STCW’78 Crowd Management & Passenger Safety

About the Course

STCW 2010 Code calls for crew to follow approved training in crisis management and human behaviour, with the training focused on applied psychology for competent assessment of both passenger and crew reactions. To this end, Crowd Management training is required for all personnel designated to assist passengers in an emergency, which includes, but is not limited to:

• Assessing the situation and providing an effective response.
• Leading and directing others.
• Identifying signs and symptoms of excessive personal stress, and the stress response to others.
• Understanding that stress can affect performance and the ability to act.
• Being aware of the reaction patterns of passengers and other personnel in emergencies recognising specific behaviours of passengers and other personnel.

This online training course is based on the guidelines of IMO Model Course 1.28, and STCW Regulation A-V/2 and aims to meet the mandatory minimum requirements for the training of masters, officers, ratings, and other personnel on passenger ships in STCW Code (2010): Section A-V/2 & A-V/3.

Aims of the Course

This course is STCW Compliant and adheres to the MNTB’s Knowledge, Understanding and Proficiency (KUP) in the use of all techniques, information and equipment supplied to deal with an emergency, including familiarisation with all safety aspects of the ship and the ability to effectively communicate with passengers and fully prepare them for an emergency. This course has the following crew-training aims:

• Control a crowd in an emergency situation on board.
• Locate essential safety and emergency equipment on board.
• Communicate effectively with passengers during an emergency.
• Demonstrate the use of personal life-saving appliances.
• Comply with the ship’s safety and emergency procedures.

Target Audience

This course covers the minimum standard of competence for: Masters, chief mates, chief engineers, second engineer officers and any member of the crew assigned immediate responsibility for embarking and disembarking passengers, for loading, discharging or securing cargo, or for closing hull openings and any other person having responsibility for the safety of passengers in emergency situations on ro-ro and non-ro-ro passenger ships, cruise ships and luxury yachts.

Awarding Body

This STCW’78 (as Amended) Crowd Management & Passenger Safety course is fully Accredited under the CPD Accreditation Group and is fully compliant with the Standard of Training, Certification & Watchkeeping [STCW].

Course Duration

The Course duration is approximately 5 hours. A slight variation is allowed for individual reading speeds, but this minimum must be met in order to successfully pass this course. Learners may enter and exit the course as often as they require. Your licence allows you access to the course for up to 6 months to complete [if required] or upon successful completion of the course.

Invigilation Requirement

There is no requirement for the Learner to be invigilated or attend a Remote Invigilation Session whilst undertaking the Course Assessment(s).

Bulk Buying

To discuss pricing associated with bulk purchasing of this online STCW’78 Crowd Management & Passenger Safety Training Course, please contact us at training@virsec.org or call us during UK Office Hours (0900 to 1700hrs BST/GMT Monday to Thursday, and 0900 to 1500hrs BST/GMT Friday) and we will be very happy to assist you.

• Introduction to Shipping Legislation
• STCW 2010 Requirements
• Safer Ship Operation
• Life-Saving Appliances and Control Plans
• Assembly and Emergency Embarkation
• Mustering Procedures
• The Psychology of Emergencies
• Design and Operational Limitations of the Ship
• Operating Hull Openings
• Legislation & Codes affecting Ro-Ro Passenger Ships
• Stability & Stress Requirements
• Special Equipment Maintenance
• Loading & Cargo Securing
• Dangerous Cargo Areas
• Emergency Procedures
• Communication
• Life-Saving Appliances
• Case Studies: Tragedies from Maritime History
• Presentation of Past Maritime Tragedies
• Analysis of Mistakes Made
• Key Learnings & Recommendations

Continuous Professional Development (CPD) Certification

This course is fully approved by the CPD Accreditation Group which is an internationally recognised certification. Learners will receive an electronic copy of the official course certificate in PDF format upon successful completion of the course via the eLearning system.

