Master (Yachts <3000 GT) - Oral Exam Preparation

Independent preparatory study aligned to the MCA Master (Yachts less than 3000 GT) examination syllabus (updated June 2026). Not an MCA-approved course and confers no credit toward a Certificate of Competency.

€99

Full course access

€99one-time · lifetime access

78 lessons
390 practice questions

Preview lessons stay free. Buying unlocks every lesson and its practice questions.

M3000-1 · Navigation

30 lessons

M3000-1.1 Plan and Conduct Safe Navigation Practice in examiner →

M3000-1.1.1

Passage planning and navigational publications including ECDIS and RCDS🔒

Passage planning under SOLAS V/34 at command depth, maintenance of navigational publications, and the legal and operational distinction between ECDIS type approval, RCDS mode, and chart carriage equivalence.

M3000-1.1.2

Ships' routeing and mandatory reporting systems🔒

This lesson covers IMO ships' routeing systems and mandatory ship reporting schemes, teaching the Master how to identify, apply, and document compliance obligations across the full route.

M3000-1.1.3

IALA systems of maritime buoyage🔒

Covers the IALA buoyage system (Regions A and B), the five mark types plus emergency wreck marking buoys, their characteristics, and the command-level decisions they demand.

M3000-1.1.4

Electronic navigation systems - limitations, errors and correction🔒

This lesson covers GPS failure modes and ECDIS error chains in a command context — how a Master identifies, responds to, and records electronic navigation system failures whilst maintaining an independently verified position.

M3000-1.1.5

Radar and ARPA - use, modes, limitations, errors and parallel indexing🔒

Covers radar and ARPA use, stabilisation modes, parallel indexing as an active navigation tool, and the principal limitations and errors a Master must critically assess before trusting ARPA output.

M3000-1.1.6

Meteorology - sources, instruments, weather systems, reporting and recording🔒

Covers weather information sources, on-board instruments, pressure tendency, key weather systems including TRS, and the Master's duty to record forecasts and meteorological observations as part of sound command decision-making.

M3000-1.2 Safe Navigational Watchkeeping Arrangements Practice in examiner →

M3000-1.2.1

Principles of navigational watchkeeping - sea, pilotage, anchor and port🔒

This lesson distinguishes the four navigational watch regimes — sea, pilotage, anchor, and port — examining the appropriate level of resource, attention, and Master's responsibility in each, and the standing/night order framework that governs when the OOW must call the Master.

M3000-1.2.2

Collision Regulations - content, application and intent🔒

Covers the legal basis, geographic application, structural hierarchy, and command-level principles of the COLREGs, with particular focus on where candidates give shallow answers in oral examination.

M3000-1.2.3

Conduct in and near Traffic Separation Schemes and VTS areas🔒

This lesson covers a Master's command-level obligations when navigating in and near Traffic Separation Schemes and VTS areas, encompassing COLREGS Rule 10, passage planning responsibilities under SOLAS V/34, and the legal framework for VTS participation and compliance.

M3000-1.2.4

Bridge equipment - course recorders, echo sounders and NAVTEX🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command-level responsibilities for course recorders, echo sounders, and NAVTEX receivers: correct operation, record-keeping, managing deficiencies, and the evidential and safety significance of each system.

M3000-1.2.5

Steering control systems, autopilot and manual/automatic changeover🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command responsibility for steering control systems on a yacht, including autopilot risk management, the hierarchy of steering modes, and the obligations governing testing, changeover drills and standing orders.

M3000-1.2.6

The ICS Bridge Procedures Guide - knowledge and application🔒

This lesson covers the ICS Bridge Procedures Guide — its authority, scope, and application as the command standard against which a yacht Master's bridge organisation, standing orders, and watchkeeping practices are assessed.

M3000-1.2.7

Establishing a safe engineering watch - sea, anchor and port🔒

This lesson distinguishes UMS, continuous machinery watch and engineer on call, and teaches the Master's command responsibility for setting and justifying the engineering watch arrangement at sea, at anchor and in port under MSN 1858.

M3000-1.3 Compasses Practice in examiner →

M3000-1.3.1

Magnetic and gyro compasses and autopilot - use, care and limitations🔒

Covers the Master-level understanding of magnetic and gyro compass operation, sources of error, maintenance obligations, and the correct supervised use of autopilot with reference to their limitations and cross-checking requirements.

