How to become a Medical Officer / Yacht Medic
Nobody starts as a Medical Officer / Yacht Medic. The usual path starts as a Steward / Nurse, a role people enter from work ashore, and reaches Medical Officer / Yacht Medic at about year 3 to 5 of a yacht career.
The pathFrom no experience to Medical Officer / Yacht Medic. A typical path, not a rule.
Steward / Nurse
Year 0. Pay from about US$4,500 a month. A steward or stewardess who is also a registered nurse, working interior service while acting as the yacht's first line of medical care.
Yacht Nurse
Year 1-2. Pay from about US$4,500 a month. A registered nurse living aboard a large superyacht, responsible for crew and guest healthcare, the medical stores and first response far from shore.
Medical Officer / Yacht Medic
Year 3-5. Pay from about US$6,000 a month. A registered paramedic, nurse or doctor hired aboard a large yacht to give medical care to guests and crew, often far from hospitals.
Before you applyWhat a Steward / Nurse needs, from the Steward / Nurse guide
Must have
- STCW Basic Safety Training
- ENG1 medical certificate
- Current nursing registration (NMC, AHPRA, NCNZ, SANC or equivalent)
- Advanced Life Support (ALS or ACLS)
Gets you hired
- PHTLS or equivalent trauma course
- Food Hygiene Level 2
- GUEST interior courses
- PDSD
- WSET Level 2 Wines
Later, for Medical Officer / Yacht Medic
- Current professional registration (e.g. HCPC paramedic, NMC nurse, GMC doctor or national equivalent)
- STCW Basic Safety Training
- ENG1 medical certificate
- STCW Proficiency in Designated Security Duties (PDSD)
Visas
- US B1/B2
- Schengen access
What counts instead of yacht experienceOur advice
Captains hire a Steward / Nurse for emergency and trauma care, telemedical consultation and medical stores management. With no yacht job behind you, show the same skills from work ashore. For a Steward / Nurse, that means your qualifications and the years you have worked in the profession.
Write each job on your CV as what you did, with numbers: how many guests, how many boats, how many covers. Then list every skill below that you can prove.
- Emergency and trauma care
- Telemedical consultation
- Medical stores management
- Silver service and bar
- Laundry and housekeeping
- Crew health training
- Calm under pressure
Your first stepsIn the order we suggest
Get the tickets a Steward / Nurse must hold
You need STCW Basic Safety Training, ENG1 medical certificate, Current nursing registration (NMC, AHPRA, NCNZ, SANC) and Advanced Life Support (ALS or ACLS) before a yacht can put you to work as a Steward / Nurse.
STCW and ENG1: what they are and what they cost →Write a first Steward / Nurse CV
Keep it to one page. Put your tickets and your start date at the top, then your qualifications and your work ashore, with dates.
See a Steward / Nurse CV example →Create your crew profile
Upload that CV and we build your profile from it. Your name and contact details stay hidden. Captains and recruiters contact you. It is free.
Create your crew profile →Apply and look for daywork
Apply to open jobs and to crew agencies, and take daywork: a few paid days on a yacht is how most first-time crew get a reference. 1 Steward / Nurse job is open on SuperyachtRoles.com now.
See open Steward / Nurse jobs →Step up to Yacht Nurse
The usual path puts Yacht Nurse at year 1 to 2. Pay starts from about US$4,500 a month.
How to become a Yacht Nurse →
Steward / Nurse jobsOpen now on SuperyachtRoles.com. Some ask for experience, so read each advert.
QuestionsMore in the green crew guide
Can I become a Medical Officer / Yacht Medic with no experience?
Not directly. Medical Officer / Yacht Medic is senior work. The usual path starts as a Steward / Nurse, and reaches Medical Officer / Yacht Medic at about year 3 to 5.
How long does it take to become a Medical Officer / Yacht Medic?
The usual path puts Medical Officer / Yacht Medic at about year 3 to 5 of a yacht career, after Steward / Nurse and Yacht Nurse. It is a typical path, not a rule: time on busy yachts and the tickets you pass move it.
What does a Steward / Nurse earn at the start?
From about US$4,500 a month, by our Steward / Nurse guide. Expect roughly USD 500 to 1,500 a month above a stew of the same rank. Charter tips, often 10 to 20 percent of the charter fee split among crew, can add several thousand a season, and some 90m+ yachts offer rotation.
Other paths from Steward / NurseAll roles
Let the yachts come to you
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