Career pathways — deck and engine

STCW Convention sets the international minima for officer certificates of competency. The progression below is the canonical pathway under STCW Chapters II (deck) and III (engine + electro-technical). Each rank requires the certificate listed plus the sea-time stated in supervised service. Specific flag-state implementations (Philippines, India, Ukraine, UK) layer additional university or examination requirements on top of the international minima.

Sea-time is documented in the Discharge Book / Continuous Discharge Certificate, signed by the Master and verified by the flag administration on application for the next CoC.

Deck — Cadet → OOW → Chief Mate → Master

1.Deck Cadet
Certificate
Pre-sea + onboard training record
Sea time
12 months supervised cadetship (or equivalent simulator + sea time per flag policy)
Prerequisites
Pre-sea education or maritime academy admission
BST / PST / PSSR / FPFF / EFA must be completed before any sea-time counts under most flags.
2.Officer of the Watch (OOW)STCW II/1
Certificate
STCW II/1 — OOW ≥ 500 GT
Sea time
12 months bridge watchkeeping under supervision (or 36 months as an AB) per Reg II/1.2
Prerequisites
BST · AFF · PSCRB · Medical First Aid · ECDIS · BRM · GMDSS GOC · Radar/ARPA Operational
Common entry-officer rank. Stands a 4-hour bridge watch as the sole watchkeeper.
3.Chief Mate (Chief Officer)STCW II/2
Certificate
STCW II/2 — Chief Mate ≥ 3000 GT
Sea time
12 months as OOW (post-CoC) per Reg II/2
Prerequisites
OOW CoC ≥ 500 GT · Advanced Fire Fighting · Medical Care · HELM Operational + Management · Ship Handling Simulator (recommended)
Second in command. Cargo plan, stability, deck crew. Stands the 4-8 watch traditionally.
4.Master (≥ 3000 GT)STCW II/2
Certificate
STCW II/2 — Master ≥ 3000 GT
Sea time
36 months as OOW (post-CoC) including at least 12 months as Chief Mate per STCW Reg II/2. Some flag states accept 24 months as Chief Mate as an alternative under their national implementation.
Prerequisites
Chief Mate CoC · HELM Management · Ship Security Officer · Crisis Management (passenger ships if applicable)
Final rank in the deck progression. Final authority on navigation, cargo, safety, and discipline.

Engine — Cadet → EOOW → Second → Chief Engineer

1.Engine Cadet
Certificate
Pre-sea + onboard training record
Sea time
12 months supervised cadetship (or equivalent workshop + sea time)
Prerequisites
Pre-sea engineering education or marine engineering degree
Workshop skills, watchkeeping familiarisation, planned-maintenance system shadow.
2.Engineer Officer of the Watch (EOOW)STCW III/1
Certificate
STCW III/1 — EOOW ≥ 750 kW
Sea time
12 months engineering watchkeeping under supervision per Reg III/1.2
Prerequisites
BST · AFF · PSCRB · Medical First Aid · ERM · High Voltage (≥ 1000 V installations)
Stands an 8-hour engine watch (or UMS duty) on most foreign-going merchant ships.
3.Second EngineerSTCW III/2
Certificate
STCW III/2 — Second Engineer ≥ 3000 kW
Sea time
12 months as EOOW (post-CoC) per Reg III/2
Prerequisites
EOOW CoC ≥ 750 kW · Advanced Fire Fighting · Medical Care · HELM Operational + Management
Day-to-day running of the engine room. Plans the work list, leads major overhauls.
4.Chief Engineer (≥ 3000 kW)STCW III/2
Certificate
STCW III/2 — Chief Engineer ≥ 3000 kW
Sea time
36 months as EOOW including 12 months as Second Engineer
Prerequisites
Second Engineer CoC · HELM Management · ISM auditor familiarisation
Department head. Bunkers, lubes, spares, planned maintenance, machinery condition reports.

