How to Get an Offshore Job With No Experience in 2026

Every year thousands of people search "how to get a job offshore with no experience" — and every year most give up because the industry looks impossible to break into. It isn't. You just need the right certifications, the right CV and the right target list of employers.

Can you get an offshore job with no experience?

Yes. Roustabout, catering, steward, stores and trainee scaffolder roles are all designed for people with zero offshore hours. Every OIM on the North Sea started as a green hat. The catch is that "no experience" does not mean "no certifications" — you still need your basic offshore tickets before anyone will look at your CV.

Entry-level offshore jobs to target

• Roustabout — deck crew, general labour, slinging loads. The most common entry point.
• Steward / catering assistant — accommodation crew, quick to get started, good rotation to test if offshore life suits you.
• Stores operative — inventory, backloads, permit-to-work exposure.
• Trainee scaffolder / trainee rigger — apprentice-style routes with contractor companies.
• Wind farm CTV crew — deck ratings on crew transfer vessels, growing fast in the UK.

The minimum certifications you need first

Your CV is the actual barrier

"No experience" applicants get filtered out because their CV does not speak offshore. Recruiters and ATS software search for terms like BOSIET, MIST, OGUK, permit-to-work, toolbox talk, STOP card, PPE, LOTO. Rewriting your background — construction, military, maritime, warehouse, trades — into that language is the difference between "no reply" and a first rotation.

Our offshore CV writing service is designed for exactly this — reframing non-offshore experience so it reads as offshore-ready. If you already have a CV, run it through the free ATS CV checker first.

Where to actually apply

• Specialist offshore agencies: Petroplan, Orion Group, Fircroft, NES Fircroft, Airswift, Cammach Bryant
• Direct operator careers pages: Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, Harbour Energy, Serica, Ithaca, Equinor
• Drilling contractors: Transocean, Valaris, Noble, Stena Drilling, KCA Deutag
• Wind farm operators: Ørsted, RWE, Vattenfall, SSE Renewables, ScottishPower Renewables
• Trade Facebook groups and LinkedIn — genuinely still where 40% of green hats get their first callback

A realistic 8-week action plan

1. Week 1 — book BOSIET, OGUK medical and MIST at Aberdeen, Newcastle, Great Yarmouth or Teesside
2. Week 2–3 — rewrite your CV in offshore language (or get it professionally done)
3. Week 4 — attend the courses; certifications in hand
4. Week 5 — register with 6+ agencies, apply to 20+ direct operator adverts
5. Week 6–8 — chase weekly, keep applying, expect 1st interview by week 8–12