Cruise Ship Jobs Blog

Aaah….hot, sunny days and white, sandy beaches.  What could be more motivating to get a cruise job, than getting away from cold, dreary, snowy winters?  As the leaves turn colours and summer is a distant memory for the northern hemisphere, we know what is around the corner.

Is there any way to secure a position on board before the snow flies? 

One myth is that there are more jobs onboard over the holiday periods.  This is untrue. Most cruise ships sail at full capacity throughout the year, not just the holiday periods.  An exception to this is that all family cruise lines hire tons of youth counsellors because of the amount of kids onboard.

This equates to a perfect opportunity to get your foot in the door for this type of cruise job for a possible full time year round position when it comes available.

Some other vacancies to keep in mind are related to the launching of new cruise ships.

In December 2010 Royal Caribbean will debut the Allure of the Seas, requiring 1,650 crew members. New ships for 2011 will require a further 7,000 cruise jobs.

For those just starting their search and for those that have been pursuing a job on a ship for some time now, keep in mind that there are ALWAYS positions available. 

Landing your dream job takes more than a great resume and cover letter it also takes perseverance. Once you apply, keep following up…these are the candidates that get the job!! Now’s the time, before the snow flies.

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Is it possible to be over qualified for cruise line employment? Should you tone down your experience in order to just get hired? What are employers thinking when they read your experience-packed resume?

We were asked this question recently, “Is it possible that I am over qualified and they (the cruise lines) simply skip me over?” This person explains, “I have been applying for various jobs for nearly a year now without one interview.”

For starters, cruise applicants should first ask themselves a couple of questions before getting discouraged. Have you been consistently following up on your application? Have you been sending your resume to specific hiring managers? If the answer is yes, then it’s time to relook at your resume and cover letter again.

Cruise applicants need to understand that if their work experience and education go beyond what are required, it may be concerns for a potential employer. Similar to age discrimination, being over qualified may be interpreted that you may not fit in the current position.

One of our latest articles, Are You Over Qualified for a Cruise Job LINK TO=> http://www.workoncruiseships.com/members/Are_You_Over_Qualified_for_a_Cruise_Job.cfm, explains what employers may be thinking about you and your resume as well as how to confront the issue of having more qualifications than required.

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Another cruise ship recruitment scam was brought to our attention this past month.  The Seatrade Insider, a cruise industry news website reported on September 23, 2010 that a UK-based “business” has been advertising cruise jobs on a number of online job sites.

Representing themselves as “The London flagship of the Seabourn Yacht Group”, the company has led many job-seekers to believe they were applying to Seabourn Yacht Club.  Online job sites ask applicants to email their resume to names such as Captain Clark Fox or Captain Wilson Scott. After a cruise job is offered to the applicant, the applicant is asked to send money for a visa or for a recruiting fee.

It’s a rip off, warns Gary Ellis, VP Marine and Technical Operations for Seabourn.  We will never ask for money in advance, Ellis told Seatrade Insider.

Many cruise ship applicants have become victims of cruise ship recruitment scams.  Unknowingly, these job seekers respond to newspaper ads and online cruise ship job postings while scam artists promise jobs in return for payment.

Just remember, if it seems too good to be true then it probably is!

So, how do you spot a cruise ship recruitment scam and how do you know which cruise hiring agencies are legitimate? As a rule of thumb, real cruise lines and legitimate cruise agencies do not charge fees.

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Applicants looking to get an edge above the competition need to have a cover letter that stands out when applying for cruise ship vacancies. One way of doing that is to talk about the cruise line you are applying to within the body of the cover letter. So, what should you say?

Having knowledge about something that is new or innovative for the cruise line and relating it to a cruise job shows that you have specific interest in that company. One of the best ways is to mention the cruise line’s upcoming fleet launches.

For example, applicants sending cover letters to Disney Cruise Line should devote a sentence to the launch of the Disney Dream due out in January 2011. Correlate this with filling the company’s needs of additional youth counsellors.

For further information about the new ships due out for 2011, read {New Cruise Ships and Cruise Job Opportunities for 2011} LINK TO => http://www.workoncruiseships.com/members/New_Cruise_Ships_Cruise_Job_Opportunities_for_2011.cfm.

