Overview
All Marine Transport Professionals
-
$2,123 Weekly Pay
-
Stable Future Growth
Marine Engineers
-
1,900 workers Employment Size
-
High skill Skill level rating
-
93% Full-Time Full-Time Share
-
57 hours Average full-time
-
45 years Average age
-
2% female Gender Share
Marine Engineers control and manage the operation and maintenance of ship's plants and equipment.
Specialisations: Mechanical Engineering Officer (Navy), Weapons Electrical Engineering Officer (Navy).
You need a certificate III or IV in maritime operations (marine engineering) to work as a Marine Engineer. Some workers have a diploma or advanced diploma.
Tasks
- Plans, controls and co-ordinates the operational and maintenance requirements of a ship's propulsion and domestic plant and equipment.
- Operates plant and equipment and performs routine maintenance on ship's systems including mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, steam generating, and fire prevention and control systems.
Prospects
The number of people working as Marine Engineers (in their main job) stayed about the same over 5 years:
from 2,000 in 2011 to 1,900 in 2016.
Caution: The Australian jobs market is changing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These estimates do not take account of the impact of COVID-19. They may not reflect the current jobs market and should be used and interpreted with extreme caution.
- Size: This is a very small occupation.
- Location: Marine Engineers work in many parts of Australia. Queensland and Western Australia have a large share of workers.
- Industries: Most work in Transport, Postal and Warehousing; Public Administration and Safety; and Manufacturing.
- Full-time: Most work full-time (93%, much higher than the average of 66%).
- Hours: Full-time workers spend around 57 hours per week at work (compared to the average of 44 hours).
- Age: The average age is 45 years (compared to the average of 40 years).
- Gender: 2% of workers are female (compared to the average of 48%).
Main Industries
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Industries are based on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC 06).
States and Territories
NSW
VIC
QLD
SA
WA
TAS
NT
ACT
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Share of workers across Australian States and Territories, in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Profile
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Education Level
Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Pathways
You need a certificate III or IV in maritime operations (marine engineering) to work as a Marine Engineer. Some workers have a diploma or advanced diploma.
Before starting a course, check it will provide you with the skills and qualifications you need. Visit
- Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
- ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
- My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
- AAPathways website to explore Maritime VET training pathways.
Skills & Knowledge
Employers look for Marine Transport Professionals who work well in a team, can communicate clearly with a diverse range of people and are reliable.
Filter Skills & Knowledge
Knowledge
These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.
-
Mechanical
Machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
-
Engineering and technology
Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.
-
Administration and management
Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.
-
Transportation
Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.
-
Customer and personal service
Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.
-
Chemistry
Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.
-
Mathematics
Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.
-
Computers and electronics
Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
-
Physics
The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.
-
Public safety and security
Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.
-
Education and training
Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
-
Clerical
Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.
-
Law and government
How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.
-
Technical design
Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
-
English language
English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
-
Building and construction
Materials, and methods used to construct or repair houses, buildings, or other structures like highways and roads.
-
Telecommunications
Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
-
Geography
Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.
-
Medicine and dentistry
Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.
-
Economics and accounting
Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.
Skills
Skills can be improved through training or experience.
-
Critical thinking
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
-
Operation monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
-
Troubleshooting
Figuring out why a machine or system went wrong and working out what to do about it.
-
Repairing
Fixing machines or systems.
-
Equipment maintenance
Maintaining equipment and deciding what maintenance will be needed in the future.
-
Operation and control
Controlling equipment or systems.
-
Monitoring
Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.
-
Active listening
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
-
Complex problem solving
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
-
Reading comprehension
Reading work related information.
-
Coordination with others
Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.
-
Time management
Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.
-
Judgment and decision making
Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.
-
Management of personnel resources
Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.
-
Quality control analysis
Doing tests and checking products, services, or processes to make sure they are working properly.
-
Speaking
Talking to others.
-
Active learning
Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.
-
Equipment selection
Deciding on the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
-
Systems analysis
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.
-
Writing
Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Abilities
Workers use these physical and mental abilities.
