24 October 2007
FIRST EVER GROUP OF MERCHANT NAVY CADETS QUALIFY AT NAFC MARINE CENTRE
The first ever group of merchant navy officer cadets to have been trained from start to finish for the Officer of the Watch (Unlimited) and HND in Nautical Science or Mechanical Engineering at the Shetland School of Nautical Studies – part of the NAFC Marine Centre in Scalloway – have been awarded their qualifications.
The 7 cadets were orally examined on completion of their academic programme by surveyors of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and were successful in obtaining their Officer of the Watch Qualifications. Officers are in such demand that Engineer Officers Russell Anderson and Alistair Adamson, who qualified last week, were unable to appear in the photograph as they had to report on board this week to assume their new positions.
Head of School at the Shetland School of Nautical Studies, Jan Rigden, said: “We are delighted with the results and very pleased that our programmes have helped these young Shetlanders to develop their careers. The Deck and Engineering programmes were initially proposed in 2002 as a way of maintaining maritime expertise in Shetland in the face of falling numbers of candidates, particularly from the fishing industry. We wanted to ensure that the facilities required to train and educate future fishermen and Merchant Navy officers were retained in Shetland.
“This first group of candidates began their training in September 2004 and, having now obtained their qualifications, will be proceeding to sea as fully qualified officers in the Merchant Navy.”
Duncan Kidson, engineering section leader at SSNS, added: “The cadet programme has continued to expand year on year as the quality of our training has become apparent to potential sponsors and shipping companies throughout the UK. We are well known and appreciated for our small classes, caring attitude and our ability to delivery quality training."
At present more than 60 cadets are enrolled in the Deck and Engineering programmes with a full intake of 24 new cadets starting their training this September. Cadets are sponsored by a variety of Training and Shipping companies, including four who are sponsored annually by Shetland Islands Council – Ferry Services.
When asked about the value of the programme, deck cadet Keir Nowak replied: “The course has been really enjoyable and the three years have passed by really quickly with good support from the lecturers throughout. I’m planning to work up to Master’s level and would like to come back to the NAFC Marine Centre for future tickets.”
Engineering cadet Keith Henderson added: “The qualification achieved through the programme is well recognised for attaining future work and means I can sail on any ship as an engineer. The course has certainly been valuable and means now that ‘the world is my oyster’.”
The Cadet programme runs over three years at Shetland School of Nautical Studies, with an annual intake of 24 cadets every September. All the successful candidates in this first group were from Shetland; and whilst recent intakes include a percentage of candidates from throughout the Highlands and Islands, Shetlanders make up more than 50% of each group. The cadet programmes consist of a mixture of academic studies in Scalloway and practical experience at sea, with candidates following a structured path at sea and developing a portfolio of evidence to show their competence in the workplace. Cadets are sponsored throughout their programme, and receive a training allowance. On completion of the academic studies and portfolio of evidence, candidates are examined orally by surveyors from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to prove that they have reached the required standards of competence before they are issued with their seagoing qualifications to take charge of the watch.
Further information from:
Jan Rigden, NAFC Marine Centre, tel 01595 772230, email
Or, Duncan Kidson, NAFC Marine Centre, tel 01595 772223, email or visit www.nafc.ac.uk
Or, Louise Rosie, Shaw Marketing and Design Ltd, tel 01595 692465 or email