Seven reasons to conquer the Seas as a Merchant Navy Officer
Sri Lanka’s most competitive examination, G.C.E. Advanced Level, just came to its end with over 330,000 candidates sitting for the exam this year. Now is the time for these thousands of youth and their parents to ponder over their futures.
A crucial point of life for the Sri Lankan youth who are now having to make some of the most important decisions in life. This inevitably is a very nervous period of time for the parents.
When choosing the future career path, it is important to consider all aspects of a career and the plethora of options available. Your chosen career path must not only guarantee your future financial security but also give you the opportunities to climb higher in your career and experiences to enhance your life.
This is why it’s important to stop and re-think about any impulsive decision to follow the most sought after career paths such as engineering, finance and management. Most of the Sri Lankan youth who are in hot pursuit of these popular career paths, tend overlook other lucrative career options. One good example is the Merchant Navy.
Though relatively little known, Merchant Navy offers some of the most lucrative career paths alongside multiple other benefits that no other profession can match. If you start your career while you are still young, depending on your enthusiasm and hard work, you can make it to the top within a short period of time to become a ship’s captain or a chief engineer.
A little inside look into the industry will tell you what this means in a financial sense. But is that all that seafaring profession has to offer you? Here’s a look at all the reasons why you should choose a career path in the Merchant Navy.
Lucrative Pay Package: Careers at sea are known to offer the most lucrative pay packages. If you start your career from the right place and land on the right training opportunities, depending on your enthusiasm and hard work, you are bound to reach the top most levels of your career within a comparatively shorter period of time. What’s special about this profession is that you start earning a significant salary from your training period itself. After all, sea trade is one of the important pillars the modern world is built on. In an important trade, you are paid well.
Destinations galore and Inspiring adventures: This is the right job for the adventurous spirit. Jobs at sea always attracted the spirited youth throughout the history and it continues to do the same to-date. This job is not for the nine-to-five people but for the adventurous youth with a latent desire for exploring and adventures.
If you enjoy being out there, exploring the world and seeking adventures, this is definitely the job for you.
Confluence of cultures: Just as you get to explore many countries, you also get the opportunity to work and mingle with people from many different nationalities around the world.
Your job will require you to lead a diverse team of individuals from many nationalities and overcome challenges as one. This improves your ability to adapt to different situations and people with ease and converts you into a true professional. If you ever wondered how amiable, confident and efficient your seafaring relative is, this is probably one of the reasons.
Enhances professionalism: The seafaring profession comes with a lot of responsibility. You are responsible for the lives and goods on board as well as expectations of those who are waiting ashore for the arrival of them. Remember the days we experienced fuel shortages in the country and were made to eagerly wait for the arrival of fuel carrying ships. This job requires you to be disciplined, hard-working and teaches you commitment. All of these are cornerstones of a successful person.
Extensive exposures: The life at sea is full of challenges. The responsibility you carry on your shoulders towards the lives and goods on board and the vessel is tremendous. The life at sea puts you in testing situations where you have to think on your feet. This improves your problem solving skills and the ability take quick and smart decisions. This builds your character as a person and the benefits of these positive qualities you will enjoy a life time.
Long vacations: Since the nature of the job requires long working periods, the vacations offered to merchant marine professionals are equally compensating. This enables these professionals to enjoy the best of both worlds – land and water. The vacation a seafarer gets is in its truest form- there is absolutely no stress of work while a seafarer is back home and he gets to enjoy the time with his family to the fullest.
Career opportunities ashore: This is the best part. Your careers at sea do not necessarily have to end at the sea. As Sri Lanka’s maritime industry is growing fast, Merchant Navy professionals are in high demand for a large number of shore based careers as well. For example, Navigation Officers have great shore based career opportunities as Harbor Pilots, Marine Superintendents, Shipping Administrators, Port State Controllers, Harbour Masters and Maritime Educators. For Marine Engineers great shore based career opportunities exist in many areas such as Ships & Industrials Survey, Maintenance Engineering at star class hotels, power plants & ship repairing and construction.
However, if you are seriously interested in joining the merchant navy, it is very important to start your career from the right place. All of the above will be possible only if you get the shore based theoretical training and on board practical training right.
As a Navigation Cadet Officer or Engineering Cadet Officer, one needs to complete the phases of theoretical and practical training on time without any delays to climb up the ladder successfully.
Mercmarine Training, approved by the Director General – Merchant Shipping Sri Lanka (DGMS), is Sri Lanka’s first and oldest maritime training institute. As part of the renowned Mercmarine group, the institute has done yeoman service to Sri Lanka’s shipping industry by producing top quality Sri Lankan seafarers to conquer the world seas. Equipped with latest training material, simulators and other facilities at their Maradana and Galle training centers, Mercmarine Training also possesses the industry’s most experienced professionals in their academic staff.
Those who wish to obtain more information regarding the opportunities at Mercmarine Training can contact the administration via e-mail: apply@mercmarine.net or by telephone: 011 7476100/0769 387477. More information is also available on Mercmarine Training website https://
www.mercmarinetraining.net/ or at https://www.facebook.com/MercmarineTraining/
on Facebook.