061 Exam - Navigation Safety

The 061 exam (I write 061/1 also implying there are more then one standard set of exam questions) consisted of 100 multiple choice questions and I was given 1.5 hours to complete it - pass mark 70%

To study for this exam you really need to know all the Collision Regulations - and the Canadian Modifications to those regs - and know them well. There is also a small section (in my case right at the end) that I had been warned About that covers "Ship´s Business" the
International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978 Chapter VIII (STCW - VIII-A) - don´t worry I had never heard of it either - here is an extract from the IMO site:

Chapter VIII: Watchkeeping
Measures were introduced for watchkeeping personnel to prevent fatigue. Administrations are required to establish and enforce rest periods for watchkeeping personnel and to ensure that watch systems are so arranged that the efficiency of watchkeeping personnel is not impaired by fatigue.

Part A of the Code is mandatory. The minimum standards of competence required for seagoing personnel are given in detail in a series of tables. Chapter II of the Code, for example, deals with standards regarding the master and Deck department.

my advice: don´t even study this bit. Why...? because it´s total common sense - example question:

You are an Officer On Watch and your relief arrives bleary eyed, staggering, and with slurred speech - do you:

a) Hand Over the Watch
b) Hand Over the Watch and inform the master
c) Not hand over the watch
d) Not hand over the watch and inform the master immediately

the answer, of Course, is d.

All the STCW questions are like that so pay them little heed - that said if you happen to have a copy of the STCW manual - go nutz (I didn´t and I doubt it made any difference)

So, some other tips:

They did ask About placement of lights and placement of the whistle - although that was only 4 questions (4%) to the point of a question like this:

What is the required placement for the masthead light for A vessel of 14m breadth - answer: 12m above the Hull - I know I didn´t get this one.

Probably the most important tip I could give is to know the difference between "Under Way" and "Making Way" in terms of which lights are shown. There are a lot of lights and shapes questions - and they generally include two close answers like:

c) Power Driven vessel <50m Under Way
d) Power Driven vessel <50m Under Way and Making Way

if you got that concept wrong it would probably be enough to fail the test.


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So all that said, what next? well, assuming I did pass (and I´ll keep you posted there) I have my final oral exam scheduled for November 14th at 1330h - time to study a bit of everything again :)

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