ENSH Access Contest study guide
ENSH Access Contest · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The ENSH Access Contest is an assessment used by some maritime training providers and employers to gauge whether a candidate has the foundational knowledge expected before entering an ENSH-related course or role. It is not a statutory certificate and does not replace any STCW endorsement; think of it as a readiness check. The ENSH Access Contest study guide has 8 sections and about 4,037 words.
01Regulations and legal framework
This domain tests the legal architecture around a ship at sea: which instrument creates the duty, who enforces it, and which certificate or record proves compliance. Questions are situational - you are given a ship, a water area or an inspection finding and must name the rule that actually bites.
531 words, about 3 min02Radio communication procedures
This domain tests GMDSS and radiotelephony: which priority, on which channel, in what order, with which words. Marks are lost on procedure rather than vocabulary, so examiners look for the alert, the follow-up and the correct level of priority.
537 words, about 3 min03Navigation and chart work
This domain tests the paper-and-electronic mechanics of position, tide and passage planning: reading a chart correctly, converting a water track into a course to steer, and knowing what a buoy is telling you. Expect short calculations with a plotted answer.
502 words, about 3 min04Meteorology
This domain tests the practical reading of weather: pressure systems and their motion, the wind they generate, the visibility they bring, and how to keep a ship out of a tropical revolving storm. The questions are applied - a barometer reading, a wind direction and a cloud type are the inputs.
546 words, about 3 min05Seamanship and vessel handling
This domain tests how a hull actually behaves: where she pivots, how the propeller walks the stern, why she is sucked toward a bank, and how much water she loses under the keel in shallow water. Answers should be mechanisms, not slogans.
500 words, about 3 min06Safety of life at sea and emergency procedures
This domain tests the SOLAS and LSA side of survival: drills, life-saving appliances, fire chemistry and the command sequence in an emergency. Questions are procedural - what is required, how often, and who does what.
484 words, about 2 min07Maritime English
This domain tests operational English: standard phrases under the IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases, message markers, spoken numbers and positions, and the written English of logs, notes of protest and cargo documents. The examiner is testing that your message cannot be misunderstood.
429 words, about 2 min08Environmental protection and pollution prevention
This domain tests MARPOL annex by annex, plus the ballast water and anti-fouling regimes: what may be discharged, where, from which ship, and with what record. The exam favours numbers - distances from land, limits in parts per million, special areas and dates.
508 words, about 3 min