Skills beyond the seas project

Abstract

The Maritime Sector is currently facing a paradox and difficult situation of a current shortage of young seafarers. This paper demonstrates a methodology for designing two tools that will provide seafarers and MET (Maritime Education and Training) students with a detailed list of their hard and soft skills and suggest pathways to onshore occupations where these skills are needed. This methodology has been developed by the “Skills Beyond the Seas” Erasmus + project, which brings together five partners from four EU (European Union) countries who are closely linked to the seafarers, MET target groups and youth and are experts in qualification and skills analysis. They are jointly: a) analysing and identifying transferable hard and job-specific skills that are held by four seafarer qualifications, using ECVET (European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training) principles of knowledge, skill and competences, b) identifying onshore jobs and careers that utilise these transferable skills, c) developing a SkillsPath Tool that provides the target groups with options of career moves, and, d) developing an Informal Skills Scanner that identifies and assesses soft skills