So you have this friend who works on a cruise ship and you’ve notice his improved life style. All of the sudden he can afford to buy brand clothes, go to the expensive bars and restaurants, go on vacation in all those exotic places you only dream of and you start feeling a little jealous of him/her. You want those things too, but you have no idea where to start from. Here’s the first thing you should do. Go to a recruitment agency and talk to one of the people there. Is what I did long time a go. I went there and asked them how I can get a job on one of the cruise ships. They told me the options, I chose and several months later I embarked a small ship called Norwegian Dream. It is very important to choose a well known, reliable agency in your country and when you get there asked them for their portfolio. Also, ask them about the commissions they’re taking and any other payments you have to make until you get the job. A solid, trustworthy company won’t ask for their commissions until you get your contract. Some cruise lines employ directly themselves, others require you to apply through a local agency. For ships that cruise out of the UK, you will need to be at least 19, and for international ships, at least 21 years of age, hold a valid passport and not have a criminal record. Once employed, the company will make all the necessary travel arrangements, to and from ship, and any Visas that you may need. To work on a ship sailing out of the United States, you will need a C1/D Visa. You can virtually apply for any position you want to as long as you have the back-up documentation showing you have related work experience in that field, but from my experience, if you’re not from USA, UK or any of the first world countries, you can only apply for entry level jobs such as waiter, assistant waiter, cook, front desk personnel, inventory store keeper, bar server or bartender, cruise staff, youth staff etc. Don’t aim for managerial jobs, you’ll get disappointed. Most of the cruise lines prefer to promote from within for 2 big reasons: 1. they know and trust the person since that person are already working with the company for some time 2. they maintain the crew morale who sees that hard work is rewarded Here you can find a list of cruise ship job employment agencies and here is the best agency in Romania, Job Selection. Labels: ship life |
Hi Oana,
Nice blog you have here and I think this is the first one I came across about life on a cruiser.
Very cool and how I envy you..
Keep in touch
Zacky