Sail/Windsurf Instructor Professional Traineeship

Flying Fish

Vacancy: Sail/Windsurf Instructor Professional Traineeship
Company: Flying Fish
Category: Sports & Outdoor Courses (Outdoor sports, Watersports)
Dates: Duration - 12 weeks
Cost: £6590 (The price includes accommodation, kit and pickup from airport but does not include flight, insurance, food or visas)

This placement would suit... Anyone looking to combine education (with professional qualifications) optional employment, travel, adventure and fun.

Sail, surf, windsurf

With courses from two to 16 weeks and a range of sports from traditional dinghy sailing to the adrenalin-packed surfing, the Sail and Board Sport (SBS) courses enable you to get qualified then take advantage of the free Flying Fish careers advice and job placement service to work all over the world for the rest of the year.

We follow the sun and wind around the world, travelling to some great training locations. From October to May we're sailing, surfing and windsurfing in Sydney, Australia. From May to October we're based at Vassiliki, Greece, for sailing and windsurfing.

Course content

The Sail/Windsurf Instructor Basic Traineeship is designed to allow you maximum time on the water developing your skills. If you work hard we can take you from beginner or early intermediate to dual-qualified instructor in a remarkably short period.

See also our sail/windsurf Instructor pro traineeship which matches the basic course and follows it with four weeks of post-qualification professional development.

The first two weeks provide intensive foundation training in either dinghy sailing or windsurfing, including personal coaching, first aid and rescue boat driving. The second two-week period is devoted to on-water skills development. You sail or windsurf every day, under the guidance of expert coaches who guarantee to improve your performance.

Next you move into a two-week period of instructor training for your first sport. You will focus on the coaching skills needed to teach beginners and develop an imaginative approach to practical teaching, as well as all the underlying theory. We make sure you have time to learn and practise all the necessary techniques before being examined.

The second half of the course is six weeks dedicated to your second sport. You start with performance training on the water and go on to refine your instructional techniques. You get the opportunity to observe and assist expert instructors in action, as well as gaining some real teaching experience of your own.

To gain instructor qualifications in both sports you will need to demonstrate RYA Intermediate Non-Planing windsurfing skills (Level 2-3), RYA Advanced dinghy sailing ability, good communication techniques, an understanding of the training schemes, in-depth theory knowledge, group management ability, safety awareness and an effective coaching style.

Flying Fish training ensures you enter your instructor assessments expecting to pass.

The Basic Traineeship is based at at Club Vass and Wildwind, twin high-performance centres at Vassiliki, Lefkas, Greece. Vassiliki is one of Europe's top high-wind resorts for windsurfing and you also will enjoy the opportunity to race high performance Hobies, Lasers and RS dinghies.

Your accommodation is at our own 'Fish House', simple tourist rooms in the village.

We combine professional training with international adventure - but it doesn't stop there. If you are serious about getting paid work as a watersports we actively help you find work. Graduates of this programme will be eligible for instructor work at an RYA or YA training centre in Australia or the UK or at a watersports club in the Med.

Multi-sport options

We offer several multi-sport courses combining windsurfing with dinghy sailing and surfing . If you want a different combination you can create an individual programme by bolting together two or more single sport courses. Many people think beyond an SBS Traineeship and go on to International Yacht Training, Professional Snow Sports or Professional Dive Training.

Our Users Say...

"I made the decision to spend part of my gap year getting qualified as an instructor as I intended to teach sailing and windsurfing during uni breaks. I now don't have to worry about what to do for summer holidays and how to pay for them as I'm doing something that's really good fun AND getting paid for it!

The Fish course was great - it really helps you to deal with people and gives you the confidence to talk to anyone. As for working at Club Vass - being here is better than a holiday!" - Denise Briggs