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Boating Safety Classes and Courses

You are part of California’s four million recreational boaters who visit marinas, lakes, rivers, and the ocean seeking an enjoyable outdoor recreational experience.  In order to ensure that your experience is a safe and enjoyable one, it is important for you to know California’s boating regulations and guidelines.  This information can be can be found by taking a boating safety course or class. Please take your time in reading the information on this web page to find out what best fits you.

Courses

Produced and copyrighted by the Department of Boating and Waterways, this correspondence course allows boaters to study at home at their own pace and covers state and federal boating law, rules of the road, boat handling, required equipment, navigational aids, accident reporting, and special topics.

Approved by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and recognized by the U.S. Coast Guard, this course includes an optional exam with two answer sheets. The exam consists of 50 questions. Once completed, the answer sheet can be forwarded to the department for grading. Those who successfully complete the course are awarded Certificates of Completion which are recognized by many insurance companies for discounts on boat insurance policies.

How To Take the Course

You may order The California Boating Safety Course or you can download a PDF version (2.9 MB) of the course which can be read offline. You can take the test by contacting the department to obtain a Scantron form that must be completed and mailed to the department for processing. You can obtain a Scantron form by e-mailing a request to sbetzler@dbw.ca.gov or by calling (916) 263-8183. Scantron forms are not available via fax or e-mail. In exchange for successfully completing the course, we will mail you a certificate of completion (please allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery).

Approved Court-Required Boating Courses

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Classes

Aquatic Centers

Aquatic Centers operated by universities, colleges, local public agencies, and nonprofit organizations, provide classroom and on-the-water boating safety education in kayaking, canoeing, water skiing, powerboating, sailing, personal watercraft operation, and other aquatic activities.

United States Coast Guard Auxiliary Boating Safety Class List

For information on the nearest US Coast Guard Auxiliary (USCG Aux) Boating Safety/Handling course, call (toll free) 1-800-SEA-SKIL (732-7245) or visit the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary website.

The USCG Aux offers a variety of public educational classes including Boating Skills and Seamanship (BS&S) for powerboats, and Sailing and Seamanship (S&S) for sailors. BS&S and S&S generally last 13 weeks and cover legal requirements, rules of the road, aids to navigation marlinspike seamanship, charts and compasses, and boat handling. Some Auxiliary flotillas also offer classes in Basic Coastal Navigation, Boating Safely Course, Advanced Coastal Piloting, Advanced Coastal Navigation, Personal Watercraft, Sailing Fundamentals, Boats 'N Kids, and Water 'N Kids.

To register, call the telephone numbers listed below. (If no response, try after 5:00 p.m.) Classes usually meet once a week. If a class has already started, an auxiliarist at the telephone number listed for your area can provide you with information on upcoming classes. There is a small charge for text materials.

United States Power Squadrons Boating Safety Classes

For more information about any United States Power Squadrons (USPS) educational program, examination or activity anywhere in California, call 1-800-SEASKIL or visit the USPS Courses Locator. For extensive description of USPS educational opportunities, visit the USPS Web page.

The USPS offer a number of classes and home study programs open to the public. Two classroom programs, "The Squadron Boating Course," a 6-7 session program, and "Boatsmart," an 8-hour program, are presented by squadrons at locations throughout the state. Topics in each program cover: operation and handling of your boat, marine radio telephone procedures, knots and hitches, anchoring, federal and state equipment requirements, state and local regulations, aids and rules for safe navigation, medical emergencies as well as boat operation in adverse conditions. In addition, "The Squadron Boating Course" provides specialized training in charting, piloting and position determination. Instruction is oriented toward outboard, inboard, Personal Watercraft (PWC) and sail. There is no obligation to join the USPS. There is a modest charge for course and test materials.

Other USPS personal study programs are available. Two video-based programs are available. "Jet Smart" is a fast paced video training package that provides basic PWC user information. "The USPS Video Boating Course" is an extensive in-depth program consisting of a video and a self-study text covering the basics as well as specialized boating topics. This video is 'closed captioned' for the hearing impaired. In California, Call 1-800-SEASKIL for price, shipping and availability of these video programs.

A USPS Certificate of Completion is awarded after successful completion of "The Squadron Boating Course," or "Boatsmart" and the course examination. Special arrangements for examination can be obtained upon completion of "The USPS Video Boating Course" personal study program.

The USPS Certificate of Completion awarded for the successful completion and examination satisfies or exceeds all educational requirements of all 50 states and the territories.