Motorboat Mechanics and Service Technicians
Repair and adjust electrical and mechanical equipment of inboard or inboard-outboard boat engines.
Most important skills
- Repairing
- Equipment Maintenance
- Troubleshooting
- Operation and Control
- Operations Monitoring
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Complex Problem Solving
Key knowledge
- Mechanical
- Customer and Personal Service
- Computers and Electronics
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Engineering and Technology
- Transportation
- Administration and Management
What the work involves
- Disassemble and inspect motors to locate defective parts, using mechanic's hand tools and gauges.
- Mount motors to boats, and operate boats at various speeds on waterways to conduct operational tests.
- Start motors and monitor performance for signs of malfunctioning, such as smoke, excessive vibration, or misfiring.
- Document inspection and test results and work performed or to be performed.
- Replace parts, such as gears, magneto points, piston rings, or spark plugs, and reassemble engines.
- Idle motors and observe thermometers to determine the effectiveness of cooling systems.
- Set starter locks and align and repair steering or throttle controls, using gauges, screwdrivers, or wrenches.
- Adjust carburetor mixtures, electrical point settings, or timing while motors are running in water-filled test tanks.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Post-Secondary Certificate (53.7% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years (29.9%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (20.2%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 3: Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Motorboat Mechanics and Service Technicians is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Lower on contact with others than 57% of occupations compared | 53% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | High | Higher on dealing with the public than 66% of occupations compared | 46% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Very low | Lower on teamwork than 83% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | High | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 74% of occupations compared | 59% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | High | Higher on time pressure than 74% of occupations compared | 42% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Conflict situations | High | Higher on conflict situations than 63% of occupations compared | 33% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | High | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 65% of occupations compared | 31% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | High | Higher on consequence of error than 75% of occupations compared | 33% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: high
- Conflict situations: high
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: high
- Consequence of error: high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 4.54%
- Contact with others about half the time: 14.64%
- Contact with others most of the time: 27.43%
- Constant contact with others: 53.39%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 8.85%
- Fairly important: 13.49%
- Important: 8.97%
- Very important: 23.13%
- Extremely important: 45.55%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 4.4%
- Fairly important: 17.48%
- Important: 10.4%
- Very important: 34.06%
- Extremely important: 33.67%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 7.66%
- Limited freedom: 2.59%
- Some freedom: 30.57%
- A lot of freedom: 59.18%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 3.96%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 14.5%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 42.32%
- Every day: 39.21%
n = 31, Incumbent 07/2015
Conflict situations
- Never: 8.26%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 29.28%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 33.25%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 9.91%
- Every day: 19.3%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 9.45%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 31.47%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 21.46%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 20.99%
- Every day: 16.63%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 5.35%
- Fairly serious: 21.96%
- Serious: 13.38%
- Very serious: 26.18%
- Extremely serious: 33.13%
n = 32, Incumbent 07/2015
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O*NET-SOC 49-3051.00 · SOC 49-3051 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8