-
Oral comprehension
Listen to and understand what people say.
-
Problem spotting
Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.
-
Oral expression
Communicate by speaking.
-
Written comprehension
Read and understand written information.
-
Control precision
Quickly change the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
-
Near vision
See details that are up-close (within a few feet).
-
Inductive reasoning
Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.
-
Selective attention
Pay attention to something without being distracted.
-
Deductive reasoning
Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.
-
Sorting or ordering
Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
-
Visualization
Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
-
Extent flexibility
Bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
-
Auditory attention
Pay attention to a certain sound when there are other distracting sounds.
-
Arm-hand steadiness
Keep your hand or arm steady.
-
Finger dexterity
Put together small parts with your fingers.
-
Manual dexterity
Quickly move your hand to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
-
Multilimb coordination
Use your arms and/or legs at the same time while sitting, standing, or lying down.
-
Perceptual speed
Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
-
Speech clarity
Speak clearly so others can understand you.
-
Speech recognition
Identify and understand the speech of another person.
Activities
These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.
-
Working with mechanical equipment
Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment.
-
Handling and moving objects
Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, moving and manipulating objects.
-
Doing physically active work
Use your arms, legs and whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling objects.
-
Controlling equipment or machines
Operating machines or processes either directly or using controls (not including computers or vehicles).
-
Monitoring people, processes and things
Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.
-
Making decisions and solving problems
Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.
-
Keeping your knowledge up-to-date
Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.
-
Communicating within a team
Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.
-
Checking for errors or defects
Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials for errors, problems or defects.
-
Driving vehicles or equipment
Running, manoeuvring, navigating, or driving things like forklifts, vehicles, aircraft, or water craft.
-
Working with electronic equipment
Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing electronic devices and equipment.
-
Thinking creatively
Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.
-
Planning and prioritising work
Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.
-
Assessing and evaluating things
Working out the value, importance, or quality of things, services or people.
-
Documenting or recording information
Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
-
Looking for changes over time
Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.
-
Researching and investigating
Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.
-
Checking compliance with standards
Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
-
Estimating amounts, costs and resources
Working out sizes, distances, amounts, time, costs, resources, or materials needed for a task.
-
Explaining things to people
Helping people to understand and use information.

O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 53-5031.00 - Ship Engineers.
Work Environment
Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.
Filter Work Environment
Demands
The physical and social demands workers face most often are shown below.
-
Wear common protective or safety equipment
Wear equipment like safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets.
-
Exposure to contaminants
Be exposed to pollutants, gases, dust or odours.
-
Loud or uncomfortable sounds
Be exposed to noises and sounds that are distracting or uncomfortable.
-
Freedom to make decisions
Have freedom to make decision on your own.
-
Very hot or cold temperatures
Work in very hot or cold temperatures.
-
Contact with people
Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.
-
Face-to-face discussions
Talk with people face-to-face.
-
Dangerous equipment
Work near dangerous equipment like saws, machinery with open moving parts, or moving traffic.
-
Unstructured work
Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.
-
Outdoors, exposed to weather
Work outdoors, exposed to the weather.
-
Indoors, not heat controlled
Work indoors without heating or cooling (e.g., warehouse without heat).
-
Dangerous conditions
Work near dangers like high voltage electricity, flammable material, explosives or chemicals.
-
Teamwork
Work with people in a group or team.
-
Time pressure
Work to strict deadlines.
-
Consequence of error
Work where mistakes have serious consequences.
-
Using your hands to handle, control, or feel
Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.
-
Electronic mail
Use electronic mail.
-
Cramped work space
Work in an awkward position or in cramped work spaces.
-
Health and safety of others
Take responsibility for the health and safety of others.
-
Physically close to people
Work physically close to other people.
Values
Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
-
Independence
Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.
-
Relationships
Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.
-
Support
Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.
-
Achievement
Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.
-
Recognition
Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.
-
Working conditions
Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.
Interests
Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.
-
Practical
Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.
-
Administrative
Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.
-
Enterprising
Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.
-
Analytical
Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.
-
Helping
Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.
