We offer many Advance courses and seminars during the year.

Squadrons Offer Top-Notch In-Person Training
When you want in-person boating education from certified instructors, we offer several types of training to meet your needs. You can dive deep with 6–8 week courses, get your feet wet with 2-hour seminars and take the helm with our flexible on the water boating instruction led by certified volunteer instructors who are boaters just like you. Our clubs offer instruction tailored to the needs of local boaters.

Dive Deep With Courses
Beginner, intermediate or advanced—whatever your skill level, we have in-depth courses to boost your knowledge and confidence on the water. Our courses will prepare you to boat safely whether you’re near shore or out on the deep blue. Courses take anywhere from 6–8 weeks.

Take the Helm With Hands-On Training
Feel more confident and look more confident handling your powerboat. Our hands-on training program helps you develop handling skills and techniques that last a lifetime. Our experienced, certified instructors combine classroom learning with on-the-water coaching. That means with technical education plus real-world techniques, you get onto the water and into fun, safer and faster!

Advance Courses:

· Seamanship builds your competence and confidence on the water with an in-depth look at the practical boating skills.

· Piloting and Advanced Piloting give you the skills you need to get where you’re going using charts and marine electronics as well as a knowledge of winds, currents and tides.

· Junior Navigation and Navigation, a must for oceangoing captains, teach you about planning and monitoring your voyage using modern marine electronics and how celestial observations can help you estimate your vessel’s position with confidence.

· Cruising and Cruise Planning

· Engine Maintenance
· Marine Electrical Systems
· Marine Communications Systems
· Electronic Navigation

· Sailing Course
· Weather

Advanced Grades Courses
Five Advanced Grade courses are offered by USPS. They are designed to be taken in sequence because each builds on skills taught in the previous course.

Piloting Insignia Piloting (P)
Piloting is the first of the advanced navigational classes focusing on techniques for piloting a boat in coastal and inland conditions. The course emphasizes planning and checking along with the use of GPS for determining position, and introduces digital charting along with traditional charting, compass and dead reckoning skills. Plotting, labeling, use of the compass, aids to navigation and a host of related topics are included in this all-new approach to coastal and inland piloting. The insignia is shown on the right.Both Seamanship and Piloting Insignia

Note: the insignia for completing both Seamanship and Piloting is two bars, as shown. The awardee is called a USPS Pilot as well. The insignia is shown on the right.

Advanced Piloting (AP)
Advanced Piloting is the final part of the inland and coastal navigation series. This material continues to build on the base developed in Piloting, and includes practical use of additional electronic navigation systems and other advanced techniques for finding position. Among topics covered are: finding position using bearings and angles, collision avoidance using GPS and RADAR, what to do when the electronics fail, tides, currents and wind and their effect on piloting, and electronic navigation with GPS, chart plotters, RADAR, autopilots, etc. Application of course lectures takes place through practical in-class and at-home exercises. The one star insignia is shown on the right.

Junior Navigation (JN)
Junior Navigation is the first of a two-part program of study in offshore (open coast) navigation. It is designed as a practical, how-to course using GPS for offshore navigation with sun sight taking using a sextant as a backup technique. The more advanced techniques for other celestial bodies and sights are for study in the subsequent Navigation Course. JN subject matter includes: basic concepts of celestial navigation; how to use the mariner’s sextant to take sights of the sun; the importance and techniques of accurate time determination; use of the Nautical Almanac; how to reduce sights to establish lines of position (LOPs); and the use of GPS, special charts, plotting sheets and other navigational data for offshore positioning and passage planning. The two star insignia is shown on the right.

Navigation (N)
This is the second part of the study of offshore navigation. It further develops the student’s skills and understanding of celestial theory. The student is introduced to additional sight reduction techniques for bodies other than the sun. The student develops greater skill and precision in sight taking, positioning and the orderly methods of carrying on the day’s work of a navigator at sea. Of particular interest and importance is the navigation software that is explained and used in practices for planning and navigating in the offshore environment with the included software. Offshore navigation using minimal data and/or equipment, such as when on a disabled vessel or lifeboat is also studied. The three star insignia is shown on the right.