Security Encrypted PDF Certificate

Upon successful completion of the online course, verification of Learner ID, and associated Assessment, Learners will receive an electronic security-encrypted version of your official course certificate [in secure PDF format]. Certificates are usually emailed to the Learner within a minimum of 24 to 48 hours on confirmation of the course results, or the next working day if complete on Friday

Hardcopy, Embossed Stamped Certificate

Learners may also request an embossed stamped, hardcopy certificate to be posted to their home address. This is a free of charge service for Learners attending the SSO Course. Please note that VIRSEC is not responsible for any loss or delay of the certificate once it has been dispatched to Royal Mail. Should a Carrier Service be requested, then the relevant charges will be applied, and all payments must be made before the certificate is posted.

Expedited Course Certificate

Should a Learner require the certificate to be expedited, either after office hours, at weekends, holidays, or other, a surcharge of £49.95 GBP [+VAT] will be charged and sent by Secure Payment Link. Please note that all payments must be made before the certificate is sent.

• I am a non-UK national; can I buy your online Crowd Management & Passenger Safety Course?

  Yes, many of our courses carry internationally-recognised and accepted certification such as the STCW ISPS Courses we offer. We have to date, sold our courses into 112 countries around the world.

• Is this course STCW Compliant?

  Yes, the course adheres to the required design and build as per the STCW'78 (2010 Amendments). This course is recognised as being compliant with STCW and any country that complies with the STCW Convention & Code should recognise this course.

• Doesn't this course have to be Approved under the MCA?

  The Online STCW:2010 Crowd Control and Passenger Safety Course (STCW:74 with Manila Amendments 2010 compliant) is the basic course for all crew with passenger control duties on the muster list; the next level, Safety Training Requirements etc. is again for crew with passenger control duties, NEITHER of these courses are required to be MCA approved. The UK Department for Transport Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) stipulate that under MNTB Guidelines, these courses are not required to be approved by them (or any Admin).

  The first level course that MUST be approved by an Administration or the MCA, is the Crisis Management & Human Behaviour Course, which is more for Officers and leading ratings who must make decisions about controlling the passengers and this is clearly detailed in the MNTB Guidelines.

  There is a separate course for Officers on Ro-Ro ferries being the Passenger Safety, Cargo Safety and Hull Integrity for Ro-Ro Passenger Ships, this course MUST also be MCA Approved.

• Is there a time limit placed on the Course Access Licence?

  Your course access is granted for a maximum period of 6 months (please note this will commence from the date of purchase, not from the first time you access it). You must ensure that you fully complete the course within this time period, and we will not accept any responsibility for you not being to access the course once this time has expired. This access licence will expire upon 12 months, or successful completion of the course itself, whichever comes first.

• How long is the Crowd Management & Passenger Safety Course supposed to take to complete correctly?

  This online course is expected to take in the region of 5 hours pending your understanding of the subjects, and your reading / learning speed to complete in an acceptable time period. If you abuse the ‘trust element’ and just simply click through the course, we will note this on the course tracking system and we will refuse to certificate you.

• Do I have to take the Crowd Management & Passenger Safety Course in one sitting?

  No, as with any of our courses, you may enter and exit the course at any time and then re-commence where you left off. However, any assessment you take must be completed in one sitting or the assessment you are taking will reset if you exit before completing it.

• Do your online Crowd Management & Passenger Safety Courses include an online assessment?

  The courses include official online assessments as this is an STCW-74 (2010 Amendments) Compliant Course. Each assessment is made up of multiple choice and true or false answers. Questions within each assessment are randomised and taken from a larger bank of questions. You may take these assessments as many times as are required to pass the course.

• Is this course Internationally recognised?

  Yes, this course is fully compliant with the Standards of Training, Certification & Watchkeeping (STCW). Any country that is signed up to the ISPS Code and STCW Convention should accept our certification. We have to date provided our courses into 130 countries worldwide.

• How long do I have to complete my online course?

  All our courses have a six (6) month access licence applied to them. This licence commences the day the course is purchased, and not from the day you first access the course.

• Do I need to take notes on the course?

  No, VIRSEC provides you with a comprehensive set of Course Notes that you can download. You can also use these notes to research any answers when taking the Assessment at the end of the course.

• Is there an Assessment after the course?

  Yes, there is a short Assessment, and you must achieve a minimum score of 70% to achieve a successful pass.

• What happens if I fail the assessment?

