“Wait a minute Christiaan, this school year’s not even over and you’re already talking about next Sea Term? What’s up with that?” Since Sea Term is such a large undertaking, as soon as we return from one the planning begins for the next one.  One of the biggest decisions that has to be made is …

Today was the Welcome Aboard event at the Academy. This is a day specifically for high school seniors who have been accepted into next year’s freshman class. It allows them to get a more in-depth sense of some of the things MMA has to offer, such as firefighting, cold water survival, small boat handling, and …

All cadets are required to stand watch, license and non-license majors alike. We stand watch in three places on campus – one in the dorms, and two on the Enterprise. In the dorms, we have watch at the Cadet Information Center (CIC), where we keep track of visitors entering and exiting the dorms, answer the …

This blog has been reborn, for a completely different purpose. I’ve decided to use this blog to talk about life as a cadet at Massachusetts Maritime Academy, and other maritime-related information. This decision came on the heels of returning from MMA’s Sea Term 2008, during which I kept a blog about the trip which got …

Today is the one month mark from departing Buzzards Bay for Sea Term 2008. In fact, as you may or may not have noticed, I’ve added a countdown on the right side of the page until we are scheduled to cast off from the pier, and head out to sea. It’s incredible to think that …

This morning at 0400 we were woken up Orientation-style for the Viking Bath, a rite of passage for freshmen. Everyone gets into PT gear, and after doing about 30 minutes of intense warm-up in the passageways, we all run down to Cadet Beach and jump into Buttermilk Bay! This is considered a “Recognition” for being …

Today the freshmen had a meeting with Capt. Rozak, Capt. Bushy and the other staff and cadet officers involved with Sea Term.  They addressed the key times we need to know, making sure we bring important documents like a passport and school ID, and the basic rules and regulations.  The medical staff talked about how …

In January and February I will be shipping out on the T.S. Enterprise, Mass Maritime’s training ship, for Sea Term.  Sea Term is Mass Maritime’s hands-on training period, where cadets gain practical experience in working and living on board a commercial ship.  Depending on your major, you will do between one and three Sea Terms.  …