30/09/13 – 11/10/13	$363 $156	$770 $330
	Chief Mate Yacht / NZOM Orals week	1	Exam week 14/10/13 – 18/10/13

NOTES:

• Includes NZOM and Chief Mate (Yacht) Oral Examination Fees.
• Candidates are to have completed both the Yacht and NZ Offshore Master Training Record Books as required by Maritime New Zealand.

Examination Permits:

Candidates intending to attempt both the NZOM and Yacht Oral Examinations will be required to obtain two (2) MARITIME NZ Examination permits prior to their oral examination.

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