See full version: Becoming a Marine Surveyor - Part I
This week, Marine Society supporter Mike Wall gives us his take on becoming a Marine Surveyor. As well as being a chief engineer, lecturer, and successful author, Mike spent 25 years as a hull, machinery, and cargo surveyor. He is currently a visiting lecturer at various education and training establishments and regularly carries out training seminars for various shipping organisations.
Independent surveyors tend to be employed to carry out: here
Types of surveyor include: more
Surveying cargo for the government or military is a job that requires you to board boats, trains, and trucks to inspect the contents that are shipped to ensure they meet any necessary regional regulations. Private cargo surveying companies are hired by businesses to check shipped contents to verify that everything listed and paid for is included. Large amounts of goods are shipped over land and sea routes domestically and internationally everyday. Each piece of cargo has the chance of being inspected by a surveyor, both for accuracy and for liability reasons. Companies that pay to ship goods from point to point may never actually see the end product before it is sold off, so they rely on cargo surveying companies to provide them with shipping inspection services along the way. more
You can become a cargo surveyor by qualifying and applying for a job with the government, military, or a private cargo inspection service. Qualifications needed to become a cargo surveyor include a high school education, but the completion of a two or four year college degree program is preferred. Government based cargo inspection jobs may prefer applicants to possess some type of criminal justice background or education. Cargo surveyor jobs within the military carry their own set of qualifications and training, as they require you to join the military for a contracted period of time.
Some jobs may require experience working in the field to become a cargo surveyor. You can begin a cargo inspection career by looking for an entry level position with the government or a private company. Government based cargo inspection jobs are usually found working for regional police departments, port authorities, transportation departments, and rail stations. A criminal justice background can provide you with an advantage in the application process to become a government cargo surveyor because the job requires boarding ships and trucks to look for contraband and unauthorized shipments. here
The military uses cargo surveyors to check ships and trucks in both domestic and overseas operations. Surveyors working for the military inspect boats and vehicles for illegal weapons, immigration, and general contents verification. You can become a cargo surveyor for the military by following traditional regional enlistment standards and qualifications, followed by requesting the specific position or job rating. Military experience is a good way to become a cargo surveyor because it provides you with several years of experience working directly in the same type of tasks needed to perform job duties.
There are certain skills that many marine cargo surveyors have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed communication skills, detail oriented and customer-service skills. more
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 3,000 job opportunities across the U.S.
If you're interested in becoming a marine cargo surveyor, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 52.2% of marine cargo surveyors have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 4.3% of marine cargo surveyors have master's degrees. Even though most marine cargo surveyors have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED. here
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a marine cargo surveyor. For example, did you know that they make an average of $45.38 an hour? That's $94,388 a year!
One way to become a marine surveyor is to apprentice with a working surveyor. This will give people exposure on the job to a wide variety of craft and settings. While apprenticed, people will gradually take on more responsibility and eventually start generating their own survey reports, learning about reporting standards in the industry, requirements for various types of craft, and how to work with insurance companies and government representatives. With three to five years of work experience, the apprentice can apply for professional certification.
Someone who has become a marine surveyor can also choose to specialize in certain types of work, ranging from inspecting cargo ships to handling small watercraft. Specialization can provide people with a variety of work opportunities. [links]
There are a number of routes people can take to become a marine surveyor, which is a person who inspects watercraft for appraisal purposes and also to confirm they meet government standards. In most regions, this profession is not licensed and regulated, and people can simply open surveying businesses without any training and experience. Nevertheless, having certifications from a professional organization, like the Society of Accredited Marine Surveyors (SAMS), will increase employability and attract clients. Organizations like SAMS usually expect people to meet experience requirements and pass an exam in order to start work.