In his one year at sea, he has visited 30 ports in five continents, sailed through a typhoon and gained a load of self-confidence in the process.

And Muhammad Aliff bin Saifudeen is only 19 years old.

All this happened because he took up the Seafaring Alternative - An Investment for Life (SAIL) Scholarship.

His dreams of becoming a Ship Captain started when he was a young boy on a cruise to Phuket with his family.

Said Aliff, a final-year student in the Diploma in Nautical Studies course at the Singapore Polytechnic's Singapore Maritime Academy (SMA): 'I was amazed by the size of the cruise ship and thought it must be a remarkable experience to lead a crew, command their respect and control something that huge.'

And he had no doubts about what he wanted to do after that.

'While some of my friends and fellow students were unsure about what course or career to pursue after completing our O levels, I knew what I wanted and that was to take up the Nautical Studies course at SMA,' he said.

'With that goal in mind, I was really happy that my O-level grades met the high requirements of the SAIL scholarship.'

As part of the three-year diploma, Aliff had to serve 12 months at sea. While most students would break this up into two six-month stints, he chose to serve the whole stretch without a break.

He said: 'I didn't want to lose the momentum, respect and camaraderie that I had built up with the crew from Myanmar, Philippines and China, and the captain from Romania.'

He was posted on board a Singapore-registered bulk carrier carrying cargo like coal, ore and grain.

Before long, he familiarised himself with the ship - all 229m by 36.5m of it.

Besides being involved in maintenance work on the ship, Aliff was able to practise his navigational skills.

After four months on board, he had his first taste of steering the ship out at sea near the Indian Ocean.

He said: 'I was really excited but kept cool. The Second Officer who was guiding me said I steadied the ship well.'

Little did he know that his exciting life journey of working towards being a Master Mariner had only just begun.

He said: 'We were in the South China Sea and were warned of a typhoon in the area. My first thought was how challenging and thrilling it would be to sail through this turbulent weather.'

They were about 200 nautical miles - or about 370 km - from the centre of the typhoon and yet the strong winds made walking on deck difficult.

Aliff was unfazed as he and the crewmen worked together to deal with the situation under the guidance of the captain. Like a true-blue seaman, he said he remained calm throughout.

Aliff admitted he was at times homesick but he was comforted by the fact that he could contact his parents whenever the ship called at a port.

At a time when the local maritime industry is on the upswing, Aliff has come through his training stint convinced he made the right choice.

That is also borne out by the fact that Singapore is now home to more than 5,000 maritime establishments, which together provide 96,000 jobs and contribute some 7 per cent direct value-add to Singapore's GDP.

Aliff plans to continue his education up to the Master degree level in the field of maritime studies at a local university.

With his seafaring experience and qualifications, the range of career options available to him will include ship management, port operations, marine insurance and maritime arbitration.

His brother, Muhammad Ridhwan bin Saifudeen, is also a SAIL scholar doing his second year in SMA's Diploma in Marine Engineering course.

Ridhwan, who wants to be Chief Engineer of an ocean-going merchant ship, said: 'I have always wanted to be involved in one of the most important industries in the world, especially when over 90 per cent of the world's trade is ferried by ocean freight.'

As a Marine Engineer, he will be responsible for making sure that the ship machinery is in good working order.

When asked how their parents will cope with both children sailing, Aliff said, 'Our parents have always told us to pursue our dreams and stop at nothing.'

And these two are on their way to live their dreams, journeying the world, a port at a time, doing a job they love.

This article was first published on Jan 26, 2008