Top 12 Deckhand Skills to Put on Your Resume

In the competitive world of maritime employment, showcasing a robust set of deckhand skills on your resume can elevate your chances fast. Employers want calm hands, quick judgment, and proven technique. The skills below map out what matters on deck and how to sharpen each one so you’re a steady asset from cast-off to tie-up.

Deckhand Skills

1. Knot Tying
2. Splicing
3. Navigation
4. CPR Certified
5. Firefighting Training
6. VHF Radio
7. Radar Operation
8. Winch Handling
9. Deck Maintenance
10. Safety Procedures
11. Mooring Operations
12. Paint Application

1. Knot Tying

Knot tying is the practice of securing, joining, or adjusting lines with specific knots that hold under load yet release when needed. It’s the backbone of mooring, towing, lashing, and day-to-day deck work.

Why It's Important

Good knots prevent costly slip-ups—literally. They keep gear where it should be, protect the crew, and let operations move without fuss or rework.

How to Improve Knot Tying Skills

Build a repertoire and make it muscle memory.

1. Master core knots: bowline, clove hitch, round turn and two half hitches, sheet bend, rolling hitch, figure-eight, trucker’s hitch.

2. Practice daily with wet, cold, and gloved hands. Speed comes after consistency.

3. Drill under load: tie, tension, inspect, and untie to learn each knot’s behavior.

4. Get feedback from senior deckhands; small tweaks in dressing a knot make it safer.

5. Use real scenarios: fender lines, spring lines, tow bridles. Purpose cements retention.

Know why a knot works, not just how. That’s the leap from hobby to seamanship.

How to Display Knot Tying Skills on Your Resume

2. Splicing

Splicing joins rope ends by interweaving strands to create a strong, clean termination or eye without bulky knots. Works on three-strand, double braid, and modern HMPE lines with proper technique.

Why It's Important

Splices maintain line strength, pass smoothly over gear, and last. For mooring, towing, and rigging, they’re the professional standard.

How to Improve Splicing Skills

Patience, precision, and the right tools.

1. Learn rope construction first; match the splice to the line type.

2. Start with three-strand eyes and short splices; progress to double-braid and soft shackles.

3. Use proper fids, tape, a hot knife or whipping, and clear marks for measurements.

4. Practice tapering neatly; a smooth bury matters under load and on winches.

5. Proof-load finished splices and inspect regularly for creep, glazing, or strand damage.

Good splicing looks tidy. More important—tests strong.

How to Display Splicing Skills on Your Resume

3. Navigation

Navigation is the art and system of getting from A to B safely—piloting, plotting, lookout, and the smart use of electronic aids. Deckhands support with watchkeeping, position checks, and equipment readiness.

Why It's Important

Good navigation avoids hazards, saves fuel and time, and keeps the crew off the evening news.

How to Improve Navigation Skills

Blend old-school and electronic know-how.

1. Read charts like a story: depths, contours, lights, marks, and notes. Respect scale and datum.

2. Use GPS, AIS, and ECDIS/plotter confidently; cross-check with visual bearings and radar.

3. Know COLREGs cold. Nothing replaces rules of the road in close quarters.

4. Track weather and tides; build margins for sea state, current, and visibility swings.

5. Keep a clean log and do regular position verification—don’t blindly trust one source.

6. Maintain nav gear: compasses swung, lights working, alarms set sensibly.

Redundancy is your friend. So is a vigilant lookout.

How to Display Navigation Skills on Your Resume

4. CPR Certified

CPR certification confirms training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and AED use. On the water, minutes matter. This training closes the gap until advanced care arrives.

Why It's Important

Remote settings, delayed response times, and high-risk work raise the stakes. Immediate, correct action can turn the outcome.

How to Improve CPR Certified Skills

Keep skills fresh and broaden your emergency toolkit.

1. Renew every two years at minimum; run short refreshers or drills more often.

2. Practice realistic scenarios: confined spaces, moving decks, limited lighting.

3. Add first aid and oxygen administration; for mariners, STCW Basic Training (including elementary first aid) is widely expected.

4. Train with AEDs you actually carry aboard; know pad placement and prompts.

5. Rehearse team roles—who calls, who compresses, who rotates. Fatigue ruins quality.

Confidence comes from reps, not from certificates alone.

How to Display CPR Certified Skills on Your Resume

5. Firefighting Training

Maritime firefighting training teaches prevention, detection, and attack methods for onboard fires, plus teamwork, communication, and evacuation procedures.

Why It's Important

At sea, there’s no fire department around the corner. The crew is the response.

How to Improve Firefighting Training Skills

Make training practical, repeatable, and ship-specific.

1. Drill with live-fire props and smoke-filled simulations to build composure under heat and stress.

2. Ensure STCW-compliant courses (Basic and, where required, Advanced) and refreshers are up to date.

3. Practice hose handling, boundary cooling, door entry, and correct extinguisher selection.

4. Run surprise drills at odd hours. Vary ignition sources and compartments.

5. Debrief hard: air management, comms clarity, muster accuracy, equipment readiness.

Fire spreads fast. Discipline must move faster.

How to Display Firefighting Training Skills on Your Resume

6. VHF Radio

VHF is the ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore voice lifeline for safety, traffic coordination, and routine ops. Clear, concise radio work prevents chaos.

Why It's Important

Good comms reduce risk. In an emergency, they save time—and people.

How to Improve VHF Radio Skills

Focus on procedures and clarity first, hardware second.

