To be a professional yacht skipper you need:

• Experience - Lots of it.
• Qualifications - A commercially endorsed yachtmaster certificate. Limited employment is available with a commercially endorsed Coastal Skipper ticket, but you will be excluded from the majority.
• A Job - There are many, most are not advertised and it is up to you to find them, don't rely on employment agencies.

How do you go about this?

• Sail for 20 years and earn your qualifications as you gain experience.
• OR Take an intensive course.

Before you do this, take the opportunity to compare all the sailing schools that offer this type of course. How much time is spent at sea? Which extras are not included in the quoted price? Accommodation? Transport? Food? Mile building? Fuel? Mooring Fees?

Are you on a dedicated course or are you making up the numbers on other courses? How big is the sailing area? Becoming an expert at navigating, say, the Solent waters might qualify you very well for a sailing job in the Solent but not much else. How many ports will you visit? Sailing continually in and out of the same four harbours does not provide you with all the skills necessary to enter any port you may come across.

On the Round Britain Experience you are planning each day's trip, taking into account tide, weather and wind. ETA's are planned for real each and every day for 12 weeks and you practice your sail trimming and passage making skills every day, too. You perform the everyday maintenance.

Earn your yachtmaster qualification on the Round Britain Experience and you will have the confidence to sail anywhere in the world.

And whilst you're doing all this, the wonderful sights, villages and towns, oil refineries, isolated lighthouses, dolphins, seals, sunrise, sunset, mountains, hills, sandy beaches and rugged coastline all play their part in making the Round Britain Experience the experience of a lifetime.