Sailing Instructor

You can do Royal Yachting Association (RYA) courses. The RYA is the national governing body for sailing, and sets standards for training instructors.

You'll need to be:

• over 16 years old
• physically fit and able to swim
• a competent, experienced sailor

You'll also need to pass a sailing assessment and do further study before you can start training as a sailing instructor with the RYA.

Courses are done at local sailing clubs or with private training companies.

You'll need:

• knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
• the ability to teach pupils how to do something
• leadership skills
• the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
• thinking and reasoning skills
• patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• excellent verbal communication skills
• to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

Your day-to-day duties may include:

• preparing and presenting lessons
• teaching safety on dry land and drills on water
• demonstrating boat handling and sailing techniques
• assessing your students' abilities
• keeping attendance records
• recording and reporting accidents or boat damage
• informing students of changes to lessons due to bad weather
• care and maintenance of boats

You could work in a sailing club or at a marina.

Your working environment may be outdoors in all weathers and physically active.

You may need to wear safety clothing and use safety equipment.

Career tips

You'll need to requalify as a sailing instructor every 5 years, and must have a valid first aid certificate.

Further information

You can find out more about becoming a sailing instructor from the Royal Yachting Association.

You'll need to:

• be over 16 years of age

You'll need to be a member of the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) to qualify or revalidate as an RYA instructor.