Hundreds of Students Take Part in Open Day Activities at CMI

Hundreds of students, many courting careers in the Maritime sector, converged at the Caribbean Maritime Institute (CMI) for three days last week, to learn more about the Maritime industry, at the institution’s annual Open Day activities.
Director of the CMI, Mr. Fritz Pinnock, explained that the three-day exhibition, which aimed to expose the Jamaican public, particularly students, to the offerings of the institution, is an integral outreach tool of the institution to highlight the importance of the maritime industry to Jamaica’s economy and by extension that of the region.
The three-day exhibition also formed part of the Maritime Awareness Week activities, which was observed under the theme, ‘Climate Change: A Challenge for Jamaica Maritime Too’.
“We are trying to open the minds of people to new career opportunities that exist, as there are new career options that are very lucrative. We are also trying to open the minds of people to the impact of climate change. We give them a little foretaste of every aspect of the maritime training during this three day exhibition period,” the Director told JIS News.
The open day activities included tours of the Engine Room and Bridge Simulators, which imitate various scenarios at sea, including situations in Jamaican waters. Visitors to the Seamanship Centre were introduced to procedures when personnel abandon ship and sea survival techniques.
Seafarers in training also demonstrated training drills, such as rope work exercises, survival and rescue operations and fire fighting exercises. There were also tours of the Kingston Harbour, facilitated by the Port Authority and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Coast Guard vessels.

Children of the Rousseau Primary School, in Kingston, get a firsthand look at some of the tools used by members of the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) in the daily execution of their duties, when they attended the thee-day Maritime Awareness Week Open Day activities at the Caribbean Maritime Institute (CMI), last week.

Fifth form Jamaica College student, Deron Cole, was very happy that he visited the Palisadoes Park maritime institution.
“I think I could learn a lot here seeing that this is the main maritime training institution in the Caribbean,” he noted. “I am interested in the CMI, because the sea has a lot to do with civilisation and the economy, so I would like to be a marine pilot, because I am very interested in marine life,” he added.
Another Jamaica College fifth former, Jeremy Grant, is also determined to become a marine pilot, because of the job responsibilities and the salary prospects. “I like the job that the marine pilot is responsible for. When a ship is coming into a country, the marine pilot has to guide the ship through the channel; he has to study the danger zones and the good zones,” he explained. “I also like the pay that they are getting and I am looking forward to making it here next year,” he added.
The CMI offers cutting edge degree programmes in Logistic and Supply Chain Management, Cruise Tourism and Marine Management, Security Administration, Industrial Systems Operating Maintenance Engineering, among others.
Pleased with the turnout and response of the students, Mr. Pinnock extended an invitation to all maritime hopefuls to apply for a place at the institution. “If you are bright and disciplined, we are looking for global players. We are producing industry ready graduates to meet the worldwide demand of 83,000 officers worldwide,” the CMI Director said.
There were also booth displays by the JDF, Victoria Mutual Building Society (VMBS), the Natural History Division of the Institute of Jamaica, CLARO Jamaica Ltd, and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM).