Should competent seafarer be educated? Legislative correspondence between levels of competence and levels of education

Abstract

Regardless of unified international requirements for maritime education and training, national MET systems differ in academic level, content, duration of study programmes and consequence of school and sea time during these programmes. The requirements for competencies of seafarers are set by the international convention STCW 78 as amended in 2010, but the convention does not specify requirements for levels of adequate education. Therefore, question "Should competent seafarer be educated and what level of education is necessary?" rises again and again. Otherwise national MET systems of the EU countries should be in compliance with legislation of European educational area. In this relation European Qualifications Flamework, adopted in 2008, could serve as a translation device between different qualifications systems and their levels. The analysis of STCW 78 and European Qualifications Framework reveals clear correspondence between lavels of seafarers' competence and adequate levels of education.