The 5 Highest Paying Jobs in Marine Transportation

Marine transportation is a rewarding career path thanks to growth in global trade and sea travel. It’s a well-paying career path that opens you to many commercial or military marine transportation opportunities. So whether you are angling for a career or industry change, here’s a breakdown of the best-paying jobs in marine transportation.

As a ship captain, you’ll be responsible for commanding and operating a ship. Your duties will include managing the crew, ensuring legal compliance, ensuring passenger and crew safety, supervising cargo loading, handling, and offloading, ensuring the seaworthiness and safety of the ship, tracking inventory, and navigating the ship.

To become a ship captain in the US, you’ll need a bachelor’s degree in any of the following:

• Marine transportation
• Marine engineering
• Shipyard management
• Maritime operations and technology
• Marine engineering systems
• Logistics and intermodal transportation

In addition to your bachelor’s degree, you must obtain a marine license with the US Coast Guard. You’ll also go through an intensive internship or training period after your education as you work your way up to becoming a ship captain.

As a ship captain, you can earn an average of $81,640 annually. On the higher end, ship captains earn $159,690 annually. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics predicts a minimal change in the ship captain’s job outlook for the next ten years.

While a ship captain is responsible for operations, a naval architect is responsible for designing, building, and maintaining ships.

As a naval architect, you must study design proposals, evaluate safety standards and develop final designs that marine engineers will work on. You will also oversee the shipbuilding and testing process to ensure the ship meets national and international standards.

You will need a bachelor’s degree in naval architecture to pursue this career. Once you have your degree, you must complete licensing exams with the US Coast Guard and the Professional engineering license.

The naval architecture career path has a 4% job outlook between 2021 and 2031. An average of 400 positions are expected to open up yearly for naval architects to replace those exiting the workforce.

There’s room for upward mobility as a naval architect. In most cases, you begin working under more experienced architects. You’ll work on straightforward projects, and as your experience grows, you’ll work on more complicated tasks and even transition into managerial roles.

As a naval architect, expect to earn a median annual wage of $93,370, making it one of the best-paying jobs in marine transportation.

As a sailor, your primary responsibilities involve helping operate, navigate, and maintain sea-going vessels, including passenger ships, tanker ships, and freighters.

Pursuing a career as a sailor can be rewarding if you have a wide variety of skills, from carpentry to firefighting. Your work as a sailor involves close collaboration with other ship crew to ensure the vessel’s safety.

Your day-to-day activities will vary depending on the type of ship, the cargo, the trip duration, and the number of crew. Tasks involve watching out for hazards on the ship’s path, managing freight, steering the ship, assisting with docking and undocking, cleaning, and maintenance.

Being a sailor is one of the best-paying jobs in marine transportation with a low entry barrier. You don’t necessarily require extensive education or training. You can start with a high-school degree at an entry-level position where you earn from more experienced crew members.

Sailors earn a median annual salary of $56,000. There will be little or no change in the job market for the next ten years.

If you find technical problems fascinating, being a marine mechanic or a marine technician may be the career for you. Marine mechanics are responsible for maintaining, repairing, and troubleshooting the mechanical equipment used to run ships.

Your responsibilities may include assembling steering devices, repairing plumbing, monitoring a ship’s hydraulic system, maintaining and repairing air conditioning systems, and maintaining a spare parts inventory.

It is possible to work in entry-level positions with a high school diploma. However, getting a college degree and additional certifications can help you explore better opportunities in the marine engineering field.

The median annual salary for marine technicians is $47,000, but it could be higher depending on your location, experience, and industry.

Becoming a marine technician also offers the opportunity to branch out into self-employment. You can work as a marine mechanic, helping people service their boats, ships, and other water vessels.

Becoming a marine firefighter is an exciting career path if you have worked as a civilian firefighter. Your primary duties will involve putting out fires, emergency rescue, and emergency medical care services.

You will be responsible for maintaining and inspecting firefighting equipment when you’re not fighting fires or rescuing injured people.

To become a firefighter, you need a minimum of a high school diploma and emergency medical service training. In addition, you must attend a fire academy and complete written and physical tests. You must also be ready to continuously learn and improve your skills to remain a competent firefighter. You can also get a bachelor’s in fire science.

In addition to basic firefighting and emergency rescue training, you need to be familiar with the structural construction of ships. This knowledge will be key in identifying a fire source and stopping the fire in time.

Physical fitness is another requirement to succeed as a firefighter. During your career, you will wear heavy equipment and may need to carry injured victims. You will work with the US Marine Corps as a marine firefighter to fight fires on military bases and facilities or boats and sea vessels.

Fire prevention workers earn a median salary of $50,930 annually. The industry has an outlook of 4% growth over the next ten years.

Ready for a marine adventure?

Working in marine transportation is not for everyone. The schedules may be intense depending on your role. Be ready to spend significant time at sea, away from family and friends.

However, it can be a rewarding career path, especially if you choose one of the best-paying jobs in marine transportation. In addition, you can grow your career (and income) very quickly so long as you're willing to work hard and stretch yourself in new ways.