There is more to marine careers than simply a desire for a life on the waves - safety and science are very much to the fore when it comes to preparing the fishermen and engineers of the future.

And very much to the fore in terms of careers at sea is Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), which has put in place a number of courses to train people to acceptable levels of marine skills, preparing them for a career at sea. Popular programmes include its Engineer Officer Certificate of Competency (Fishing Vessel) Class 3 and Class 2, which are issued by the Department of Communications, Marine & Natural Resources. The Class 3 Certificate is a twoyear programme, including 12 months at sea, and it includes such subjects as Bench Fitting, Fabrication, Turning, Milling, Basic Draughting, and Precision Measurement and Tooling.

Other subjects include Basic Skills in Manual Arc Welding and Oxy-Acetylene Welding, Engineering Workshop Theory and Material Science, as well as Mathematics, Marine Engineering Processes and Marine Engine Operations.

There is also a Basic Safety Training component, as well as training in Computer and IT skills.

Following this qualification, students can elect to complete a further course, bringing them up to an Engineer Officer Certificate of Competency (Fishing Vessel) Class 2. To qualify for this programme, candidates must possess an Engineer Officer (Fishing Vessel) Class 3 Certificate or equivalent, plus eighteen months sea time in an engineering capacity.

Subjects covered include General Engineering Science, Engineering Knowledge, and Marine Engineering. The duration of the course is four months, and it includes four written papers and orals as set out by the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources.

Of course, there is more to a career at sea than vessel engineering, and BIM is focusing heavily at the moment on areas such as Marine Tourism and Aquaculture. In terms of marine tourism, BIM has become the appointed body for issuing certificates in the area of Passenger Boat Proficiency, while in Fish Farming, one of its more popular programmes is the FETAC Certificate in Aquaculture. There are a number of levels, including FETAC Foundation Cert, the Level 2 Certificate in Aquaculture, and even up to a FETAC Level 3 Certificate in Commercial Surface Supplied Diving. The Aquaculture Certificate can be completed in six months if taken fulltime or two years (part-time), while the Diving Certificate will require six weeks of training.

The Certificate in Aquaculture includes such modules as Juvenile Fish Production, Care of the Catch, Work Boat Handling and Marine Engine Operations, as well as the usual FETAC modules of Communications and IT. It will also include a Safety at Sea module, which has been taken up by more than 2,000 people working in the fishing industry.

In terms of qualifications, the FETAC cert is valuable for anyone looking to further their career prospects, because anyone who completes a FETAC programme is eligible for up to the equivalent of 400 points in their Leaving Certificate (obviously depending on performance). And, through the Higher Education Links Scheme, people with FETAC qualifications often progress up the ladder system to Ordinary and Higher Level Degrees, and sometimes even further. So a start in fish farming could lead to a career elsewhere, depending on a person's desires and capabilities.