M3000-1.4 Ship Manoeuvring Practice in examiner →

M3000-1.4.1

Conning the ship - wind, current, under-keel clearance, interaction and squat🔒

This lesson covers the command-level application of wind, current, under-keel clearance, squat, and interaction when conning a yacht, with emphasis on anticipation, cause-and-effect reasoning, and the Master's decision-making framework.

M3000-1.4.2

Berthing and unberthing - jetties, quays and buoys, with and without tugs, tide and wind🔒

Covers the command-level decision-making, environmental assessment, and technique required when berthing and unberthing at quays, jetties and buoys in varying conditions of wind, tide and tug availability.

M3000-1.4.3

Manoeuvres in restricted and open waters🔒

Teaches the forces governing ship manoeuvring in restricted and open water — pivot point, transverse thrust, interaction, squat and current effects — and the command-level decision-making a Master (Yachts <3000 GT) candidate must demonstrate in the oral examination.

M3000-1.4.4

Embarking and disembarking pilots🔒

Covers the Master's personal legal duty under SOLAS V/23 for safe pilot transfer arrangements, the IMO performance standards that define what 'safe' means, and the command responsibility that persists throughout the pilot's presence on board.

M3000-1.4.5

Limitations of remote control of power plant and auxiliary machinery🔒

This lesson covers the practical limitations of remotely controlling main engines and auxiliary machinery from the bridge, how those limitations differ from ECR and local control, and the Master's obligations when remote systems are degraded.

M3000-1.4.6.1

Anchor types - advantages and disadvantages🔒

This lesson covers the principal anchor types carried aboard yachts and larger vessels, their holding mechanisms, the seabed conditions each suits, their failure modes, and how a Master selects and deploys them at command standard.

M3000-1.4.6.2

Preparation for anchoring🔒

This lesson covers the command-level decisions and actions required when preparing a vessel to anchor, distinguishing anchorage selection from execution, and clarifying key concepts including scope, cable laid out, anchor party coordination, and the letting-go versus bringing-up sequence.

M3000-1.4.6.3

Anchoring in a tideway and in confined waters🔒

Command-level decision-making for anchoring in a tideway and in confined waters, covering approach technique, scope, moor selection, swinging circle assessment and anchor watch.

M3000-1.4.6.4

Anchoring with a single anchor and use of a second anchor🔒

This lesson distinguishes single-anchor best practice from the four principal uses of a second anchor, and clarifies the kedge/bower distinction at command depth.

M3000-1.4.6.5

Dragging anchor - detection and action🔒

Covers the detection of a dragging anchor by visual bearings, radar, GPS alarm and physical signs, and the command-level decision sequence for preventing grounding or collision.

M3000-1.4.6.6

Clearing a fouled anchor and hawse🔒

This lesson covers the Master's understanding and command approach to clearing a fouled anchor and a fouled hawse, including identification, clearing options, crew safety, and the decision to slip.

M3000-1.4.6.7

Hanging off an anchor🔒

This lesson covers the principle and command application of hanging off an anchor as a controlled manoeuvring technique to check speed and regulate swing in confined or tidal waters.

M3000-1.4.6.8

Breaking and slipping cables🔒

Distinguishes breaking the cable (anchor and cable let go with or without a buoy, potential recovery) from slipping (cable parted at the ship, gear abandoned), with command-level criteria for choosing between them and post-slip obligations.

M3000-1.4.6.9

Getting under way from anchor🔒

This lesson covers the Master's decision-making process and command responsibilities when getting under way from anchor, from pre-weighing checks through the moment the anchor is aweigh to securing the anchor for sea.

M3000-1.4.7

Navigation near ice - ice reporting and ice accretion🔒

Covers the Master's legal duty to report dangerous ice under SOLAS V/31, the content of an ice report, and the management of ice accretion as an acute stability threat requiring active command decisions.

M3000-1.4.8

Manoeuvres to launch and recover rescue boats and survival craft🔒

Covers the seamanship principles and command decisions governing vessel manoeuvring to support safe launch and recovery of rescue boats and survival craft, from creating a lee through to recovery abort criteria.

