Motorboat Operators
Operate small motor-driven boats. May assist in navigational activities.
- Median pay
- $47,520
- Doing it now
- 2,800
- By 2035
- Up 4.9%
- Usually needs
- Postsecondary nondegree award
a year
across the country
300 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- Maintain desired courses, using compasses or electronic navigational aids.
- Follow safety procedures to ensure the protection of passengers, cargo, and vessels.
- Operate engine throttles and steering mechanisms to guide boats on desired courses.
- Direct safety operations in emergency situations.
- Issue directions for loading, unloading, and seating in boats.
- Secure boats to docks with mooring lines, and cast off lines to enable departure.
- Maintain equipment such as range markers, fire extinguishers, boat fenders, lines, pumps, and fittings.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Marine TransportationSee 7 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Hands-on and practical
Organised and precise
Leading and persuading
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $47,520 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.