IYT or RYA

[TS2015]

Here is an interesting set of facts I found on an IYT member website, they are not a statement form Tortola Sailing school or the opinion of the owners but I am interested to see what people have to say....
"We often get asked the question whats the difference between RYA and IYT here are the facts:
IYT operates more yachting courses with more Government approvals through more schools, in more countries and in more languages than any other yachting organsation in the world including the RYA. IYT was founded and became MCA recognized 15 years ago in May 1997.
Comparisons
IYT is a professional Yachting organisation, run by professional mariners, for professional mariners whereas the RYA is a recreational sailing organisation run by recreational yachtsmen for recreational yachtsmen.
IYT Master of Yachts certificates do not require a “commercial” endorsement because they are commercial certificates and the RYA Yachtmaster certificates are recreational certificates and therefore require a “commercial” endorsement if one wishes to work on a Yacht. A “commercial” endorsement only requires the completion of an RYA sea survival and first aid course, neither of which are *STCW compliant.
IYT has a fully approved Det Norske Veritas (DNV) quality management system in place and to the best of our knowledge the RYA has no internationally recognized quality management system in place.
IYT Master of Yachts courses have multiple Government approvals, the RYA’s do not.
IYT’s Master of Yachts theory AND practical courses have been audited and approved for content by a number of Flag State Authorities including the British Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands, the United States Coastguard. Marshall Islands Yacht Registry and several others.
IYT Master of Yachts certificates are internationally accepted and we have been reliably informed that a growing number of countries no longer accept RYA certificates (even with a commercial endorsement) as they believe that a recreational sailing organisation should not have the authority to issue “commercial” certificates, and especially those that do not comply with STCW regulations.
To obtain an IYT Master of Yachts Offshore certificate, one has to complete:
A 7-day theory, shore based course.
A 5 days at sea on a yacht either power or sail
A 5 day STCW Basic Training course consisting of Fire Fighting, Sea Survival, First Aid and Personal Safety and Social Responsibilities
Business & Maritime Law
None of the above are mandatory for the RYA and RYA Yachtmaster certificate holders are not required to complete STCW Basic training or Business & Maritime Law.
IYT requires that Master of Yachts Offshore students complete 3,000 nautical miles at sea before entry into the IYT course and the RYA only requires 2,500 nautical miles.
IYT does not allow “direct entry” into its examination system whereas the RYA allows candidates to “challenge the examination” to get an RYA Yachtmaster certificate without any formal training. The RYA does not require either a theory or practical course to be attended. IYT requires attendance of both theory and practical parts of the course and candidates are subject to continuous assessment during the whole course as well as the final practical exam.
All IYT shore based Master of Yachts certificates are numbered, controlled and issued from IYT headquarters whereas any RYA yachtmaster school can issue RYA Yachtmaster shore based certificates with no control from RYA head office.
IYT is approved by the MCA, the US Coastguard and the Marshall Islands Shipping Registry to issue STCW Basic Training certificates whereas the RYA has no authority from anyone to issue STCW certificates.
IYT is a private yachting organization, privately funded and receives no Government funding whereas the RYA receives millions of pounds in Government grants from the British Government every year.
To avoid any further confusion between IYT and RYA Yachtmaster certificates, in June 2006 the MCA gave permission to IYT to change the name of its Professional Yachtmaster certificates;
The IYT Yachtmaster Coastal is now called Master of Yachts 200 Tons (Coastal)
The IYT Yachtmaster Offshore is now called Master of Yachts 200 Tons (Offshore)
The IYT Yachtmaster Ocean is now called Master of Yachts 200 Tons (Ocean)
In Sept 2008, IYT was once again given permission by the MCA to change the name of its certificates (to avoid confusion with the RYA recreational certificates). In compliance with the STCW convention, IYT is dropping the terminology “Offshore and Ocean” from its certificates. Effective Jan 1st 2009, the new names are;
Master of Yachts Coastal becomes Mate 200 Tons / Master of Yachts Coastal
Master of Yachts 200 Tons Offshore becomes Master of Yachts 200 Tons Limited
Master of Yachts 200 Tons Ocean becomes Master of Yachts 200 Tons Unlimited
STCW Basic Training; The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) is a division of the United Nations who are responsible for (amongst other things) setting international “Standards of Training and Certification for Watchkeepers” (STCW) for personnel who work in the Maritime and Professional Yachting Industry. Currently, 181 countries comply with these regulations. IYT is authorized by the Irish Dept of Transport to issue International Certificates of Competency (ICC’s)to any mariner in the world who qualifies whereas the RYA has no such authority. Our compliance with the STCW convention for Basic Safety Training, a strong quality management system, professional maritime instructors and stringent auditing requirements coupled with insistence on completion of all aspects of the training courses ensures a well-qualified individual trained to the highest levels of professional international standards.
The demand for IYT Master of Yachts certification on a global scale has resulted in IYT licensed training facilities in Australia, Austria, Belarus, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Dubai, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Holland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lebanon, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, St Maarten, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Ukraine, United States & the United Arab Emirates with other locations opening shortly.
IYT operates more yachting courses with more Government approvals through more schools, in more countries and in more languages than any other yachting organsation in the world including the RYA. IYT was founded and became MCA recognized 15 years ago in May 1997. IYT is a professional Yachting organisation, run by professional mariners, and IYT Master of Yachts courses have multiple Government approvals, and IYT’s Master of Yachts theory and practical courses have been audited and approved for content by a number of Flag State Authorities including the British Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands, the United States Coastguard. Marshall Islands Yacht Registry and several others. IYT is approved by the MCA, the US Coastguard and the Marshall Islands Shipping Registry to issue STCW Basic Training certificates and IYT courses are available in multiple languages and operates in 43 different countries. IYT is authorized by the Irish Dept of Transport to issue International Certificates of Competency (ICC’s)to any mariner in the world who qualifies. The demand for IYT Master of Yachts certification on a global scale has resulted in IYT licensed training facilities in Australia, Austria, Belarus, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Dubai, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Holland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lebanon, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, St Marten, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Ukraine, United States & the United Arab Emirates with other locations opening shortly. IYT Master of Yachts Certificates have become the certificates of choice throughout the world for both the Professional International Yachting Community and the serious recreational yachtsman.
For additional information regarding IYT please visit the website www.IYTworld.com."