Sailing instructor qualification

[ascpo]

Does anyone have any opinions on sailing certifications? My wife is thinking about getting certified to teach (much experiance, zero qualifications). Any thoughts?

[sailingdog]

If she loves to sail, then getting a RYA Yatchmaster ticket for teaching will allow her to get a very good job teaching sailing. The ASA certification for teaching isn't as worthwhile, but probably a lot cheaper.

[nolatom]

Well, both ASA and USSA have programs to certify instructors, check their web sites. Looks like they require time, travel, and money. I might think about it when I retire, but til then I've been teaching part time on occasion without one (though I do have the USCG license), and have since high school and college, long before there were any certifying agencies.

Some sailing schools/programs want to see these certifications (or may want you to commit to getting one within a year after employment, some don't as long as they like your resume, personality, and teaching style.

If your wife has the experience, she may have the qualifications, even if not the actual certificate. I think most of the club-based programs use instructors they know, most without any certification. But the commercial schools (Steve Colgate, J-World, and the like) mostly use instructors with certificates, I think.

I guess it depends what kind of teaching program she's thinking of..

[sailingdog]

Another thing she could possibly do is coach sailing at one of the local colleges. From what I've seen, the ASA and USSA certs aren't all that useful or well recognized. The RYA Yatchmaster ticket is recognized world-wide for the most part, but may be a bit more than your wife wants to tackle, being a bit more comprehensive than the USCG Captain's License and Sailing Endorsement IIRC.

[nolatom]

Another thing to keep in mind. You may find that you need a Coast Guard license to legally teach sailing, at least on your own boat if you're offering lessons and have an auxiliary engine.

I think sail-only is exempt from this, at least for the smaller boats, but if you're carrying "passengers for hire" then you may have to have the license. If you're teaching someone on their boat, you're probably not the one carrying passengers, they're just carrying an instructor. But if you're teaching them on your own boat, or on a school's boat, with an engine, and getting paid, you're probably carrying "passengers for hire" (and if you're carrying more than 6 passenger/students, then the boat has to be Coast Guard inspected, too).

If so, a Yachtmaster's certificate, or ASA or USSA instructor certificate, won't cut it. They're issued by private outfits, not by a government.

I haven't looked up all this up lately, but I think this is how it's interpreted.

[sailingdog]

Nolatom-

The RYA Yatchmaster ticket is recognized world-wide except in the USA. It is accepted for employment every where else in the world.

[nolatom]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

Nolatom-

The RYA Yatchmaster ticket is recognized world-wide except in the USA. It is accepted for employment every where else in the world.

Didn't know that, good to know. But our inquirer is from Hampton, VA, so the RYA would be a lot of expense, it would seem, for a ticket that won't satisfy "passengers for hire" in the US.

I don't profess to know other countries' laws, but once the "yacht" gets up to a certain size and tonnage, I wonder if a government-issued captain's license wouldn't be required. Maybe you show your RYA certificate and they'll issue you one.

[Kernix]

Do they have RYA Yachtmaster courses in the US or do you have to fly to Australia or England for one?

[sailingdog]

I believe they are working on a reciprocal recognition of the RYA yatchmaster ticket with the USCG Captain's license. It is stupid and bureaucratic for them not to recognize the other certification, since the RYA Yatchmaster is in some ways far more comprehensive from what I understand than the USCG Captain's license.

BTW, it depends on where the boat is flagged. If the ship is flagged in a country other than the USA, it is probably okay to hire someone with only an RYA Yatchmaster ticket, even if the boat is sailing in US waters, as it is governed by the country of registry's legal requirements IIRC.

Kernix-

If you are serious about getting a Yatchmaster, then get a copy of Sailing World or one of the other British sailing publications. They'll have a lot of listings for RYA courses in the back. Some are probably located in the Caribbean, as many of the islands were formerly European colonies. The BVI would definitely offer some courses is my guess...since they're still a British property.

[JakeLevi]

Dont forget insurance.

If the teaching is to be on your boat you are entering into a whole new world insurance-wise.