Physical  Examination

Applicants for admission to Maine Maritime Academy are required to complete a physical examination for determination of their physical qualifications. Medical forms are sent to the student upon receipt of their application of admission. The examination should be conducted by the applicant’s family physician. It is imperative that all items on the form be answered correctly. Submission of fraudulent information and/or documents is a severe misrepresentation and grounds for rejecting your application for admission to Maine Maritime Academy. The physical examination does not have to be completed before an admissions decision is made.

Applicants for a U.S. Coast Guard License

Students enrolling in the U.S. Coast Guard license programs must meet the requirements governing physical condition, citizenship, and prior presentation. License majors include:

  1. Marine Engineering Operations
  2. Marine Engineering Technology
  3. Marine Systems Engineering – Design/License program
  4. Marine Transportation Operations
  5. Small Vessel Operations

These requirements cannot be waived unless special permission is obtained from the appropriate federal office or agency. Except by special condition, applicants desiring a U.S.C.G. license must meet the following physical requirements:

Height: no limitation prescribed
Weight: proportional to height and age

Vision
Mate: Visual acuity must be correctable to at least 20/40 in each eye and uncorrected vision of at least 20/200*in each eye. The color sense must be determined to be satisfactory when tested by any of the following methods:
  • Pseudoisochromic Plates (Dvorine, 2nd edition: AOC revised edition or AOC-ERR: Ishihara 16-, 24-, or
    36-plate editions).
  • Eldridge-Green Color Perception Lantern
  • Farnsworth Lantern
  • Keystone Orthoscope
  • Keystone Telebinocular
  • SAMCTT (School of Aviation Medicine Color Threshold Tester)
  • Titmus Optical Vision Tester
  • Williams Lantern
Engineer: Visual acuity must be correctable to at least 20/50 in each eye and uncorrected vision of at least 20/200* in each eye. Applicants need only to have the ability to distinguish the colors red, blue, yellow, and green.

* – A waiver will be required for those students seeking a USCG license whose vision is between 20/200 and 20/800. Questions concerning the waiver process should be directed to MMA’s Director of Health Services at 207-326-2295.

General Health

Applicants for a license program must be free of any disease or constitutional defect that would compromise shipboard safety while at sea. Contact the director of health services for clarification of special disorders that may disqualify a student from a license program.

NOTE: Applicants accepted into a USCG license program will be required to complete an exit physical examination on campus during the senior year prior to taking the USCG exam. Should this subsequent examination show physical deficiencies below the standards established for a USCG license, the student may not be allowed to sit for the exam and may be required to change his or her major to a non-license program.