Sailing Courses for Experts

This course also features in the Intermediate page as it straddles the two levels. To take the intermediate Coastal Skipper course it is assumed you will have taken the Coastal Skipper/Yachtmaster shorebased course. If going for either of the Yachtmaster Certificates of Competence (Coastal or Offshore) is it also assumed you will have done this course. Or at least have knowledge to the same standard.

It is an advanced navigation course that builds upon your existing navigational knowledge or upon what you have learnt on the Day Skipper shorebased course. Chart work, weather and rules of the road are all thoroughly covered on this course.

To take the Yachtmaster Coastal Certificate of Competence exam it is assumed that you have at least 800 miles experience, 30 days sea time, 2 days as skipper and 12 night hours. Your theory should be up to the level achieved by doing the Coastal Skipper/Yachtmaster shorebased course.

The prep course involves a few days sailing with an instructor before an external examiner steps aboard to exam you. The purpose of the prep course is to iron out any bad habits you may have picked up and to get you doing things in the way an examiner may expect you to. It also serves to familiarise you with the yacht and your crew before the exam.

The course and exam takes place over 5 consecutive days with the examiner boarding on the penultimate day. For more details of what is involved go here.

The Yachtmaster Offshore Certificate of Competence exam requires a level of sailing that is much more advanced than a Yachtmaster Coastal candidate. You need to have at least 2500 miles experience, 50 days sea time, 5 passages over 60 miles including 2 overnight and 2 as skipper.

Like the YM Coastal prep course the Yachtmaster Offshore prep course involves some sailing with an instructor before an external examiner puts you through your paces. The instructor will coach you so that you are doing it how an RYA examiner would expect to see you do it.

The course and exam take place over 5 consecutive days with the examiner boarding on the 4th day.

The most advanced of all the RYA Shorebased courses the Yachtmaster Ocean theory course is a course in how to use a sextant, world weather and long distance passage planning.

It is assumed you will have done the Coastal Skipper/Yachtmaster shorebased course or have knowledge to that level. Although not essential a good amount of sailing experience will be helpful.

A fascinating course. Run over 8 weeks (1 evening a week) and a weekend.

There is no course for this. You need to sail a 600 mile passage and take some sextant sights. You then submit these to an examiner who takes you through an oral exam of your sights. You will be asked questions on your workings, and about weather routing and long distance passage planning.

For the full list of requirements you need to fulfil before sitting an oral exam click here.