Assessment
Governing: 2021 Regulations, regs 10, 15, 18 to 21; SAMSA MIN 01-25. Builds on: L1.2, L3.1.
The Level 3 assessment is the SAMSA oral, and it is where the certificate is won or lost. The Regulations say surprisingly little about its content (that lives in the Training Standards Code), but they are clear about the process.
Before you get there
- Level 1 complete: training record book signed off on board.
- Level 2 complete: approved education and training at an accredited institution, with written examinations moderated under SAMSA's Quality Standards System.
- Medical valid (Lesson 3.3), identity document or passport, qualifying service proved.
Pass marks at Level 2 (reg 19): not less than 60% for subjects covering navigation, marine engineering and the ship stability and construction elements of "controlling the operation of the ship and care for persons on board"; not less than 50% for all other subjects.
For engineers, the academic entry requirement matters too. MIN 01-25 ended the transition for the older non-diploma route on 31 December 2025; after that, an NQF level 6 mechanical or marine engineering qualification, or equivalent evidence, is expected.
Applying for the oral
- Apply at least 14 days before the published examination dates (reg 10(5)).
- SAMSA publishes venues and dates; special arrangements can be made with the proper officer of a port.
- Pay the charge set in the Determination of Charges.
- If your service is doubtful, submit discharges, testimonials, training records and watchkeeping certificates for the examiner or Senior Examiner to decide.
On the day
- The oral is conducted by an examiner in the presence of an assessor (reg 20(2)).
- Candidates must show command of English appropriate to routine and emergency duties (reg 21).
- If you fail to turn up without reasonable excuse, you are assessed not yet competent by default.
Outcomes
| Result | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Competent, all requirements met | Examiner issues the certificate |
| Not yet competent | Written result issued |
| Not yet competent, significant deficiency | Examiner may require up to 6 months further qualifying service before you reapply |
You may ask for the decision to be reviewed if it rested on incorrect information, departed from SAMSA's published procedures, or the examiner was biased (reg 8). The Senior Examiner can order a re-assessment. A Senior Examiner reviewing a penalty may not increase it, and may not review the outcome of the Level 3 assessment itself.
CAUTION — What we cannot tell you The Regulations do not publish oral syllabuses, question banks or durations. Anyone selling "the SAMSA oral questions" is guessing. The competence standards are in the Training Standards Code; your college will brief you on them.
Preparing like a professional
- Know your own ship. Examiners start from your experience.
- Know the Regulations that govern your certificate: limits, manning, watchkeeping (Annexure 2 of the Regulations sets out watchkeeping principles).
- Rehearse emergencies aloud: collision, fire, man overboard, steering failure.
- If you are coming from yachts, expect questions on commercial practice you may not have seen: cargo, tank cleaning, port state control.
TIP — Borrow the MCA method MCA orals and SAMSA orals test the same STCW competences in different accents. The preparation habits in oral prep (talking through scenarios, sketching lights and shapes, citing the rule) transfer well.