MAR50320 is the nationally recognised Diploma of Maritime Operations. It prepares you for work as a ship's master. It has been the current version on the national register since 2021, when it replaced MAR50220. Employers posted about 49 ship's master jobs in June 2026, down 4.6% on a year earlier.
The independent signals behind the Diploma of Maritime Operations line up. Ship's masters are in national shortage, employment is projected to grow through 2035 and enrolments are rising. These are official statistics, not a promise about your result.
Job ads for ship's masters are holding steady. About 49 ship's master jobs were advertised online in June 2026, down 4.6% on a year earlier. Over the last 12 months there were about 800 job ads, while 60 people were training in the qualification nationally (2025). Ads show the market. Enrolments show the pipeline. Neither is a job promise.
Australia's official shortage list rates master fishers, ship's engineers, ship's masters and ship's officers as in shortage. The 2025 Occupation Shortage List rates Master Fisher, Ship's Engineer, Ship's Master and Ship's Officer as in national shortage; Marine Surveyor and Marine Transport Professionals nec as not in shortage.
Ship's master jobs are projected to grow. Jobs and Skills Australia projections put these occupations at 10,549 workers in May 2025, 11,103 by May 2030 (up 5.3%) and 11,813 by May 2035 (up 12%).
Enrolments in the Diploma of Maritime Operations are growing. Across Australia, 50 people enrolled in 2024. In 2025 it was 60, up 20% in a year. National data for MAR50320 starts in 2022.
The register and the national framework set some of this. Providers set the rest.
State funding for MAR50320 is being verified against official program lists.
Eligibility and student contributions vary by program and provider. The official state listing is the source of truth. In a subsidised place the government pays most of the tuition and you pay a co-contribution set by the program and provider.
The register lists 19 core units for the Diploma of Maritime Operations, plus 30 elective options. Prerequisites apply to Five of them, marked below.
No Get Course partner currently lists this qualification. Check the national register for organisations approved to deliver it, and remember that approval to deliver is a regulatory fact, not a recommendation. You can browse live courses from our partners and enquire today.
Browse coursesGet Course maps MAR50320 to its occupations using the register’s own outcome wording, shown with ANZSCO codes (here, 2312) so the mapping can be checked. Job advertisement counts come from the Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index and count online ads, not vacancies filled. Enrolment counts come from NCVER Total VET Activity and count people in training, not completions. Funding rows appear only after verification against the official state program list. Source vintages: register training.gov.au, synced 17 September 2026; employment projections May 2025 to May 2035 release; Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index latest month June 2026; Occupation Shortage List 2025 assessment; NCVER Total VET Activity 2025 collection; register synced 18 Sept 2026. Page last updated 19 Sept 2026.