Certificates of competency
CoC orals questions: practice for 2nd Mate, Chief Mate, Master and engineer orals
An oral exam is a conversation with an experienced surveyor who wants to know one thing: would you be safe in charge? Below are practice questions by certificate level, written in our own words, and how examiners judge an answer. Always check the current syllabus from your own administration.
Updated 7 October 2026 · Written by SeaReady in our own words. Not affiliated with OCIMF, RightShip, CDI, any MoU or any administration — always check the current official documents.
Certificates and levels
| Certificate | STCW | Level |
|---|---|---|
| OOW deck (2nd Mate / 3rd Officer) | II/1 | Operational |
| Chief Mate | II/2 | Management |
| Master | II/2 | Management (top) |
| OOW engine (3rd/4th Engineer) | III/1 | Operational |
| Second Engineer | III/2 | Management |
| Chief Engineer | III/2 | Management (top) |
Deck: operational level (2nd Mate)
- What does Rule 5 require of you on watch, and what does “all available means” mean on your bridge?
- Which factors decide a safe speed under Rule 6?
- You detect a vessel by radar alone in fog, fine on the starboard bow, closing. What does Rule 19 say?
- What lights and shapes show a vessel not under command, and one restricted in her ability to manoeuvre?
- What must you satisfy yourself of before taking over the navigational watch? When would you call the Master?
- How do you set the ECDIS safety contour and safety depth?
- A DSC distress alert was sent by mistake on VHF. What do you do?
- What must be in place before anyone enters an enclosed space?
Deck: Chief Mate and Master
- What are the general intact stability criteria of the IS Code?
- How do you make sure a loading plan keeps the hull within its limits?
- What is the difference between D-1 and D-2 under the Ballast Water Management Convention?
- Which LSA checks are weekly and which monthly?
- What is the role of the DPA? What does the ISM Code say about the Master’s authority?
- Your ship is detained by PSC. What do you do?
- An oil spill from your ship reaches the water. What are your duties?
Engine: operational and management level
- What must you check before taking over the engineering watch?
- When may bilge water be discharged overboard from the engine room? Which Oil Record Book codes cover sludge, bilge and bunkering?
- How do you change over to compliant fuel before entering an emission control area?
- What are the requirements for the emergency generator on a cargo ship?
- The oil mist detector alarms. What do you do? What are the signs of a scavenge fire?
- How does a fuel oil purifier work and what is the gravity disc for?
- How do you put a generator in parallel with the busbar?
How examiners judge an answer
- Safety first: the first thing you say should make the ship, the people and the environment safe.
- Exact where it matters — rule numbers, limits and signals — and honest where it depends on the flag or company.
- Practical: what you would actually do on your ship, in order, and who you would tell.
- Calm: if you do not know, say how you would find out. Bluffing fails more candidates than gaps.
The same habit helps in vetting interviews — see SIRE 2.0 questions by rank. For drill intervals examiners like to ask about, see drill frequency.
Questions seafarers ask
What do 2nd Mate orals cover?
For the officer in charge of a navigational watch (STCW II/1) expect the collision regulations in depth — look-out, safe speed, risk of collision, restricted visibility, lights, shapes and sound signals — plus watchkeeping, passage planning and ECDIS, GMDSS, MARPOL basics, drills and enclosed spaces, ISPS security levels and basic stability such as free surface effect.
How is Chief Mate orals different from 2nd Mate?
At management level the examiner expects you to manage, not only do: intact stability criteria, loading plans and hull stress, ballast water management, LSA inspections, hot work and mooring safety — with the same collision-regulation questions still asked.
What do Master orals focus on?
Responsibility and judgement: the ISM Code and the Master’s overriding authority, the role of the DPA, managing rest hours, what to do after a PSC detention, a collision or an oil spill — your duties, who you inform and in what order.
Are orals questions the same in every country?
The syllabus comes from STCW, so the core is the same, but each administration — the MCA, DG Shipping, MARINA, USCG, AMSA — runs its own exam and has its own style. Where a rule depends on the flag or the company, say so in your answer.
Practise orals by voice or text
SeaReady’s orals examiner asks questions for your certificate and administration (MCA, DG Shipping, MARINA, USCG, AMSA) and marks your answer against short model notes with their sources. The built-in bank of about 700 questions — mapped to the STCW tables and the published MCA and AMSA oral syllabi — works offline, and the AI examiner only quotes references from SeaReady’s checked list.
Free toolkit, no card. Works offline at sea once installed.
Related guides
- SIRE 2.0 questions by rankSample interview questions for every rank and how inspectors judge the answer.
- Drill frequency on shipsAbandon ship, fire, enclosed space, boats, steering and security drills.
- MLC and STCW rest hours10 hours in 24, 77 in 7 days, the split rule and the STCW exception.
- Draft survey calculationQuarter mean, trim and density corrections, deductibles — worked through.