2. Privately Issued Certificates

There are a number of privately owned and managed organizations, NauticEd, RYA, ASA, IYT, ISSA and a few others, offering a line-up of learn to sail-type courses and various recreational yachting certificate schemes. Each organization creates its own course materials including training manuals, workbooks, exams, power-point presentations, instructor notes, etc. These learn-to-sail programs are then rolled out to the marketplace where courses and course packages are sold both online and thru a network of sailing schools located around the globe.

For the most part, the courses offered are purely educational and the certificates awarded are basically place-holders, marking a students progress thru the program's certificate scheme. While the training itself maybe effective, not much can be done with an Introduction to Yachting certificate, or an anchoring or close-quarter maneuvering certificate, etc. other than be added to a sailing resume where they can add some value to a sailor's overall accomplishments.

However, in each of these organizations certificate schemes there will be a course or series of courses where the course syllabus, sea-time and other requirements and the evaluation process meet the bare-boat charter industry and insurance companies threshold for what they consider to be a qualified captain. This may be the Charter Master Rank or Bareboat Skipper or Cruising 101 or Day Skipper level, depending on which scheme is being followed.

And so, in areas where a government issued sailing license (the ICC) is not required, the bare-boat captain level certificate from any of these privately run companies, particularly when presented along with an impressive sailing resume, will usually be accepted by charter operators who will then happily collect the charter fees and hand over the keys.

There will usually be course and certificate levels on offer above the bare-boat captain level: offshore captain and/or ocean master, etc. With these more advanced levels, the value shifts back to the purely educational, resume building zone as these certificates don't entitle the holder to any additional yacht charter benefits above the bare-boat captain level.