  If you fail the assessment, you may retake it again straight away, or whenever you wish within the 6-month licence applicable to your course [licences commence the day the course is purchased, not the date they are accessed].

• Do I need to attend a Test Centre to take my assessment?

  No, the course is 100% online and you are required to adhere to the strict requirements outlined in the course explanation as well as any requests made of you during the course such as completing and submitting your online Learner Verification.

• Do I need to submit any documentation?

  Yes, you are required to submit an official form of ID such as a scan of your passport, driving licence, or other official photo ID. This is to ensure you are who you state yourself to be, and so we can use this ID to collect the relevant information that will populate your official course certificate. It is very easy to do and will only take you around five minutes to do.

• Do I need an Invigilator when taking my Official Assessment?

  No, for the non-USCG version of the courses we offer, there is no requirement for an invigilator to be present. However, we do require [as covered] that you provide the correct information on the Online Learner Verification Form and submit the required form of photo ID. This is covered in detail on the course itself. NOTE: We do provide a USCG version of this course that does require you to attend a Remote Invigilation Session for your Assessment.

• How do I receive my certificate when I pass?

  When you complete the course correctly and pass the Assessment, we will verify your time spent on the course, your submitted ID, and your Assessment results. Once we are satisfied, we will email you a secure PDF of your certificate that you must print off and sign. These PDFs are security encrypted to prevent any tampering with information placed on them, and so you must print them off to sign with as black pen.

• Is there a minimal time limit I must spend on this course?

  Yes, under the relevant Agencies and Conventions, the course is a 5-hour course. This excludes any video content we have included [for interest], viewing of any websites linked from the course or documents also linked from the course.

  We are allowed a slight variation in timings due to individual reading speeds, but we will fail you if you exceed the allowed variance. Please note that the Course Notes are purely there for reference and revision, and any time spent reading these do not count towards your time spent on the course.

• Can I take breaks, or do I need to complete the course in one sitting?

  You can take a break from the course at any time of your choosing. We also recommend that you have regular breaks and often build reminders into our courses. It is strongly recommended that if you are going to take a significant break, we recommend that you log out. The system will remember your progress so you may continue from that point when you log back in.

• What happens if I don’t take long enough on the course?

  If you complete the course in an unrealistic time (too quickly) we will have no alternative but to fail you. It is important that you treat this like you would any course taught in a classroom environment. The fact that it is online is not reason to abuse the requirements. As stated in other FAQs, we do allow a slight variance in timings due to individual reading speeds.

• I am an experienced mariner and/or an officer, does this make a difference?

  No, we do not take into consideration your time served, nor your rank. There is an acceptable minimum time set by the relevant Governing Bodies. If you abuse this, or do not meet with any of these requirements, you will fail the course regardless of the score achieved in the Assessment(s). You will be required to re-take the course and associated assessments.

• I have left it to the last minute to take my course and need my certificate out of hours, what happens next?

  VIRSEC are not responsible for you leaving your course until the last minute, and you run the risk of not receiving your certificate in the time needed. Certificates take up to 48 hours during the working week to turn around, and should this fall over a weekend, you may not receive the certificate until the next working day [holidays excluded]. If you require your certificate to be expedited, you may request this from VIRSEC, but we are under absolutely no obligation to do this and there will be an additional charge applied.

• Is VIRSEC open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for Support?

  Learners are able to purchase courses and take them 365 days a year, 24 hours a day as we are an online company, with access to both our e-Commerce website and Learning Management System [LMS]. However, the company is open during the hours listed on its website [0900 to 1700 hrs GMT/BST Monday to Thursday, 0900 to 1500 hrs Friday, Closed Saturday & Sunday and Bank Holidays]. Support requests may be made but will be managed during these listed office hours.

• Is there an Online Chat Facility for Support Requests?

  VIRSEC do have a Chat Facility on their website and you may make a request for support. However, this is only manned during the hours listed on its website [0900 to 1700 hrs GMT/BST Monday to Thursday, 0900 to 1500 hrs Friday, Closed Saturday & Sunday and Bank Holidays]. Responses to comments or enquiries may take up to 24 hours, or until the next working day as detailed.