The South Carolina Commercial Seafood
Apprenticeship Program

The training takes place during the month of May. Training takes place Monday through Friday from about 8:30 am – 4 pm. Participants get a daily lunch break with lunch provided by the program.

Topics that are covered in the program include safety at sea, CPR and first aid, seamanship and navigation, net mending, knot tying, species identification, diesel engine mechanics, and gear types and design. Apprentices also gain introductory knowledge about fisheries science, fisheries management and regulations, how to engage with resource managers, and fishing business and marketing. These lessons will be a combination of both classroom-based learning and hands-on learning.

After full completion of the program, we do our best to match participants with a local commercial fishing company or grower based on their preferred type of fishing, personality, and schedule.

The training takes place in McClellanville, South Carolina.

This apprenticeship program is free to participants and is fully funded through federal grant assistance. Through the program, all participants are provided with boots, gloves, weather gear, knives, and all training materials. Participants also receive a stipend of $1,000 contingent upon full completion of the program. Full completion is defined as completing all required classroom and at-sea learning, and receiving approval from the Program Coordinator and fisher or grower mentor(s).

Yes! You will be offered free housing at the the Baruch Institute for Marine & Coastal Sciences Dormitory, approximately 30 miles from the training program location. Thus, reliable transportation is necessary for program attendance.

Yes, during the training participants will experience at least 2 offshore at-sea training days and at least 4 inshore at-sea training days.

A fisher’s income is dependent upon a number of factors including what type of fishing you are doing, the individual boat you are on, how much fish you catch, how often you fish, and how hard you work. Crew members are compensated based on a share or percentage of the proceeds of the harvest sale value after fuel, groceries, and gear expenses. Depending on your fishery, work may be seasonal as well. However, many crewmembers work on multiple fisheries throughout the year or hold other seasonal positions.

A mariculturist’s income is dependent on the position held at an operation (whether entry-level, manager, or owner), the scale of an operation or production level, the species being produced, and how much of the year species may be harvested. Employees are typically paid based on an hourly wage and can expect to work year-round. As entry-level workers gain experience and build skills, there are frequent opportunities to be promoted into manager positions or to engage in cooperative resource sharing.

Through the apprenticeship training, participants receive a CPR, First Aid and automated external defibrillator certification, a U.S. Coast Guard Drill Conductor certification, a commercial fishing license, and a certificate of completion from S.C. Sea Grant Consortium for those who complete the training.