Seafarer CV

What crewing checks first

• The rank you apply for and the date you are available.
• Your certificate of competency or proficiency: the capacity, the limits (tonnage, power, near-coastal), the expiry date and the flag endorsements.
• The certificates and documents: valid for the whole contract, not only on the day you join.
• Sea service in the rank and on the ship type: months, not a list of ship names.

Everything else supports these four. Put them where the eye lands first: the top of the first page.

What goes in, in this order

1. Header: name, rank, photo, contacts, citizenship, date of birth, availability, preferred rotation and nearest airport.
2. A short summary: three or four lines on your ship types, cargoes or machinery, and what you are looking for.
3. Personal details: languages, height and weight (for coveralls and safety gear), preferred vessel types, years of experience.
4. Key certificates: the certificate of competency, its flag endorsements and the GMDSS certificate.
5. Documents: passports, seaman’s books and visas, with numbers and expiry dates.
6. Certificates: STCW and other training, each with its number, issue and expiry dates.
7. Medical certificate.
8. Sea service, newest contract first.
9. Months at sea per rank, and the total.

Sea service

One entry per contract, newest first. Take the sign-on and sign-off dates from your discharge book or sea service testimonials, so that the CV and the documents agree. Write dates in full, for example 09.02.2026.

For each contract: rank, vessel name and IMO number, vessel type and size, flag, year built, the company, and for the engine department the main engine, its power and the generators. A gap of several months between contracts is normal for seafarers; a gap of a year or more is worth a line in the summary.

Give the months per rank as a total at the end: that is the figure crewing compares with the job.

Count your months with the sea-time calculator →

Certificates and dates

Every certificate gets its number, issue date, expiry date and the issuing country. Write “unlimited” for those that do not expire. A certificate that expires during the contract will be asked about: renew it first, or say when the renewal is booked.

The survival, rescue boat and fire-fighting certificates are refreshed every five years under STCW; the certificate of competency is revalidated every five years; the medical certificate lasts two years at most.

Every STCW certificate, who needs it and how long it lasts →

Common mistakes

• Sending an editable file whose layout breaks on another computer. Send a PDF.
• Old contracts first, so the latest ship is on page three.
• Ship names without IMO numbers, types or sizes.
• Months that do not match the dates. Count them the same way every time.
• Expired documents shown as valid, or no expiry dates at all.
• One CV for every job. When you apply for a promotion, show the time in your current rank and the certificate for the next.