Entry & progression
Third Assistant Engineer is one of only two examined rungs on this ladder — the operational-level exam at 11.903(a)(31). Around it sit the supporting requirements that sink more applications than the exam does.
The examination for Third Assistant Engineer is set at the operational level — the level defined at 46 CFR 10.107 as maintaining direct control over the performance of all functions within your area, under the direction of someone at the management level. That is what you are being examined as: the officer in charge of a watch, not the officer in charge of the department.
The supporting requirements — 46 CFR 11.201
| Requirement | The rule | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Citizenship | US citizen. No exception on the engineering side. | 11.201(d) |
| Age | 19 for Third Assistant Engineer (21 for every grade above it) | 11.201(e) |
| Firefighting | Basic AND Advanced Firefighting — within 5 years, or with evidence of maintained competence | 11.201(h)(2)(iv) |
| First aid + CPR | Required for all original officer endorsements. Engineers get no exception. | 11.201(i) |
| Recency | 3 months of the required service within the 3 years immediately preceding application | 11.201(c)(1) |
| Medical | Physical valid 12 months | 11.201(f)(2) |
| Approval to test | Valid 1 year | 11.201(j)(2) |
| TWIC, medical certificate, drug test | 46 CFR Part 10; drug test § 16.220 | Part 10 / 16.220 |
WARNING — The engineering entry bar is HIGHER than the deck one Every national officer endorsement for engineers requires Basic AND Advanced Firefighting — 11.201(h)(2)(iv), STCW VI/1 and VI/3. That is true right down to the Designated Duty Engineer of a 1,000 HP boat.
A deck licence below 500 GT ocean needs only basic firefighting (11.201(h)(3)). Engineers have no such relief. If you are coming across from the deck side assuming your BST covers you, it does not — Advanced Firefighting is a separate course and a separate certificate.
Firefighting does not revalidate on sea time alone
Basic Training and Advanced Firefighting revalidate on a five-year cycle, and the Coast Guard "will only accept evidence of approved assessments conducted ashore" for the physical elements — SCBA in smoke-filled spaces, live fire with fog, foam and dry chemical, firefighting involving dangerous goods, organising and training fire parties (11.302(d), 11.303(d)). The "one year of sea service in the last five" route covers only the other elements. Sea time will not keep your AFF alive. Book the refresher.
How service is counted — 46 CFR 10.107
- Year = 360 days. Month = 30 days.
- Day = "8 hours of watchstanding or day-working not to include overtime".
- Two-watch vessels: a 12-hour day may credit as 1½ days.
- Vessels under 100 GRT: a day is 8 hours, but in no case less than 4 hours.
The schools' "360 days a year" is not folklore — it is 10.107, and it is the right cite. Note what a day is: eight hours, overtime excluded. Yacht engineers who work eighteen-hour days in a yard period do not bank two days for one.
Two rejections the NMC sees constantly
- Engineer service claimed on a vessel with no engine room. On vessels under 100 GRT, 46 CFR 11.504 requires a "walk-in" engine room with an engineering plant comparable to vessels over 100 gross tons. A machinery space you reach through a deck hatch on your knees is not one.
- Self-attested service. Under 10.232(a)(4) owners may attest to their own service. Everyone else needs a letter from the owner or a credentialed officer. The NMC is explicit: if you do not own the vessel, you cannot attest to your own service — even if you are the master.
CAUTION — Pull the current NMC checklist Checklist contents, fee schedules and accepted course lists move. This course cites the CFR, which is the controlling authority — but the National Maritime Center publishes the operative checklist for each endorsement. Download the current one for Third Assistant Engineer before you assemble a single document.