RYA stands for Royal Yachting Association. It is a UK based entity that has established training and safety standards for aspiring sailors who wish to indulge in water sports or wish to sail on an adventure. An RYA certificate is recognized globally even though it is a UK based entity. They offer a variety of courses. Let us get to know more about the RYA.
Who is the Royal Yachting Association?
Royal Yachting Association, formerly known as the Yacht Racing Association was founded in November 1875 in the United Kingdom. As the name suggests, initially, they sought out to set and standardise the rules of measurements for different racing yachts for fair competition. Later, in 1921, YRA incorporated two independent associations – the Sailing Boat Association and the Boat Racing Association – into its body. In 1952, they changed the name to Royal Yachting Association (RYA).
Now, RYA is a national governing body for all kinds of sailing and boating. They are also one of the founding members of the International Sailing Federation (now known as World Sailing) – a world governing body for yacht racing. Their goal is to promote boating and other watersports activities while promoting safety standards for yachting and sailing in the UK.
RYA Certificate Training Courses
RYA offers many training programs and courses for aspiring sailors or even for people who wish to work in the industry professionally. Their courses will allow you to familiarise yourself with essential yachting skills, safety standards, understand nautical terms, and how to sail safely and properly. With these courses, you can step up your game of sailing, boating, or yachting and seek out an adventure in your life, internationally if you wish so.
There are more than 100 courses offered by RYA. They offer onshore and offshore courses covering a wide range of topics from basic safety to advanced sailing and navigation. There are even courses for children under 16. The most popular courses are RYA Day Skipper, RYA Powerboat Level 2, RYA Marine Radio (SRC), and RYA Essential Navigation and Seamanship.
Explore more about their courses here: RYA courses and qualifications
RYA courses are linear in progression, meaning students can learn as much as they would want to learn. This completely depends on them.
Lastly, we must mention the RYA Instructor course as well. If you wish to be RYA certified to work as an RYA instructor, you should consider taking an instructor course. It could open new doors to not just a career, but also to a lifestyle and adventure for you.
Why and Where Should I Get an RYA certificate?
An RYA certificate strengthens one’s resume. It is a fine addition that boosts your proficiency with sailing, boating, or yachting – depending on what kind of RYA course you enrol into. These qualifications are recognised globally and many countries have also adapted their own training courses based on the RYA’s framework.
In South Africa, Sail and Power SA is an accredited RYA institute that provides authentic RYA courses and certificates.
RYA accredited training institutes are regularly inspected by the Royal Yachting Association itself to ensure the quality of standards for training and safety are well maintained. These training institutes are authorized to use the RYA branding and they may be selective in what kind of RYA courses they would offer to their students.
The instructors assigned for such training courses are RYA certified, meaning the training you will receive will be completely authentic. Furthermore, it will abide by the RYA standards of safety and training.
So, if you are looking for some water sports adventure, you should consider obtaining an RYA certificate. Feel free to give us a call or explore our courses on the website. We will be happy to assist you with your queries!