How To Become A Second Officer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a second officer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a second officer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $24.24 an hour? That's $50,426 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 1% and produce 500 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreSecond OfficerUS Average

Salary

3.9

Avg. Salary $50,426

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

9.1

Growth Rate 1%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.09%

Asian 3.15%

Black or African American 6.92%

Hispanic or Latino 8.96%

Unknown 4.74%

White 75.15%

Gender

female 11.86%

male 88.14%

Age - 40.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 40.5

Stress Level

9.1

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.1

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

2.3

Work Life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Newest jobs for Second Officer in Columbus, OH

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Key steps to become a second officer

Explore second officer education requirements

Most common second officer degrees

Bachelor's

69.6 %

Associate

11.9 %

Master's

8.3 %

Start to develop specific second officer skills

Skills	Percentages
Safety Equipment	37.00%
Vessel Operations	23.69%
Chart Corrections	5.46%
USCG	5.07%
Emergency Equipment	5.05%

Complete relevant second officer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New second officers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a second officer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real second officer resumes.

Research second officer duties and responsibilities

Comply with stringent local, federal, USCG and international regulations.
Train, direct and supervise ship operators in proper and effective use of GPS, radar and radio equipment while underway.
Operate flight instruments, navigation systems and radar equipment on C-130E aircraft.
Conform and build training requirements that meets or exceeds OSHA and CFR guidelines.

Prepare your second officer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your second officer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a second officer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Second Officer Resume templates

Build a professional Second Officer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Second Officer resume.

Apply for second officer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a second officer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do second officers rate their job?