Marine Engineering

To say you are merely an engineer on a SEA (Sea Education Association) vessel is an understatement. You are a plumber, an electrician, a mechanic, a carpenter, a welder, and a teacher. You are responsible for maintaining all systems on board, diagnosing and fixing any malfunctions, and teaching the students about your responsibilities and systems.

Beyond all that, you are also a shipmate, and being a good shipmate is the most important job of anyone on board. Simply put, you must be kind, courteous, and go out of your way to make someone else’s day, which can be challenging when living in such tight quarters.

Thus far, I have served as both a Chief Engineer and an Assistant Engineer, and the roles are the same in some ways yet different in many. As Chief Engineer, the job is more stressful: you are "the" person, the one who must fix anything and everything if it breaks, as well as manage all the various resources on board, like drinking water and fuel. As Assistant Engineer, the role is a learning position: learn as much as you can without breaking anything, but more importantly, keep the Chief in good spirits, as they are often more stressed than they let on.

Other than fixing things, you are sailing and going to amazing places. Enjoying the adventure with your new family(the crew) is easily the best part.

Click through the pictures to learn more.