Offshore License Preparation list

I will not take this exam, but Nico will be preparing, on his own, without going to class, the offshore license. 
Here are some tips and the costs. 

What do you need for the offshore exam?

For preparing and passing the offshore (hauturier) class/exam, you will need to acquire the following items:

- Marine Chart SHOM 9999: This is the official exercise and exam chart provided by the French Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service (SHOM). It's essential for both practice and the exam itself.
So you basically need 2. One for training, one for the exam.

- Navigation Ruler (Règle Cras or Breton Ruler): Tools used for plotting routes and bearings on the chart. You have the choice between different models, including the Cras 2000 or Brocémer.

- Compass with Dry Points (Compas à pointe sèche): For measuring distances and determining your position on the chart.

- Manuals/Books: These include guides for preparation like those provided by Picksea or Vagnon. They offer structured learning with exercises mimicking those found in the exam.

  - A non-programmable calculator for tide calculations.
Note that mobile phones are not allowed during the exam.

- Additional Equipment:
Some sources suggest having a standard compass for tracing exclusion zones, though this might not be strictly necessary for everyone. (Nico didn't have one)

Your phone is not allowed, so bring an analog watch. It might be strange but not all exam centers have a clock on the wall (Nico's exam center didn't have one, the instructor was giving away the key timeline left)


How does it work?

To obtain the offshore boating license, you must take a 1-hour 30-minute exam at the maritime affairs office (usually it's an exam center wherever this exam is available).
The test is scored out of 20 points and structured as follows:

- 2 mapping exercises (daytime and nighttime): 12 points

- 1 tide calculation exercise: 4 points

- 5 multiple-choice questions on electronic aids to navigation, weather, and regulations: 4 points

The offshore boating license is granted only if the candidate achieves a total minimum score of 10/20 and a minimum score of 7/12 on the mapping exercise.

Any Tips?

*Remember, it's advisable to have two copies of the SHOM 9999 chart, one for practice and another for the exam, as the chart used during the exam will be kept by the authorities as an exam copy. 

Various packs or kits are available that include some or all of these items, often at a discounted rate compared to buying them separately.
These can be found from retailers like Picksea, Wavepilot, or others specializing in nautical equipment. 

For more detailed information on what exactly to buy, you might look into packs from:

- Picksea: for comprehensive kits including the chart, rules, and compasses.

- Wavepilot: for similar equipment necessary for the exam.

- Uship: offers a complete kit for the hauturier exam.

*Nico will not be taking any classes, he'll study on his own, he bought an online class through monpermishauturier.com and will be cramming those next 2 weeks. (He passed!)

*Better start with the MCQ and the tide exercises that are simpler. 

*Nico did not have time to finish is 2nd mapping exercise but he still made it!
So the key point is to do it at your pace, but make sure you make it right. 
He did waste a lot of time because he didn't take into account all the parameters, so he had to redo his mapping. 
Therefore make sure your real and take into account ALL PARAMETERS before starting. 

*You will also waste a lot of time finding the location of the landmark mentioned in the mapping exercise, so maybe try to familiarize yourself with the map ahead of time (i.e familiarizing yourself with all the Lighthouses on the map etc...)

*Also remember you can only register for the exam when you have received your PHYSICAL coastal boat driving license. (It takes up to 4 weeks to receive your Coastal driving license, so we could only register to the Offshore license exam after 4 weeks...)
They will correct your exam on the spot.
If you pass, they will take your Boat driving license and add an extra line about your offshore license on that card. 

How much does it cost?

- Offshore class: It can cost 300 to north of 480 euros. 
Nico decided to learn by himself online. 

So for us, it did only cost 20 euros with the monpermishauturier.com. 

- Marine Chart SHOM 9999: Unfortunately we didn't know 2 were needed. We bought one when we were attending the coastal class. 
It did cost us 32 euros

- Navigation Ruler (Règle Cras or Breton Ruler): It did cost us 0 as Nico took the one from his dad.

- Compass with Dry Points (Compas à pointe sèche): ditto. Nico took his dad's one.

- Manuals/Books: As mentioned above, we did pay 20 euros for an online manual from monpermishauturier.com

  - A non-programmable calculator for tide calculations: we took one we found in the house. 

  - Fiscal stamp: we paid 38 euros for the Fiscal stamp. 

For us, it is only a total of 90 euros.