Invigilated Assessments:
Assessment Invigilation and Commercial Endorsements
We are regularly asked by
students for information about assessment
invigilation and commercial endorsements, so we put
together a question-and-answer page to help you
demystify the requirements.
To ensure that our
information remains current and completely up to date,
we communicate regularly with the RYA and are compliant
with their requirements. We cannot guarantee that other
online providers do the same, so please do check
directly with the RYA if you are unsure.
What is a Commercial Endorsement, do I need one and how do it arrange it?
A commercial endorsement will be required if
you intend to work onboard British flagged vessels which
are subject to the MCA's codes of practice for small
commercial vessels.
A number of additional training courses and
medical fitness certificates are required to be eligible
for a commercial endorsement.
For further information and to check which
certificates may be commercially endorsed, Please use the following link to
the RYA website where the information appears in full:
RYA commercial endorsements
What is assessment invigilation and who can conduct it?
In some cases, it is
necessary to arrange for an RYA Instructor to be present
throughout the assessment to verify that you haven't
received any outside assistance. This may be an RYA
Instructor of any level. However, to ensure legitimacy
we do take care to verify their credentials and will
require sight of their qualification for our records.
When is invigilation required, do I really need it?
In most cases, invigilation
of the final theory assessment is not necessary and is
completely optional. We have summarised this for you
below but if you are unsure, please ask.
Invigilation is not required:
If you are going to be using the
qualification for leisure purposes (flotilla, charter,
own boat cruising etc).
- If you wish to qualify
as a RYA Cruising Instructor or an RYA Yachtmaster Instructor.
Invigilation will be
required:
If you wish to enter MCA large
yacht qualifications such as Officer of the Watch or
Master 3000 all of your theory assessments must be
invigilated
If you intend to
use your RYA Day Skipper Certificate of Competence for
commercial purposes, you will require a
professional endorsement to a Day Skipper Certificate of
Competence and this must be backed up by a Day Skipper shorebased theory qualification (online or in a classroom)
which has been invigilated.
If you are taking the Ocean Yachtmaster
oral examination, the invigilation of the shorebased
assessment is optional. However, if you choose not to
have your assessment invigilated, the Examiner may ask
you to complete a further theory paper during your oral
examination.
How can invigilation be
arranged?
- We can assist you with
this or you may prefer to make your own arrangements
independently.
- If you would like us to
help, we will not make any additional charges for
this service. However, at their discretion, the
chosen RYA recognised Training Centre may wish to
charge a fee to cover their instructors time.
- If you would like us to
assist, we will require details of your preferred
location for where the assessment may be completed.
This doesn't need to be in the UK as we work with
many RYA recognised Training Centres throughout the
world. Once we have identified a suitable Centre, we
will be able to put you in touch with each other to
confirm a date and time of mutual convenience
directly.
Any other questions?
Please don't hesitate to get in touch and we will be happy to help.