Another example of cruise industry news can give applicants an advantage about newly created jobs. When the Norwegian Epic was launched this past summer, the job of Recreation Staff was posted on WorkOnCruiseShips.com’s latest vacancies.

Also in April 2010, Celebrity Cruises presented their iLounge with the launch of the Celebrity Eclipse.  The iLounge is a new kind of internet cafe that offers computer classes and opportunities to purchase Apple products. They are still actively recruiting iLounge Managers since they will be launching the Celebrity Silhouette in 2011. Details for applying are in our latest cruise ship vacancies section.

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When applying for a cruise job, potential employers will try to evaluate how flexible of an employee you will be. They want crew members that can adapt to change, think on their feet and solve problems quickly. How, as a cruise applicant, can you portray yourself with those qualities? 

In cruise ship life, crew members need to be flexible about their schedule and rotations.  You may not get put on the ship or itinerary that they originally scheduled you for.  The date you start or finish your contract is hardly ever the same from what was originally discussed.

Onboard, crew members need to be flexible with their work hours and their job description. Schedules are ever-changing based on passenger demand, itinerary changes, weather and many other factors.  How will you cope and will you react positively?

The cruise line hiring managers are scouring your resume for clues. Instead of making it difficult for them to figure out how flexible you are � tell them. By using accomplishments rather than just describing how flexible you are, you excite the hiring manager to contact you for an interview to find out more.  

Here are a few phrases that show your "flexible" accomplishments.

"Implemented and trained five employees on new office phone systems"
"Relocated to new xxCity to take advantage of promotion to Sous Chef"
"Planned and organized a 150-guest reception, where the customer's budget changed and therefore many elements of the party needed to change, too" 

Once you get to the interview process, you can shine by expanding on your flexibility as a potential crew member.

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It's not enough to say you have good communication skills if you're looking for careers on cruise ships.  Cruise applicants for all positions can benefit from knowing what it means to be a good communicator.

The cruise industry, like many land-based industries want employees that will be a positive voice for their company.  How well will you represent the cruise line when faced with an unhappy passenger? How well will you communicate with other employees and managers?

Many job applicants write on their resume, "good communication skills".  The bottom line is that cruise line employers want to know how you will interact with their passengers and crew members. 

You need to be able to answer questions concisely, accurately and quickly.  You will need to find common ground with a disgruntled passenger or crew member.  And, you need to be able to establish a rapport with all passengers and crew in order to be able to diffuse difficult situations. Staying calm and professional under pressure requires an applicant with patience.

Consider that a cruise ship embarks new passengers at the end of every cruise.  Will you be able to make a positive impression through your communication skills on the job?  Listening skills are an important part of the communication process. Good listeners make good communicators.

Behind the scenes, understand that each department will experience a turnover in crew each cruise. Crew members come from all over the world representing different cultures.  How adaptable are you to communicating with people that may not have the same first language as you? Of course, having a second language is also bonus.

Being able to have your resume and cover letter stand apart from other applicants is the key to landing an interview and a cruise ship career.  Being able to verbalize how well you communicate goes a whole lot further than just saying you are a good communicator. Even your emails during the application process will highlight your communication skills.

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Earlier this week one of our members reported that she was hired by MTN for the position of Internet Cafe Manager on a cruise ship and starts her training in Florida next week.

She writes on the forum,

“For anyone out there still frustrated with how long the cruise ship job application process takes, trust me. Keep fighting ’cause it’s worth it. I first applied for this job at the beginning of April, and didn’t hear anything from them until about 6 weeks ago. Then I sent several emails before I managed to get the first interview, which was 2 weeks ago.”

Lori explains…

“I kept applying, even sent a thank you note after my first interview. It all worked.”

She further points out…

“I’m proof that you can get the job without any ship experience (or any job related experience in my case…), and based almost solely on my personality. You can do it, it takes a lot of time and patience though, so just don’t give up!”

On June 17th she received an email from MTN with a pre-interview questionnaire…and the rest is history.

She’s expecting to join the Carnival Elation cruising from Mobile, Alabama on a Western Caribbean itinerary shortly!

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