M3000-2 · Response to Emergencies

16 lessons

M3000-2.1 Response to Navigational Emergencies Practice in examiner →

M3000-2.1.1

Accidental damage - collision, grounding, flooding, mechanical damage and beaching🔒

This lesson teaches command-level decision-making and legal obligations for collision, grounding, flooding, mechanical damage and beaching, addressing the common failure of candidates who recite checklists rather than demonstrating Master-level judgement.

M3000-2.1.2

Trim and stability effects of compartment flooding and subsequent actions🔒

This lesson covers how compartment flooding affects trim and transverse stability on a yacht, the physics of free surface effect and lost buoyancy, and the ordered actions a Master must take to assess, contain and respond to the emergency.

M3000-2.1.3

Preparations and precautions for towing and being towed🔒

This lesson covers the command-level preparations and precautions a Master must take before, during, and after establishing a towing or being-towed evolution, including structural, crew, communications, and legal considerations.

M3000-2.1.4

IAMSAR Volume III, distress signals and SAR - UK and worldwide🔒

Covers the Master's legal duty to render assistance under SOLAS V/33, the carriage and operational use of IAMSAR Volume III, distress signals under COLREGs Annex IV, and the SAR coordination framework including on-scene coordinator responsibilities.

M3000-2.1.5

Emergency steering systems🔒

This lesson covers the Master's obligations under SOLAS V/26 for testing and drilling emergency steering systems, the components that constitute emergency steering, and the command response when primary steering fails.

M3000-2.2 Response to Other Emergencies Practice in examiner →

M3000-2.2.1

Organising and directing fire-fighting and abandon ship parties🔒

Covers the Master's command role in organising and directing fire-fighting and abandon ship parties, distinguishing between directing the response and performing it, and identifying the key decision points that must reflect command-level thinking.

M3000-2.2.2

Dealing with fire onboard - prevention at sea and in port🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command-level approach to fire prevention at sea and in port, including fuel flash point requirements, hot-work permit controls, bunkering precautions, and routine machinery and domestic risk management.

M3000-2.2.3

Preventing the spread of fire🔒

Covers the Master-level knowledge and command decisions required to prevent the spread of fire through structural barriers, systems management, and active tactical measures.

M3000-2.2.4

Fire-fighting equipment, doors, dampers, screens and detection - operation, maintenance and testing🔒

This lesson covers the operation, maintenance and testing of fixed and portable fire-fighting systems, fire detection and alarm systems, fire doors, dampers and screens, from the perspective of the Master's command responsibilities and the logged SMS regime required to demonstrate compliance.

M3000-2.2.5

Watertight doors, side scuttles and scuppers - operation, maintenance and testing🔒

This lesson distinguishes watertight doors, side scuttles, and scuppers — their operational status requirements, testing regimes, and the Master's command responsibility for maintaining the vessel's watertight integrity.

M3000-2.2.6

Survival craft - launch, manage, survive, recover at sea, beach or land🔒

This lesson prepares candidates to answer command-level examination questions on the full survival craft cycle — decision, preparation, launch, waterborne management, and recovery or beaching — reflecting the Master's legal authority and tactical responsibility throughout.

M3000-2.2.7

Lifesaving appliances - operation, maintenance and testing🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command-level responsibility for ensuring all lifesaving appliances aboard a yacht are operable, correctly maintained, within service dates, and that crew are drilled in their use — and the go/no-go decision when deficiencies are found.

M3000-2.2.8

Contents of the SOLAS training manual🔒

This lesson covers the mandatory content of the SOLAS training manual, the reason behind each content area, and the Master's responsibility to ensure it is used as a genuine training tool.

M3000-2.2.9

Action when disabled and in distress🔒

Covers the Master's command decisions when a yacht is disabled and in distress: assessing and declaring distress, immediate seamanship to stabilise the vessel, GMDSS communications sequence, managing crew and passengers, coordinating with the assisting vessel, and maintaining the log throughout.

M3000-2.2.10

Assisting ships and aircraft in distress - rescuing passengers and crew🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal duty under SOLAS V/33 to render assistance, and the practical step-by-step procedure for responding to a vessel or aircraft in distress and recovering survivors safely.

M3000-2.2.11

Safety during helicopter operations🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command responsibilities and practical safety measures during shipboard helicopter operations, distinguishing winching from deck-landing scenarios and focusing on the critical actions — static discharge, deck preparation, firefighting standby and communications — that the MCA oral examiner tests.

