Licensing & Training – Professional Mariner

03 Jun

Coast Guard updates guidelines for approved training

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & Training, UncategorizedNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — The Office of Merchant Mariner Credentialing has published Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular (NVIC) 01-26, "Guidelines for Coast Guard Approved Training." This NVIC will streamline the process of obtaining Coast Guard approval of required training for a merchant mariner credential and will reduce the administrative burden on maritime training providers. This NVIC makes several changes to the…

28 May

Port of Long Beach awards nearly $400,000 in scholarships

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingPorts

(LONG BEACH, Calif.) — The Port of Long Beach presented a record of almost $400,000 in scholarships to 165 local high school and college students to study and train in port-related fields including engineering, environmental science, maritime law and technical trades. The scholarships were announced during Celebrating Education, an annual event that brings together students, educators, policymakers and business leaders…

26 May

NMC update: Extension dates for MMCs, medical certificates

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — The National Maritime Center (NMC) is expanding the existing extension policy for merchant mariner credentials (MMCs) and medical certificates impacted by the 2026 lapse in appropriations and continued processing delays. Effective immediately, MMCs (national endorsements only) and medical certificates (national and pilot expiration dates only) that expire between Jan. 1, 2026, and July 31, 2026, will remain…

18 May

Mass. Maritime SNAME contingent earns honorable mention

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & Trainingshipbuilding

(BUZZARDS BAY, Mass.) — Massachusetts Maritime Academy announced that a team of six cadets in the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME) recently participated in SNAME Paper Night at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), earning an honorable mention for their paper “Bulk Carrier to Mobile Powerplant: Designing Alternate Power Solutions.” Researched and written by cadets Jackson Perrault,…

15 May

Normal operations resume at regional examination centers

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(WASHINGTON) — Effective Monday, May 18, all regional examination centers (RECs) and monitoring units (MUs) except for REC New Orleans and MU San Juan will return to routine operations, including availability to schedule examinations for all mariners. REC New Orleans will remain temporarily closed to walk-in and counter service, but its examination room will reopen for scheduling and conducting mariner…

07 May

NMC issues guidance on expired shipping labels, processing delays

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — The National Maritime Center (NMC) is implementing an update to its policy regarding the use of customer-provided U.S. Postal Service (USPS) shipping labels for credential delivery. Due to current application inventory levels and extended processing timelines, applications may not be completed for several months after submission. In accordance with USPS shipping policy, shipping labels that are more…

07 May

Cal Poly cadets set to cast off for Summer Sea Term

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & Trainingshipbuilding

(VALLEJO, Calif. ) — Over 300 Cal Poly Maritime Academy cadets will soon embark on their annual Summer Sea Term, a 65-day Pacific training voyage aboard the training ship Golden Bear, marking both a defining part of a cadet’s education and the final era of a vessel that has served the seafaring academy for three decades. The voyage also marks the first since the…

21 Apr

NMC update: Civilian staff return to work, RECs still closed

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — While the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Coast Guard remain without an appropriation providing full fiscal year 2026 funding, National Maritime Center (NMC) civilian staff have returned to work under alternative funding arrangements. As this funding stream is not a full appropriation and the duration of funding is uncertain, NMC staff have resumed normal…

15 Apr

Eastern, county boost workforce through academy partnership

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & Trainingshipbuilding

(PANAMA CITY, Fla.) — Eastern Shipbuilding Group, in collaboration with Gulf County and regional partners, recently hosted Florida’s secretary of commerce and a delegation of economic development leaders for a special presentation on the Gulf County/Eastern Shipbuilding Group Maritime Academy, a strategic workforce development initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of skilled maritime professionals. During their visit to the…

08 Apr

NMC issues guidance on delivery, use of e-medical certificates

Professional Mariner StaffLicensing & TrainingNMC, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — The National Maritime Center (NMC) has released the following guidance on delivery, e-signing and troubleshooting common issues with e-medical certificates: What’s new • New medical certificates that do not include a medical waiver will now be delivered electronically via email. • Certificates are issued as standard 8.5-by-11-inch (letter size) PDF documents. • Certificates must be signed to…