Frequently Asked Questions

The complex nature of Mercy Ships projects and programs demands a wide range of skills. We need biomedical technicians, sterilization technicians, marine officers, engineers and ratings, teachers, mechanics, and photographers, and so much more.

For a current list of opportunities, please click here.

Mercy Ships provides opportunities to serve for various lengths of time, both in shorter-term or longer-term capacities. Those wishing to serve for more than twelve (12) months must first successfully complete our On Boarding Program (including Foundations of Mercy Ships). All positions have both minimum and maximum lengths of commitment.

Please note: A married person applying to serve without their spouse can serve for up to 3 months.

Health restrictions: All volunteers must be in good health and prepared for the physical demands of both living and working on board a ship in West Africa. For example, our volunteers may be required to sleep in a bunk bed in a dorm-style room with other volunteers of the same gender.

• Did you know the ship has multiple decks, and the average crewmember climbs about 30 flights of stairs daily?
• Did you know some roles primarily work off-ship (and sometimes even live off-ship), and require a different kind of physical stamina to be exposed to the heat and African climate?
• Did you know roles such as Housekeeper, Sales Staff, Dining Room Staff, Hostess, and Galley Staff are physically demanding and require heavy lifting and manual labor?

Because a maritime authority governs us, all volunteer applicants must submit a medical history and physical evaluation, which a licensed medical professional reviews. Some pre-existing medical conditions (for example, insulin-dependent diabetes, heart conditions, pregnancy, immune-suppressed conditions, etc.) may disqualify an applicant for service due to maritime regulations and lack of guaranteed access to adequate medical care. To learn more regarding medical restrictions for volunteers, click here.

Age restrictions: Currently, volunteers must be between 18 and 70 years old* at the time of volunteer service. Exceptions to the volunteer age cap may be made at the discretion of Mercy Ships on a case-by-case basis for a short-term volunteer (serving for less than one year), in the absence of any health issues on the applicant’s part.

*As a temporary measure, Mercy Ships has instituted an upper age limit for volunteers. While age alone does not determine overall health, age has been identified as an independent risk factor for the current COVID pandemic.

We require several different inoculations for all crewmembers coming onboard.

• Yellow Fever
• Hepatitis B
• MMR
• Tetanus / Diphtheria
• COVID 19
• Tuberculosis testing

For those working in the Hospital, Dental Team, and Engineering, Hepatitis A and Typhoid are also required.

Click here to download a copy of the current immunization list.

Note: For those joining only during operational periods in Europe, the only required immunizations are Tetanus/Diphtheria and COVID-19.

Mercy Ships holds the security of its crew as our highest priority. We do not serve in conflict areas, although it has served in post-conflict venues, such as Sierra Leone and Liberia, after the cessation of hostilities. Our country security protocols are developed from evaluations conducted by an assessment team, various embassies, other NGOs and multilateral agencies, on-the-ground surveys, and government officials. Each ship is provided with dedicated security guards and a Ship Security Officer, who provide continuous watch-keeping and access control. While the ship is in the host nation conducting its field service, the Ship Security Officer maintains a working relationship with local embassy staff and other relevant contacts and the local security situation is carefully monitored with security protocols in place as necessary. At times a host nation may experience varying degrees of political and ethnic tension, requiring such protocols as avoiding certain routes or areas, or otherwise ensuring the safety of crew and patients, and the controlled delivery of services. While a Mercy Ship is capable of sailing away from a port in an emergency situation, none has been required to do so in its 40+ year history.

Mercy Ships complies with the International Ship & Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code) and has a regulatory approved Ship Security Plan (SSP) for its vessels. Our Company Security Officer (CSO) is responsible for compliance and administration oversight of the approved SSP and the CSO or his designate is available 24/7 to respond to any incidents identified by the ship’s Captain. In accordance with the signed protocol with a host nation, its government is responsible for providing port security.

We love when couples volunteer together. Placement will be dependent on respective roles being available at the same time, as well as the availability of couples housing.

We welcome couples who are not married to serve together. However, please note that you will be allocated separate cabins, and along with all crew members, should familiarize yourself with, and agree to abide by our Code of Conduct, specifically as it relates to relationships.