M3000-3 · Onboard Ship Operation

32 lessons

M3000-3.1 Compliance with Pollution Requirements Practice in examiner →

M3000-3.1.1

Preventing pollution in port and at sea🔒

Covers the Master's command responsibility for preventing sea and port pollution under MARPOL Annex I, V, and VI, including fuel sulphur compliance, oily water discharge conditions, garbage management, and the documentary requirements underpinning each regime.

M3000-3.1.2

Responding to pollution incidents onboard and found at sea🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal and practical responsibilities when responding to an onboard pollution incident and when pollution is observed at sea, including source control, MARPOL reporting obligations, Oil Record Book requirements, and the limits of delegated authority.

M3000-3.1.3

SOPEP Manual, Garbage Management Plan and anti-pollution equipment🔒

Covers the SOPEP and Garbage Management Plan — their legal basis, content, carriage thresholds, and the Master's command-level responsibilities — together with the anti-pollution equipment that underpins both.

M3000-3.1.4

Practical requirements of the MARPOL Convention🔒

This lesson covers the practical, documentary and command-level obligations under MARPOL Annexes I, V and VI — record books, certificates, retention periods, discharge conditions, bunkering documentation and Special Area requirements — as examined at Master standard.

M3000-3.1.5

Responsibilities, duties, obligations and liabilities in respect of pollution🔒

Covers the Master's personal legal position, criminal and regulatory liability, and practical obligations arising from MARPOL Annex I discharge rules as they apply to a sub-400 GT yacht operating in and around Special Areas.

M3000-3.2 Seaworthiness of the Ship Practice in examiner →

M3000-3.2.1

Preparations for sea - watertight integrity and heavy weather precautions🔒

Covers the Master's personal legal duty of seaworthiness, systematic verification of watertight integrity before departure, and the command decisions required when preparing a yacht for heavy weather.

M3000-3.2.2

Load line items affecting seaworthiness🔒

This lesson covers the load line items that constitute conditions of assignment, why defects in those items invalidate the Load Line Certificate, and the Master's legal duty not to proceed to sea when those conditions are not met.

M3000-3.2.3

Action on ingress of water into the hull🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command response to water ingress — from initial assessment and communication through damage control measures to the decision to abandon — emphasising command depth over engineering procedure.

M3000-3.2.4

Dry-docking and undocking with and without damage🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command responsibilities and stability considerations when dry-docking and undocking a yacht, distinguishing normal from damage docking and identifying the critical stability phase and disclosure obligations.

M3000-3.2.5

Use and care of deck machinery🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command responsibility for deck machinery — distinguishing machinery, lifting appliances and mooring equipment, and ensuring pre-departure checks, planned maintenance and defect management are systematically applied under the SMS.

M3000-3.3 Crew Management Practice in examiner →

M3000-3.3.1

Personnel management, organisation, training and disciplinary procedures🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal authority in crew management, the distinction between statutory manning, safe manning and crew organisation, familiarisation and training obligations, and the correct handling of discipline and misconduct aboard.

M3000-3.3.2

Application of hours of work legislation🔒

This lesson covers the Master's obligations under UK hours of rest legislation: the minimum rest thresholds, record-keeping and display requirements, and the power to suspend rest with the duty to provide compensatory rest thereafter.

M3000-3.4 Safety of Ship's Crew and Passengers Practice in examiner →

M3000-3.4.1

Stowaways and prevention of smuggling - the Master's responsibility🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal responsibility for preventing stowaways and smuggling, the pre-departure search obligation, and the command decisions required when a stowaway is discovered at sea.

M3000-3.4.2

Precautions against terrorism, piracy and robbery🔒

This lesson covers the Master's command-level responsibilities for assessing and mitigating threats from piracy, terrorism, and robbery, including risk assessment, hardening measures, and reporting obligations.

M3000-3.5 Legislative Requirements Practice in examiner →

M3000-3.5.1

Health and safety legislation, COSWP and risk assessment🔒

This lesson covers the statutory basis for health and safety on UK-flagged yachts, the Master's personal accountability under the 1997 Regulations and MSN 1858, COSWP's legal status, and the command-level application of risk assessment and permit-to-work systems.

M3000-3.5.2

Improvement and prohibition notices🔒

This lesson covers the legal distinction between MCA improvement and prohibition notices, the conditions for their issue, their effect on the vessel's ability to sail, appeal rights, and the Master's specific command obligations on receipt.