-
Creative
Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 53-5031.00 - Ship Engineers.
All Marine Transport Professionals
-
$2,123 Weekly Pay
-
Stable Future Growth
Marine Engineers
-
1,900 workers Employment Size
-
High skill Skill level rating
-
93% Full-Time Full-Time Share
-
57 hours Average full-time
-
45 years Average age
-
2% female Gender Share
Marine Engineers control and manage the operation and maintenance of ship's plants and equipment.
Specialisations: Mechanical Engineering Officer (Navy), Weapons Electrical Engineering Officer (Navy).
You need a certificate III or IV in maritime operations (marine engineering) to work as a Marine Engineer. Some workers have a diploma or advanced diploma.
Tasks
- Plans, controls and co-ordinates the operational and maintenance requirements of a ship's propulsion and domestic plant and equipment.
- Operates plant and equipment and performs routine maintenance on ship's systems including mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, steam generating, and fire prevention and control systems.
The number of people working as Marine Engineers (in their main job) stayed about the same over 5 years:
from 2,000 in 2011 to 1,900 in 2016.
Caution: The Australian jobs market is changing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These estimates do not take account of the impact of COVID-19. They may not reflect the current jobs market and should be used and interpreted with extreme caution.
- Size: This is a very small occupation.
- Location: Marine Engineers work in many parts of Australia. Queensland and Western Australia have a large share of workers.
- Industries: Most work in Transport, Postal and Warehousing; Public Administration and Safety; and Manufacturing.
- Full-time: Most work full-time (93%, much higher than the average of 66%).
- Hours: Full-time workers spend around 57 hours per week at work (compared to the average of 44 hours).
- Age: The average age is 45 years (compared to the average of 40 years).
- Gender: 2% of workers are female (compared to the average of 48%).
Main Industries
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Industries are based on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC 06).
States and Territories
NSW
VIC
QLD
SA
WA
TAS
NT
ACT
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Share of workers across Australian States and Territories, in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Profile
Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Education Level
Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
You need a certificate III or IV in maritime operations (marine engineering) to work as a Marine Engineer. Some workers have a diploma or advanced diploma.
Before starting a course, check it will provide you with the skills and qualifications you need. Visit
- Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
- ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
- My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
- AAPathways website to explore Maritime VET training pathways.
Employers look for Marine Transport Professionals who work well in a team, can communicate clearly with a diverse range of people and are reliable.
Filter Skills & Knowledge
Knowledge
These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.
-
Mechanical
Machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
-
Engineering and technology
Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.
-
Administration and management
Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.
-
Transportation
Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.
-
Customer and personal service
Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.
-
Chemistry
Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.
-
Mathematics
Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.
-
Computers and electronics
Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
-
Physics
The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.
-
Public safety and security
Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.
-
Education and training
Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
-
Clerical
Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.
-
Law and government
How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.
-
Technical design
Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
-
English language
English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
-
Building and construction
Materials, and methods used to construct or repair houses, buildings, or other structures like highways and roads.
-
Telecommunications
Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
-
Geography
Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.
-
Medicine and dentistry
Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.
-
Economics and accounting
Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.
Skills
Skills can be improved through training or experience.
-
Critical thinking
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
-
Operation monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
-
Troubleshooting
Figuring out why a machine or system went wrong and working out what to do about it.
-
Repairing
Fixing machines or systems.
-
Equipment maintenance
Maintaining equipment and deciding what maintenance will be needed in the future.
-
Operation and control
Controlling equipment or systems.
-
Monitoring
Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.
-
Active listening
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
-
Complex problem solving
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
-
Reading comprehension
Reading work related information.
-
Coordination with others
Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.
-
Time management
Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.
-
Judgment and decision making
Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.
-
Management of personnel resources
Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.
-
Quality control analysis
Doing tests and checking products, services, or processes to make sure they are working properly.
-
Speaking
Talking to others.
-
Active learning
Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.
-
Equipment selection
Deciding on the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
-
Systems analysis
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.
-
Writing
Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Abilities
Workers use these physical and mental abilities.
-
Oral comprehension
Listen to and understand what people say.
