Become an Instructor

Instructing is a great way to introduce people to sailing, help participants develop new skills and build confidence on the water. Australian Sailing provides opportunities for instructors to develop their knowledge, gain accreditation and deliver engaging learning experiences while helping more people discover and enjoy sailing.

General Requirements

Each of the instructing streams have specific accreditation requirements. In addition to those accreditation-specific requirements, you must also:

Maintain a current Applied First Aid Certificate
Comply with Working with Children legislation in your State/Territory. For more information on this, click here.
Comply with relevant State Maritime Licence requirements
Pay an Annual Renewal fee

Note: Australian Sailing no longer collect and store external certificates (e.g. First Aid Certificates, WWCC, Boat/Marine/RST License, etc) however these are requirements for many Coach and Instructor roles. These are not requirements to obtain the accreditations, however you should contact your place of employment to discuss their requirements.

Choose Your Discipline

If you already hold an Instructor accreditation, you may be eligible for a reduced set of requirements when gaining additional disciplines. Find 'Requirements as a Subsequent Accreditation' in the Accreditation and Reaccreditation section of the relevant accreditation page (this is not available for Assistant Instructor accreditations).

Click the button under each discipline to learn more about the accreditation pathway and how you can get involved:

Note: Safety & Sea Survival is quite a bespoke accreditation. As a result, Safety & Sea Survival has it's own hub separate from the regular Instructor accreditations.

Dinghy Assistant Instructor

Assist with the delivery of dinghy sailing programs, supporting participants as they develop their basic sailing skills and confidence on the water.

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Windsurfing Assistant Instructor

Assist with the delivery of windsurfing programs, supporting participants as they develop their basic skills and confidence on the water.

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Dinghy Instructor

Deliver quality experiences in the Off-the-beach programs at Discover Sailing Centres including Tackers, Dinghy Program and OutThere Sailing.

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Keelboat Instructor

Deliver quality experiences in the Start Crewing, Start Helming and Start Skippering Keelboat Programs at Discover Sailing Centres.

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Windsurfing Instructor

Deliver quality experiences for participants in the Windsurfing Program at Discover Sailing Centres.

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Powerboat Instructor

Deliver quality experiences for participants in the Powerboat Program at Discover Sailing Centres.

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Wing Instructor

Deliver quality experiences for participants in the Learn to Wing Program at Discover Sailing Centres.

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Safety & Sea Survival Instructor

Safety and Sea Survival Instructors play a vital role in equipping sailors with the knowledge, practical skills and confidence to respond to emergencies at sea.

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Did you know?

The Dinghy, Keelboat and Windsurfing Instructor accreditations provide the pathway to become a Racing Instructor in your respective discipline?

Click the Learn More button for your discipline and scroll to the bottom to locate 'Upgrade Your Qualification'.

Senior Sailing Instructor

Senior Instructors deliver training for Instructors and Assistant Instructors, provide feedback, and assess candidates consistently and fairly. Senior Instructors are appointed by Australian Sailing so if you’re interested, contact your local Club Support team and let them know you're interested.

Find your Club Support Team

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

If you have completed an equivalent Instructor or Coach course either within Australia or overseas, you may be eligible for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Similarly, you may already possess a required certificate for your accreditation. If this is the case, click the button below:

Apply for RPL