Seamanship Skills Training for Rising Young Mariners

Bosun School is a land-based skills development program for people who already know they like boats, ships and going to sea, run by the team from the world-circling tall ship Picton Castle. From July 24 to September 27, 2004, students will gather in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada for the Bosun School.

By being land-based, students can focus their time and attention on learning and practicing seamanship skills, taking away the natural distractions of watch-standing at sea. Rather than pass off a task at the change of the watch, Bosun School students will be engaged in the whole progression of projects from start to finish.

This is not a typical classroom experience. Students will learn through repeated hands-on practice. Skills covered in this summer’s session of the Bosun School will include small boat handling under sail, oar and power; introduction to rigging; introduction to sailmaking; knots and splices in fibre and wire; coatings and mixtures; working aloft safely; heavy lifting techniques.

Why Does Bosun School Matter?

1. Bosun School makes a difference in students’ lives. Our placement rate through 13 sessions of Bosun School is 100%. Every student who has wanted to go to sea or get involved with boats or boatyards on the shore side has been able to. While Bosun School is not an officially recognized certification, its reputation, particularly in the traditional sail community, is highly regarded. Our graduates are known to be skilled, dedicated crew who have a passion for what they do.

2. In the boating/marine community, there’s a lot of emphasis on earning certifications that have to do with emergency response, things like fire fighting and survival at sea. This training is good and everyone should do it. There are not many organizations focused on seamanship skills, which keep your vessel in good working order. Bosun School teaches seamanship skills, which are the skills you need to not have an emergency in the first place.

3. Bosun School teaches good judgement. Most vessels have a standard operating plan that outlines what to do and when, but not every situation a crew member finds themselves in fits the scenarios in the plan. Seafarers need to be situationally aware and able to act according to the circumstances. Bosun School gives students the opportunity to practice judgement in low-risk and moderate-risk situations so they know how to apply it when the stakes are high.

In order to attract the kinds of students who benefit from Bosun School most greatly, we intentionally keep the fee very low. Students pay just $1,500 Canadian dollars plus tax (total of $1,725 Canadian dollars) which includes accommodations, food, instruction and course materials for the two-month session. This fee barely covers our costs for feeding and housing these students.

Our ideal student is a young person who has some sailing experience, who maybe has crewed as a deckhand or worked/volunteered as a sailing instructor, and as a result, probably doesn’t have much money. We want to keep this valuable experience-building training accessible for the people it was designed to most serve.

This is where you come in. If you believe in the value of seamanship training and giving opportunities to aspiring young mariners, we could use your support. Your donation will help to cover the costs of the Bosun School. We talked earlier about the costs of food and housing, other costs of running Bosun School include instruction, workshop/classroom costs, tools and supplies.

Bosun School’s reputation has grown throughout the years and we now have captains contacting us to ask us to send them more graduates. Please help us keep this unique program going so we can train more young mariners and contribute to raising the level of skill across our sailing community.

Let’s hear from some of our graduates:

“Bosun School on Picton Castle was unlike any other program I’ve heard about. It was 2 months of fun, interesting, and valuable work with a great group of fellow students. We practiced a huge breadth of skills, from wooden boat repair, to caulking decks, to writing maritime resumés, to splicing wire. It’s hard to imagine any work on a future ship that I won’t have at least passing familiarity with. Even more important than the specific skills we practiced is the confidence I’ve gained coming out of Bosun School to work through any new situation and realize that seemingly huge and complex projects are actually doable. Whether I continue on in another ship, take off cruising in my own boat, or return to corporate life, I’m confident that my readiness to roll up sleeves and dig into the next challenge will serve me well.” -Shelly

“I am not saying that now I learned everything and I could be a captain tomorrow. But Bosun School was like making a jump into my dream and making it be real, tangible, at close reach. I am leaving Bosun School with confidence in my skills and sure that I will have a place onboard a ship, knowing what I am doing. I also leave with a great desire to work in this wonderful industry and gain more experience.” -Emilie

“Being able to partake in the Bosun School program was a great opportunity for me to get introduced to marine trades and traditional craftmanship. During the program, having access to Picton Castle facilities and workshop permitted a good learning experience, which was completed by a variety of skillful instructors to guide us into the tasks. Bosun School was definitely a great experience for me to expand my horizon of marine opportunity and develop new skills.” - Maude

To learn more about the Bosun School, check out our website here: https://picton-castle.com/bosun-school/