-
Problem spotting
Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.
-
Oral expression
Communicate by speaking.
-
Written comprehension
Read and understand written information.
-
Control precision
Quickly change the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
-
Near vision
See details that are up-close (within a few feet).
-
Inductive reasoning
Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.
-
Selective attention
Pay attention to something without being distracted.
-
Deductive reasoning
Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.
-
Sorting or ordering
Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
-
Visualization
Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
-
Extent flexibility
Bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
-
Auditory attention
Pay attention to a certain sound when there are other distracting sounds.
-
Arm-hand steadiness
Keep your hand or arm steady.
-
Finger dexterity
Put together small parts with your fingers.
-
Manual dexterity
Quickly move your hand to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
-
Multilimb coordination
Use your arms and/or legs at the same time while sitting, standing, or lying down.
-
Perceptual speed
Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
-
Speech clarity
Speak clearly so others can understand you.
-
Speech recognition
Identify and understand the speech of another person.
Activities
These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.
-
Working with mechanical equipment
Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment.
-
Handling and moving objects
Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, moving and manipulating objects.
-
Doing physically active work
Use your arms, legs and whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling objects.
-
Controlling equipment or machines
Operating machines or processes either directly or using controls (not including computers or vehicles).
-
Monitoring people, processes and things
Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.
-
Making decisions and solving problems
Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.
-
Keeping your knowledge up-to-date
Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.
-
Communicating within a team
Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.
-
Checking for errors or defects
Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials for errors, problems or defects.
-
Driving vehicles or equipment
Running, manoeuvring, navigating, or driving things like forklifts, vehicles, aircraft, or water craft.
-
Working with electronic equipment
Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing electronic devices and equipment.
-
Thinking creatively
Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.
-
Planning and prioritising work
Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.
-
Assessing and evaluating things
Working out the value, importance, or quality of things, services or people.
-
Documenting or recording information
Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
-
Looking for changes over time
Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.
-
Researching and investigating
Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.
-
Checking compliance with standards
Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
-
Estimating amounts, costs and resources
Working out sizes, distances, amounts, time, costs, resources, or materials needed for a task.
-
Explaining things to people
Helping people to understand and use information.

O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 53-5031.00 - Ship Engineers.
Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.
Filter Work Environment
Demands
The physical and social demands workers face most often are shown below.
-
Wear common protective or safety equipment
Wear equipment like safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets.
-
Exposure to contaminants
Be exposed to pollutants, gases, dust or odours.
-
Loud or uncomfortable sounds
Be exposed to noises and sounds that are distracting or uncomfortable.
-
Freedom to make decisions
Have freedom to make decision on your own.
-
Very hot or cold temperatures
Work in very hot or cold temperatures.
-
Contact with people
Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.
-
Face-to-face discussions
Talk with people face-to-face.
-
Dangerous equipment
Work near dangerous equipment like saws, machinery with open moving parts, or moving traffic.
-
Unstructured work
Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.
-
Outdoors, exposed to weather
Work outdoors, exposed to the weather.
-
Indoors, not heat controlled
Work indoors without heating or cooling (e.g., warehouse without heat).
-
Dangerous conditions
Work near dangers like high voltage electricity, flammable material, explosives or chemicals.
-
Teamwork
Work with people in a group or team.
-
Time pressure
Work to strict deadlines.
-
Consequence of error
Work where mistakes have serious consequences.
-
Using your hands to handle, control, or feel
Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.
-
Electronic mail
Use electronic mail.
-
Cramped work space
Work in an awkward position or in cramped work spaces.
-
Health and safety of others
Take responsibility for the health and safety of others.
-
Physically close to people
Work physically close to other people.
Values
Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
-
Independence
Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.
-
Relationships
Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.
-
Support
Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.
-
Achievement
Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.
-
Recognition
Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.
-
Working conditions
Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.
Interests
Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.
-
Practical
Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.
-
Administrative
Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.
-
Enterprising
Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.
-
Analytical
Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.
-
Helping
Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.
-
Creative
Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

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The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 53-5031.00 - Ship Engineers.