Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels
SOC Code: 53-5021
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels carries a 53% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $85,540 and +0.5% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 40,700 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 53% AI exposure, Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels sits 16 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 90% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
42/100
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage A- $85,540
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F +0.5%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 53% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Associate / award entry with a named growth shelf
Entry credential Associate / award covers 99 of 832 occupations; BLS places this one in Slow growth (245/832). Mid-credential standing - thicker than graduate shelves, thinner than HS-dominated mass.
Where Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
53% Higher than most higher than 90% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels's High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 53-5021) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Direct courses and speeds of ships, based on specialized knowledge of local winds, weather, water depths, tides, currents, and hazards.
- 2. Prevent ships under navigational control from engaging in unsafe operations.
- 3. Serve as a vessel's docking master upon arrival at a port or at a berth.
- 4. Consult maps, charts, weather reports, or navigation equipment to determine and direct ship movements.
- 5. Steer and operate vessels, using radios, depth finders, radars, lights, buoys, or lighthouses.
- 6. Operate ship-to-shore radios to exchange information needed for ship operations.
- 7. Dock or undock vessels, sometimes maneuvering through narrow spaces, such as locks.
- 8. Stand watches on vessels during specified periods while vessels are under way.
- 9. Inspect vessels to ensure efficient and safe operation of vessels and equipment and conformance to regulations.
- 10. Read gauges to verify sufficient levels of hydraulic fluid, air pressure, or oxygen.
Key Skills Required
- Operation and Control
- Speaking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Operations Monitoring
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Reading Comprehension
- Coordination
- Complex Problem Solving
Knowledge Areas
- Transportation
- Public Safety and Security
- Mechanical
- Law and Government
- English Language
- Geography
- Administration and Management
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
- Mathematics
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels?
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels has an AI exposure score of 53%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels is projected to grow by 0.5% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 40,700 workers.
What skills are needed for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels?
Key skills for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels include Operation and Control, Speaking, Monitoring, and others. Typical entry-level education is Postsecondary nondegree award.
How much do Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels earn?
The median annual wage for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels is $85,540, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels?
The typical entry-level education for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels is Postsecondary nondegree award. Employers generally expect Less than 5 years of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels?
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (53% here).
- Baggage porters and bellhops · AI exposure 53%
- Financial risk specialists · AI exposure 53%
- Food science technicians · AI exposure 53%
- Human resources specialists · AI exposure 53%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+0.5% here).
- Derrick operators, oil and gas · growth +0.5%
- Production workers, all other · growth +0.5%
- Continuous mining machine operators · growth +0.6%
- Editors · growth +0.6%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 19 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).