What next?

You are probably reading this page because you have completed a voyage with us and earned a voyage certificate – in which case, well done!

Your certificate can be used to help you move forward in life: we have plenty of examples of people who have used their voyage experience to stand out in a college application or job interview. It could make the difference between you and other applicants with similar qualifications and experience: and it certainly demonstrates that there might be more to you than someone who sits at home playing games or watching TV. Even if you are a high achiever with a long list of exam passes or successes in other fields, a voyage adds an extra dimension to your record. And if exams aren’t your thing, this certificate can be really important in helping you demonstrate strengths and aptitides in other ways.

Here are just a few of the experiences from a voyage which can be relevant in other areas of your life:

• Team working
• Building confidence
• Learning new skills
• Resilience
• Mental wellbeing
• Developing initiative
• Taking responsibility
• Working with new people
• Coping with unfamiliar situations
• Communication skills
• Following safety instructions
• Showing other people that they can rely on you
• Persisting with things you initially find difficult
• Succeeding with things you initially find daunting
• Basic life skills – such as cooking
• Practising leadership skills
• Overcoming challenges
• Seizing opportunities
• Tolerance and understanding of other people – especially those from very different backgrounds
• Getting up on time!

If you are making an application, do think about the skills covered on your voyage and how you might use them to show what you can offer.

Also, if you enjoyed your voyage and would like to stay in touch and maybe sail again, there are all sorts of things you can do now.

If you left your details in the Comments Book on board, you should start receiving our weekly newsletter by email. You can read back issues here. If your copy doesn’t start arriving, email us and ask to be put on the newsletter list. You can also send any comments about your voyage to the same address – this really helps us. If you had any problems on your voyage that you can tell us about, we can always try to improve things, If you had a great time, it’s always good to know, and we can use feedback like this to show the donors whose money helps us to keep the boat going.

You can even write an article to be published on this website, or enter the Chris Ellis Award, with an annual prize which means you can win money towards the cost of another voyage.

If you want to keep in touch with people you met on your voyage, or meet other people who have sailed with us, please join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn, but please note the guidance, rules and advice given on the links page before joining.

Do please think about sailing with us again. We have voyages for both groups and individuals, so even if you came with an organised group last time, you don’t have to rely on this group to bring you again. See here for voyages currently available. If you would like to sail again but can’t afford it, consider the Chris Ellis Award, or else email us to see if you might be eligible for bursary funding.

If you are aged 16+ (or will shortly turn 16) and your watchleader or the skipper suggested you did well enough to consider coming back to train as one of our volunteers on board, see here for more information. Lots of our volunteers started out as a young crew members: if you are enthusiastic, reliable and hard-working, then you might get lots of sailing with us for years to come!