M3000-3.5.3

Safe manning, crew agreements, employment conditions and the Official Log Book🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal obligations in relation to the Safe Manning Document, crew agreements under UK flag State requirements, seafarer employment conditions under MLC 2006, and the proper maintenance and legal status of the Official Log Book.

M3000-3.5.4

Load line marks - freeboard, draft entries, reports and allowances🔒

Covers load line certificates, zone and seasonal marks, the Master's duty to record drafts and freeboard before departure, zone-to-zone loading allowances, and reporting obligations.

M3000-3.5.5

Inspection of living quarters, storerooms and complaints procedures🔒

This lesson covers the Master's personal obligations under MLC for regular inspection of crew accommodation and storerooms, the correct inspection sequence and record-keeping, and the requirements for a shipboard complaints procedure including seafarer protection.

M3000-3.5.6

Required records including the Oil Record Book🔒

This lesson distinguishes the key onboard records required under MARPOL Annexes I, V and VI — Oil Record Book, Garbage Record Book, BDN, and fuel sample — clarifying applicable thresholds, who signs, how long records are kept, and the Master's accountability for their integrity.

M3000-3.5.7

Requirements for drills and training🔒

Covers the legal requirements for drills and training under SOLAS Chapter III as implemented by the REG Yacht Code, including routine monthly drills, trigger-based drill obligations, and the Master's command accountability for drill quality and records.

M3000-3.5.8

Regulations concerning fire-fighting appliances🔒

This lesson distinguishes the regulatory instruments governing fire-fighting appliances on large yachts — SOLAS II-2, REG YC, and MSN 1858 — and contrasts fixed systems, portable equipment, and the Master's operational obligations beyond mere carriage.

M3000-3.5.9

Regulations concerning life-saving equipment🔒

Covers the regulatory framework governing life-saving appliances on commercial yachts, including the hierarchy of SOLAS Chapter III, the Red Ensign Group Yacht Code, and the Master's command-level accountability for carriage, maintenance, drills, and records.

M3000-3.5.10

International conventions, certificates and onboard documentation🔒

Distinguishes international conventions, the statutory certificates they generate, and the operational documents a Master maintains, with particular focus on the differences examiners probe most — SMC versus DOC, IOPP versus ORB, and BDN versus bunker sample.

M3000-3.5.11

Statutory and classification surveys🔒

This lesson distinguishes statutory surveys (flag state/convention mandated, legally binding certificates) from classification surveys (private society standards underpinning insurance and commercial fitness), clarifying the command implications of each and where they overlap under the REG Yacht Code framework.

M3000-3.5.12

Reports required by the MAIB🔒

This lesson covers the Master's legal duty to report marine accidents and incidents to the MAIB, the classification of reportable events, timescales, and the steps to take immediately after an occurrence on a yacht under command.

M3000-3.5.13

Obligations with respect to pilotage🔒

This lesson distinguishes compulsory from voluntary pilotage, explains Pilotage Exemption Certificates, and establishes the Master's undiminished command responsibility whenever a pilot is embarked.

M3000-3.5.14

Towage and salvage agreements🔒

This lesson covers the legal distinction between towage and salvage, the structure and implications of Lloyd's Open Form, the Master's authority to sign, and the command responsibilities that flow from engaging either agreement.

M3000-3.5.15

Flag State and Port State Control🔒

Covers the legal distinction between Flag State and Port State authority, how PSC operates through regional MoUs, and the Master's specific obligations and rights during inspection and detention.

M3000-3.5.16

The ISM Code - purpose and application🔒

Covers the purpose, legal basis, key requirements, and command-level application of the ISM Code, including the Master's overriding authority and the distinction between the DOC and SMC.

M3000-3.5.17

The ISPS Code - purpose and application🔒

This lesson covers the purpose, structure and command-level application of the ISPS Code, including Security Levels, the Ship Security Plan, the ISSC, and the Master's overriding authority under SOLAS XI-2.

M3000-3.5.18

Documentation required for a vessel under 3000 GT🔒

This lesson covers the statutory certificates, records and plans required on board a vessel under 3000 GT, with emphasis on the tonnage and trading thresholds that trigger each requirement and the Master's personal responsibility for their accuracy and currency.

Aligned to the published MCA syllabus. Official syllabus (GOV.UK).

School