1. Know distress, urgency, and safety calls (Mayday, Pan-Pan, Sécurité) word-for-word.

2. Maintain a proper watch on Channel 16 as required; use working channels appropriately.

3. Use standard phraseology and the phonetic alphabet. Keep transmissions short and unambiguous.

4. Understand DSC basics, MMSI use, and how to trigger and cancel alerts correctly.

5. Check antennas, connections, and microphones routinely; log radio checks sparingly and professionally.

Think before you key. Then speak once, well.

How to Display VHF Radio Skills on Your Resume

7. Radar Operation

Radar spots targets and land, measures range and bearing, and helps you steer clear when eyes can’t. Interpretation—more than button pushing—makes it useful.

Why It's Important

Fog, night, squalls, traffic. Radar turns guesswork into a plan.

How to Improve Radar Operation Skills

Learn the picture, then fine-tune the set.

1. Use EBLs and VRMs to track CPAs; set guard zones to catch surprises early.

2. Adjust gain, sea clutter, and rain clutter for conditions; revisit as weather shifts.

3. Practice relative vs. true motion and course-up vs. north-up to understand target behavior.

4. Cross-check with AIS and visual bearings; never depend on one sensor.

5. Keep scanners and displays maintained and calibrated; document faults immediately.

The best radar operator is a relentless comparer of sources.

How to Display Radar Operation Skills on Your Resume

8. Winch Handling

Winch handling covers safe operation, monitoring, and upkeep of winches and associated gear for mooring, anchoring, towing, and lifting.

Why It's Important

Lines under load can maim. Smooth, controlled winch work keeps people and equipment intact.

How to Improve Winch Handling Skills

Control, awareness, and maintenance—every time.

1. Learn the danger zones: snap-back areas, bights, and the line of fire. Stay out of them.

2. Operate with gradual starts, steady speeds, and clear signals. No sudden surges.

3. Check brakes, pawls, guards, and emergency stops before use. Report anything suspect.

4. Match line type to task and drum; avoid cross-winding and bird-nesting.

5. Grease, inspect, and test on schedule; keep decks clean of grit and oil around machinery.

If in doubt, stop. Reset the plan. Then continue.

How to Display Winch Handling Skills on Your Resume

9. Deck Maintenance

Deck maintenance means cleaning, preserving, and repairing the working surfaces and fittings so they stay safe, grippy, and corrosion-resistant.

Why It's Important

Salt eats metal. UV bakes coatings. Neglect becomes downtime—then bills.

How to Improve Deck Maintenance Skills

Use the right routine and materials for marine life.

1. Freshwater washdowns after operations to flush salt; use mild, marine-safe soaps.

2. Inspect non-skid, rails, chocks, cleats, and fairleads; tighten, replace, or back with sealant as needed.

3. Treat rust early: chip, needle-scale, clean, prime with the correct system, then topcoat.

4. Maintain drains and scuppers clear; water that sits will find trouble.

5. Lube hinges, latches, and moving parts; protect with corrosion inhibitors where appropriate.

Small, steady upkeep beats big refits every time.

How to Display Deck Maintenance Skills on Your Resume

10. Safety Procedures

Safety procedures are the habits and rules that prevent incidents and shape effective emergency response: PPE, drills, permits, lockouts, the whole safety culture.

Why It's Important

Safe decks run better, last longer, and keep crews returning home in one piece.

How to Improve Safety Procedures Skills

Make safety visible and lived, not just posted.

1. Hold toolbox talks and last-minute risk assessments before tasks; adapt as conditions change.

2. Drill regularly: man overboard, fire, abandon ship, confined space, and spill response.

3. Use proper PPE every time; replace damaged kit immediately.

4. Apply permit-to-work and lockout/tagout for hot work, aloft work, energized systems, and enclosed spaces.

5. Invite near-miss reporting without blame; fix root causes, not just symptoms.

Safety is a practice, not a poster.

How to Display Safety Procedures Skills on Your Resume

11. Mooring Operations

Mooring operations secure the vessel to a fixed point or buoy using lines, wires, or chains with coordinated teamwork between deck and bridge.

Why It's Important

Precision prevents drift, shock loads, and damage to ship, berth, and crew.

How to Improve Mooring Operations Skills

Plan the evolution. Then execute cleanly.

1. Brief the team with a clear plan: leads, sequence, and signals. Close-loop every instruction.

2. Mark and respect snap-back zones; never stand in bights or on a line.

3. Prepare gear early: heaving lines, stoppers, chafing gear, and properly flaked ropes.

4. Coordinate with the bridge on line tensions; apply and relieve load gradually.

5. Inspect bollards, fairleads, and bits; report chafe and replace damaged lines promptly.

Smooth mooring is quiet, controlled, and uneventful—the goal every time.

How to Display Mooring Operations Skills on Your Resume

12. Paint Application

Marine paint application protects metal and composites from corrosion and wear, maintains non-skid, and keeps the vessel shipshape.

Why It's Important

Coatings are armor against salt, sun, and abrasion. Lose the coating, invite the rust.

How to Improve Paint Application Skills

Preparation is everything. Technique seals the deal.

1. Check conditions: surface temp, humidity, and dew point. Paint within the system’s window.

2. Prep properly: degrease, remove salts, sand or blast to spec, and clean before priming.

3. Match products—primer, tie-coat, topcoat—from the same system; follow mix and induction times exactly.

4. Use the right tools for the area: brush, roller, or spray. Apply to the target film thickness and allow full cure between coats.

5. Work safe: respirators, gloves, eye protection, and solid ventilation. Control overspray and waste.

Neat edges, correct thickness, and patient curing make coatings last.

How to Display Paint Application Skills on Your Resume