How to become a ships' deck officer or pilot

Official title: Ships' deck officers and pilots

Also called: Pilot (ship), Ship’s captain, Skipper (yacht)

Ships’ deck officers and pilots command and navigate ships and similar vessels, and perform related functions on shore.

Main tasks

• Commanding and navigating ship or similar vessel at sea or on inland waterways
• Controlling and participating in deck and bridge watch activities
• Navigating vessels into and out of ports and through channels, straits and other waters where special knowledge is required
• Ensuring safe loading and unloading of cargo and observance of safety regulations and procedures by crew and passengers
• Performing technical supervision of maintenance and repair of ships to ensure compliance with specifications and regulations
• Applying knowledge of principles and practices relating to ships’ operation and navigation in order to identify and solve problems arising in the course of their work
• Ordering ships’ stores, recruiting crew as required and maintaining records of operations
• Transmitting and receiving routine and emergency information with shore stations and other ships

Pay · Outlook · AI and this job

• Median pay: HK$27,000 a month
• About 1,542,900 people in 2025, and about 1,639,100 projected by 2028. (+6.2%)
• Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Related jobs

• Air traffic controllers
• Aircraft pilots and related associate professionals
• Ships' engineers
• Air traffic safety electronics technicians

Not sure this is for you? Take the 2-minute career quiz

Questions people ask

Do you need a degree to become a ships' deck officer or pilot?

Not always. 41% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

Will AI change the work of a ships' deck officer or pilot?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

• Census and Statistics Department (2021 Population Census): 2021 Population Census, Interactive Data Dissemination Service: working population by occupation (38 groups) and sex, age, education, income; median income and field of education (9 groups) (2021 Population Census), retrieved 4 October 2026
• Census and Statistics Department (General Household Survey): Median monthly employment earnings by occupation (9 groups), excluding foreign domestic helpers (Table 210-06317A); employed persons by occupation, age and sex (210-06307A) and by industry (210-06308A) (2025 annual (series to 2026-07)), retrieved 4 October 2026
• Labour and Welfare Bureau; tables published by C&SD: Mid-term Update of Manpower Projection to 2028: supplementary statistical tables (5 occupation groups, 17 selected industries) (2025 to 2028 (published 2026-09)), retrieved 4 October 2026
• International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Updated 4 October 2026