Testimonials

Our Coming Ashore programme is catered for you, whether you are looking to move your maritime career ashore or mentor a seafarer during this process. We can help reassure you that you have made the right decision coming to us.

There is no better evidence to prove the programmes success than the words of our very own mentees and mentors, who have experienced firsthand what the programme can do for them. Whether it is furthering a mentee's professional devlopment or enhancing a mentor's coaching skills. 

Here are some comments we have recieved about the programme so far: 

Mentees

Hannah Kite (Coming Ashore mentee)

“The opportunity to learn from those who have made the leap ashore was invaluable. Interviews and CVs are assessed differently for shore jobs and the world of shorebased employment has many differences with the maritime industry. Having the ability to practice interview technique and have my CV reviewed by experienced professionals was invaluable.”

- Coming Ashore Mentee

“I felt empowered and supported to realise that I could make the transition and that a career did exist for me ashore. Until that point I had felt that my skills and experiences were worthless ashore.”

- Coming Ashore Mentee

"In late June I reached out to the Marine Society to join their Coming Ashore Programme, a scheme that is free to join and assigns a mentor (for me it was Paul Naranjo-Shepherd)to offer guidance and support in the challenge of finding the right shore-based position for you. In only a few months after joining, I had secured multiple interviews and had the necessary assistance in preparing for them in the right ways, from people that have years of experience in the industry. Everyone I have spoken to was friendly, engaging and keen to share their knowledge which I am extremely grateful for.

If anyone else find themselves in the same position that I was in, not really knowing how to move forward in their career in the maritime industry without going back to sea, I would highly recommend looking up the Marine Society Coming Ashore Programme."

- Peter Lewis (Coming Ashore mentee)

"I found the programme very helpful! My mentor, Simon, was very accomodating and knowledgeable, in particular he did a good review of my CV with suggestions for improvement and also helped me summarise my varied work history including agency work into a helpful work appendix which i could attach to my CV. He also regularly contacted me with job opportunities that he thought I was suitable for."

- Gerard Miller (Coming Ashore mentee)

Mentors

"I have been on the Mentoring Programme now for just over a year and have found it very enjoyable. Even though we work with individual mentees, we very much work as a team from those at the Marine Society – to the other mentors, sharing ideas, expertise, and job/training opportunities as necessary.

As a former seafarer who has come ashore now for many years, it’s great to give something back and guide the mentees accordingly as they embark on their journey ashore, and it’s very rewarding when a mentee achieves a position onshore or an opportunity comes along.

For anyone interested in the Coming Ashore Programme, I can certainly recommend it."

- Gareth Mathias, Coming Ashore Mentor

As a mentor with the Coming Ashore project, I have been working with some great seafarers pondering their career paths. They are still loving the sea, but open to set a course for their career ahead. As part of that, I have been asked about my career, the choices I made and the chances I took...or even those I decided against.

One of the first discussions in my mentoring meetings has been about the path I have taken, what I have learned along it, and whether I would choose the same again. So, while helping others, it has been really useful for me to examine my own progress and route ahead. 

In talking about my career, I have seen that I was fortunate in unwittingly choosing a growth area and had set about trying to become an "expert" in that. As such, I was able to move into positions based on my growing footprint in a growth business. Always handy! So, I advise choosing an area of the industry or an issue that is genuinely of interests, and which mentees feel a sense of growth and potential.

- Steven Jones (Coming Ashore mentor)