Intermediate Course

ASA 103 & 104

If you know the terminology of sailing, know your knots and have prior sailing experience, then you want to be looking at an Intermediate course.

What are the prerequisites to the Intermediate Course?

You need to have your ASA 101 certification.

If I have sailing experience but no ASA 101, can I still do Intermediate?

Yes, if you come with prior knowledge and experience, then we can do a 101 “test out”, which costs an additional $100. With the test-out, we have you sitting the 101 exam on the first day, so you can spend the week doing the Intermediate Course.

Do you get the same certification with the Beginner and Intermediate courses?

The certification is different between the Beginner and Intermediate courses. The Beginner course provides 101 and 103-level certification. The Intermediate course consolidates 103 and works on 104-level certification, which provides you with the skills and knowledge to captain a boat.

Are the other students all intermediate-level?

We deliberately mix our students and their ability, for good reason: sailing is like this. What we mean by this is sailing involves people coming together with a variety of skills.  Taking from the aphorism that “the best way to learn is to teach”, our teaching methods involve an innovative mix of instructor-led tutorials with student-led (and instructor-supervised) tutorials.

After all, when you become a sailor yourself, part of your efficacy resides in how well your crew can help you. As such, an essential skill is how to impart knowledge to your future crews. “Learning to teach” is a skill that we value highly, and your instructor will spend time with you optimizing this.

So this means I can bring my friend/partner/brother/sister who is a beginner?

Yes it does.

What certificates do I earn in the intermediate course?

You earn your ASA 103 and 104 in the intermediate course. The 103 teaches skills to become a “back-up skipper”, and the 104 goes deeper on areas such as boat systems, to give you the skills to captain a yacht, during the day, in good weather, within a few miles of shore. In other words, it provides you with the skills to charter your own boat.

Does this mean I can charter a yacht anywhere in the world?

Whether you can charter a boat or not is ultimately the decision of the charter company. Nevertheless, we have never had any 104 alumni refused on a request to charter a yacht.

What about the ICC license in Europe?

The ICC, or International Certificate of Competence, is a European license-of-sorts. The American Sailing Association offers an equivalent license called an IPC, which can be obtained once you have your 104 certificate. We have never heard any stories of the IPC being turned down in Europe.

If I have sailed a bit before, is it really worthwhile doing an Intermediate Course?

We have taken skippers through the intermediate course, who have been “blown away” by what they learned during the week. Check out this video to hear from students themselves. The experience of both Xander and JT, now working as professional sailors, is a case in point.

What are the next steps?

You can book a course directly, or if you’d like any other questions answered, drop Irene an email and she will respond promptly. To read more information, check available dates and secure your spot, click here for BVI courses (November to July) and here for Croatia courses (August).