The Oiler rating (NMC QMED03) is examined in two modules — Q804 Oiler Part I and Q805 Oiler Part II — each 70 questions at a 70% pass mark. It is the classic entry engine-room rating: you support the watch on motor and steam propulsion plant, lube and fuel-oil systems, pumps, and auxiliary machinery.
2
Modules — Q804 + Q805
70
Questions per module
70%
Passing score
3.5 h
Time per module
Oiler is examined in Q804 Oiler Part I and Q805 Oiler Part II. Each module is 70 multiple-choice questions at a 70% pass mark, 3.5 hours long. In the engine-room exam room you may reference 46 CFR and 33 CFR only.
The subject set derives from the Oiler column of Table 1 to 46 CFR 12.505(c). We drill each of these areas:
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Sea service (46 CFR 12.503)
6 months of service in a rating at least equal to Wiper or Coal Passer on the appropriate class of vessels (46 CFR 12.503). Graduates of an approved training ship qualify with no further service, and other approved training can substitute for up to half of the required service.
Fees (46 CFR 10.219)
$280 in Coast Guard fees — $95 evaluation + $140 exam + $45 issuance. You also need a USCG medical certificate (CG-719K), a drug test, and a TWIC (46 CFR 10.203).
See the full application flow and the other ratings on the QMED hub, or find where you test in the REC locations guide.
The widest engine-room rating — propulsion, electrical, refrigeration, hydraulics, thermodynamics, and maintenance.
Practice Junior EngineerDC/AC theory, motors and generators, switchboards and distribution, batteries, troubleshooting, and refrigeration.
Practice Electrician/Refrigerating EngineerThe Oiler endorsement (NMC QMED03) has two modules — Q804 Oiler Part I and Q805 Oiler Part II. Each module is 70 multiple-choice questions with a 70% passing score, and you have three and a half hours per module. You take the modules at a Regional Examination Center after the NMC approves your application.
Every original QMED rating, including Oiler, requires 6 months of service in a rating at least equal to Wiper or Coal Passer under 46 CFR 12.503. Graduates of an approved training ship can qualify without further service, and other approved training can substitute for up to half of the requirement.
No. The Coast Guard stopped publishing its exam bank in 2016, so nobody has the live questions. CaptainsGround uses original questions calibrated to the NMC Oiler exam format, and every answer is cited to a public source — 46 CFR, plus public-domain engineering references — so you can verify each one.
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