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Overview
Marine chief engineers lead the engine department and oversee technical, electrical and mechanical operations, equipment, maintenance and engine-room safety on board a vessel.
In job descriptions, look for engine-room operation, propulsion machinery, vessel inventory, mechanical and electrical repair, voyage logs, staff management, safety systems, pollution prevention and maritime communication.
Explore this occupation
Open in Job ExplorerWhat the work can involve
Marine chief engineer work is a senior shipboard technical role. It covers the engine room, propulsion machinery, electrical and mechanical systems, technical staff, inventories, maintenance records and coordination with the master and other responsible officers.
Skills and specializations
Key skills include operating and maintaining the engine room, repairing vessel mechanical and electrical systems, managing staff, keeping voyage logs, using maritime communication and checking quality, safety and pollution-prevention routines. Specialization can reflect vessel type, propulsion systems or engine-room resource management.
Salary context
Salary context depends on vessel size, trading pattern, watch and rotation schedule, crew responsibility, engine complexity, emergency duties, maintenance backlog and whether the role covers audits, budgets or regulatory compliance. This guide does not provide salary amounts.
Career paths
Career paths usually build from marine engineering, watchkeeping, engine-room maintenance and increasing responsibility for machinery and crew. Development can lead to chief engineer roles on larger vessels, technical superintendent work, vessel maintenance planning or shore-based marine engineering management.
Good to know
Check whether the advert names vessel type, engine plant, rotation pattern, crew size, maintenance systems, safety duties and reporting line. Also look for whether the role expects hands-on repair, department leadership, audit preparation or coordination with deck officers.
Editorial note
This guide is editorial career context. It is not official labour-market statistics or role-specific salary data.
Map overview
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O*NET relationships
See occupations connected to this ESCO occupation in the official O*NET–ESCO mapping. The relationship type comes from the source and is not a ranking or recommendation.
O*NET relationships: 1
Marine Engineers and Naval Architects
17-2121.00
O*NET occupation is broader
The O*NET occupation covers a broader field of work than this ESCO occupation.
Open in O*NETSource and method
These relationships come from the official European Commission O*NET–ESCO crosswalk.
Relationship direction: O*NET occupation to ESCO occupation.
Several O*NET occupations can point to the same ESCO occupation, and one O*NET occupation can point to several ESCO occupations.
AltoTrail preserves the source relationship type. The order is technical and does not show which occupation is best, most relevant or recommended.
AltoTrail validates and presents the source relationships without adding ranking or recommendation semantics.
Alternative labels
Occupation group
Ships’ engineers (3151)
Source facts
| ESCO URI | http://data.europa.eu/esco/occupation/cd19e8d1-6abd-4c99-a9bb-85e7c30aca31 |
|---|---|
| ESCO code | 3151.2 |
| ISCO group | 3151 |
| Concept type | Occupation |