Chapter Vill: Marine Employment, Education, and Training 
Introduction 
Today over 2 million people work in the marine 
and maritime fields, almost as many as in agriculture. 
They represent a variety of occupations and, not 
surprisingly, are trained and educated in a variety 
of ways. 
The degree of Federal involvement in their train- 
ing varies. Federal aid to universities is crucial in 
the training of marine scientific and engineering pro- 
fessionals, though this role is limited to financial 
assistance and does not include direct Federal opera- 
tion of the schools. Federal programs play a large 
role in the training of merchant marine officers, 
though many officers continue to be trained other 
than through the Goyernment-supported maritime 
academies. The Federal role in the vocational train- 
ing of skilled workers and maritime seamen generally 
is limited to providing financial assistance to States 
and private schools, which are responsible for the 
actual training. Several Federal programs deal with 
marine education for the general public, ranging from 
curriculum development assistance for elementary 
and secondary schools to public information and 
public participation programs for those citizens in- 
terested in policy matters. 
Overall, the marine and maritime training and 
education system in this country is decentralized and 
diverse, with the State, local, and private roles usu- 
ally larger than that of the Federal Government. 
Yet, significant Federal involvement has been a nat- 
ural development, given both the emphasis that 
Americans attach to all forms of education and the 
vital importance of trained personnel to the national 
oceans’ effort. Furthermore, while the Federal Gov- 
ernment is only one of many governmental and 
private organizations which are involved in marine 
education, its funds greatly influence who is trained 
and for which occupations. Thus, Federal policies 
affect the entire marine education effort in this 
country. 
There appears to be little political controversy 
either about the basic Federal role or about national 
marine personnel and education policies in general. 
Some specific issues have been raised, but most ob- 
servers feel that the basic system is functioning 
satisfactorily and meeting the Nation’s marine and 
maritime personnel needs. 
Present and Projected Employment 
Total marine and maritime employment was esti- 
mated to be slightly over 2 million in 1975 and 
according to one set of projections is expected to 
be almost 2.4 militon by 1980 (tables 8-1 and 8-2: 
fig. 8-1).! In addition to this civilian workforce, in 
1975, the U.S. Navy had 549,000 uniformed person- 
nel, the Coast Guard some 38,000, and the NOAA 
Corps about 380. 
Some basic conclusions can be drawn by com- 
paring the 1975 estimates with those for 1980. A 
reasonable rate of growth can be expected in all 
parts of the field, while the largest expansion, in 
absolute numbers, will occur in the largest em- 
ployment settings (fig. 8-1). However, these 1980 
estimates may be overly optimistic, particularly re- 
garding growth for longshoremen and the ship con- 
struction industry. In fact, shipbuilding jobs may 
decrease sharply after 1978. 
Development of the Federal Role 
The Federal role in marine and maritime educa- 
tion should be discussed in the context of Federal 
education policies in general. And those policies are 
*Edward F. Mackin and Roger D. Anderson. ‘Marine Man- 
power: An Initial Assessment.” Marine Technology Society 
Journal 10, May 1976, p. 36. The authors emphasize that these 
numbers are only estimates, especially the 1980 figures. 
the result of both certain deeply-held beliefs and 
several important historical developments. 
Two beliefs are most important: One is the strong 
traditional American faith in the value of education. 
In part, this reflects the view that some Government- 
sponsored education is needed if the Nation is to 
have the trained personnel necessary for both na- 
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