Please note: A married person applying to serve without their spouse may only be accepted for a maximum of three months.

The ship is very limited in the number of family cabins available and therefore they must be allocated to crew that can work full-time in a critical position onboard. When we accept any family, we expect one of the parents to work full-time while the other parent’s main responsibility (due in a large part to safety issues) would be to take care of/watch their children when they are not in school. Therefore, this would not work in the case of the single-parent family, as their time would have to be split between their parental and shipboard duties and therefore not allowing the crew member to work full-time.

When we accept any family unit, we expect one of the parents to work full-time while the other parent’s main responsibility (due in a large part to safety issues) would be to take care/watch after their children when they are not in school, taking on the role of Primary care Giver (PCG). Depending on the age(s) of the child(ren), the PCG can work part-time in a department onboard.

Children are introduced to many new cultures and nationalities onboard a Mercy Ship. They have opportunities to join their family in interacting with and learning from the patients that we serve. Our Mercy Ships Academy offers a fantastic accredited Christian international school with small classes and excellent academics. In addition, crew life onboard does often begin to feel like a large family, with many positive role models and friends for the whole family.

Many of our families have reported that they have treasured the chance to spend their days together, eat their meals together, and have fun while serving together.

This varies with the position. All technical crew should have a current certificate of Basic Training (BT) according to STCW standards. For licensed crew members, a valid certificate of competency is required, in addition to the other position-specific requirements as listed on the job descriptions.

Missing something? We may be able to help you receive certain certifications through our Maritime Training Center. If you have questions, please contact our Technical Recruiter.

Note: Some national certificates are not recognized by the flag state of our vessels (Malta). We will review your certificates during the application process.

Mercy Ships begins reviewing applications as soon as all application items are submitted from the applicant. Processing applications and reviews usually take 3-8 weeks. Timing depends on several factors including the necessity for interviews, workload of HR team, and timing of the staffing period.

All applications go through the following reviews prior to final acceptance onboard:

• Medical review – do you meet the health requirements as outlined by Mercy Ships?
• Role review – are you qualified for the position for which you’ve applied?
• Other reviews are based on expected commitment length, but may include:
• Chaplain / Crew Care Review – are you in a good place to thrive in the community?
• Academic review (for children – if coming as a family)

Mercy Ships utilizes the Spark Hire tool, which allows for a one-way interview with applicants. If one is requested, applicants are given a set of questions to answer and may record their responses when convenient for them, within a certain timeframe. The interview recordings are shared with the relevant reviewer or team leader for consideration.

For more in-depth interviews, you may be asked to meet with us for a two-way interview via video meeting or phone call. We don’t often conduct interviews for those applying to join for less than a year, though at times the supervisor onboard may request one to better understand your previous work experience and suitability for the role, as well as provide you with details of the position and what you could expect if approved.

Typically, we would interview for the following positions:

• All managers
• Communications team
• Academy teachers
• Senior engineers and officers
• Chaplains
• Information Services team
• Finance team
• Supply team
• Human Resources team
• Staff Development team
• Administrative positions
• HOPE Center team

We may also conduct a brief interview if there are concerns regarding English language proficiency, as we require CEFR English Level B1 onboard (minimum). Please click here for more details.

The Mercy Ships Staff Development department regularly offers training to equip crew for their roles with Mercy Ships. This includes training in management, leadership, cross-cultural interactions, transformational development, language, understanding Mercy Ships, safety, team-building, and other relevant topics. Departments may also offer training specific to roles, such as mariner or engineering education.

Mercy Ships does not have any rules on these situations or similar, but we do ask that each volunteer be committed to their position onboard and to fulfilling the requirements of their role, including the expected working hours.

Crew do transfer positions and even extend their service on a regular basis. While we want to avoid big staffing gaps, we do our best to honour the wishes of our crew and have the best people in the right jobs at all times.

For our leadership roles, we ask for at least a 2-year commitment. Some of our manager roles may have a shorter commitment, but our preference, for continuity and stability, is that our leaders commit to at least 2 years.

We have a Managing Director onboard who leads the crew in partnership with the Captain of each Mercy Ship. Other roles that are involved in senior management include our Hospital leadership, HR, Communications, Chaplaincy and Operations.