Electro-Technical — ETR / ETO

1.Electro-Technical Rating (ETR)STCW III/7
Certificate
STCW III/7 — ETR
Sea time
12 months relevant sea service or 6 months under workshop + sea-time combination
Prerequisites
BST · AFF · Workshop / electrical apprenticeship
Supports the ETO. Cable-laying, motor maintenance, switchboard work.
2.Electro-Technical Officer (ETO)STCW III/6
Certificate
STCW III/6 — ETO
Sea time
12 months on-board training as ETR or ETO trainee
Prerequisites
ETR (or equivalent) + electro-technical engineering degree · BST · AFF · Medical First Aid · High Voltage · ECDIS familiarisation
Ship's electrical and electronic systems: switchboards, power management, bridge electronics, automation. Reports to the Chief Engineer.

Specialist endorsements added at each stage

· Tanker — Basic Tanker Familiarisation (oil/chem/gas) before joining a tanker; Advanced (V/1-1-2, V/1-1-3, V/1-2-2) at officer level.
· Polar — Polar Code Basic (V/4-1) for OOWs on polar voyages; Advanced (V/4-2) for Master / Chief Mate.
· Passenger ships — Crowd Management, Crisis Management, Passenger Safety (V/2) — required for senior crew on passenger vessels.
· IGF Code — V/3 training for crew on low-flashpoint-fuel vessels (LNG, methanol, ammonia in time).
· GMDSS — GOC for Sea Areas A1-A4 ships; ROC for A1 only.
· Security — SSO (VI/5) for the designated officer; Security Awareness (VI/6-1) for all crew.

Revalidation cycle

Most CoCs are valid for 5 years. Demonstrate continued competence through 12 months of approved sea service in the previous 5 years (or 3 months in the previous 6) plus mandatory practical refreshers for PSCRB, FRB, AFF, and tanker advanced courses. See /help/stcw-revalidation for the practical procedure and /my-certificates to track your dates.

Flag-state variations

Philippines (MARINA)
Officer-class CoC requires a 4-year BSMT (deck) or BSMarE (engine) degree from a MARINA-accredited maritime university plus 12 months cadetship. Rating-to-officer pathway exists via MARINA upgrading exams. AMOSUP-IBF wages are the typical reference. See /seafarer-guides/ph for full detail.
Full guide →
India (DG Shipping)
B.Sc. Nautical Science / B.Tech Marine Engineering at IMU and DG-approved colleges. Cadetship of 18 months, then DG Shipping Phase 2 + Phase 3 leading to OOW / EOOW. Class IV / III / II progression to Master / Chief Engineer. Continuous Discharge Certificate (CDC) is the equivalent of a seaman's book. See /seafarer-guides/in.
Full guide →
Ukraine (Maradmin)
Odessa National Maritime University (ONMU), Kherson State Maritime Academy, and Kyiv State Maritime Academy. Cadetship + 1 year sea time + state exams. Ukraine is on the IMO White List; CoCs widely recognised. War-era considerations apply to repatriation, document issuance, and certain banking routes.
Full guide →
United Kingdom (UK MCA)
OOW Unlimited via Phase 1 college + 12 months cadetship + Phase 2 college + final exam. Chief Mate at next CoC stage with further sea time. SQA exams for engineer pathway. EOOW Unlimited is the engine equivalent. UK MCA CoCs are widely recognised across Commonwealth flags.

Endorsements Attesting Recognition (EAR)

A seafarer holding a CoC from one flag may serve under another flag only if the second flag has issued an EAR under STCW Reg I/10. The EAR has its own expiry — often shorter than the underlying CoC — and lists the specific tonnage / kW / capacity for which recognition is granted. The IMO White List is the practical determinant: all major manning flags (Liberia, Panama, Marshall Islands, Bahamas, Malta, Singapore, Hong Kong) recognise White-Listed flags' CoCs subject to flag-state administrative requirements.