Press Release

UTT's Maritime Programme Makes Waves

CHARTING THE WAY FORWARD

The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) continues to create waves with its Maritime Programmes as the Centre for Maritime Studies has recorded milestone achievements through ground-breaking initiatives for the growth of the maritime sector. Located at the state of the art UTT Chaguaramas Campus, students of the Maritime Programme are exposed to a holistic teaching experience as they are able to effectively merge theoretical training with practical experience.

Facilitated by a team of professional experts, the programme consistently produces a cohort of highly qualified graduates who are then absorbed into the local maritime sector within months of graduating. As a testament to this, there was a pass rate of almost 70% for the Deck Cadets and 100% for Marine Engineers at the most recent oral examination; this is indeed a noteworthy achievement as UTT’s students are surpassing their counterparts at colleges in the United Kingdom (UK). International accrediting body for the programme, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) of UK has also granted approval for UTT to deliver the High Voltage Training Course and to offer support level training for a host of careers in the field of maritime.

NEW INITIATIVES

As the University continues to ensure that it becomes a port for research, development and innovation; it has been shortlisted to bid for the hosting of the Maritime Technology Cooperation Centre for the Caribbean region. This initiative forms part of the International Maritime Organisation – European Union Project on Capacity Building for Climate Change Mitigation in the Maritime Shipping Sector.  UTT in collaboration with the Trinidad and Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute (TTHTI) has also placed a bid to host a training programme for the Royal Caribbean Cruises Training School (RCCL), which will be designed to meet the crewing needs of RCCL. The initial target training is four hundred (400) students in the first year, with a projected target of eight hundred (800) students annually.  Plans are already underway to develop and accredit new courses, with a start date of 2017 leading to careers as Second & Chief Engineer and Chief Mates & Masters.

The Centre for Maritime Studies also recently hosted their Open Day at its Chaguaramas Campus on Saturday 02nd July, 2016. The successful event hosted over one hundred (100) visitors and prospective students to its facilities, showcasing the wealth of opportunities in the field of Maritime Studies.

Applications for programmes at the Centre for Maritime Studies are still being accepted.

SUCCESSFUL STUDENTS: Mr. M. Rahman, MCA Engineering Examiner (5th from left) surrounded by a group of students from UTT’s Maritime Studies Programme who were successful in the sitting of their oral exams.