''Seekadett'' (short SKad or SK; ,Langenscheidt´s Encyclopaedic Dictionary of the English and German language: „Der Große Muret-Sander“, Part II German-English, Second Volume L–Z, 8th edition 1999, ; p. 1.381 ) is a military rank of the

Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...

and of former German-speaking naval forces. The legal basis for the

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

is the ''Presidential order of the Federal president (german: Bundespräsident) on rank insignia and uniforms of soldiers''.The Federal president (publisher): Order of the Federal president on rank insignia and uniform of soldiers (short title: BPräsUnifAnO), ishued July 14, 1978.

Rank

'' Seekadett '' is the entrance rank to the Officer Aspirant (OA – german: Offizieranwärter) career. By the salary class, it is equivalent to the

Unteroffizier ohne Portepee (), is the designation for German junior non-commissioned officers (NCOs) in the German Armed Forces. The category was a division of the NCO class, separating junior NCOs from ''Unteroffiziere mit Portepee'', or senior NCOs (who wore the swo ...

ranks

Maat (rank) (, ) is a naval rank, of German origin, used by a number of countries. The term is derived from the low German (comrade). Via the Dutch language, the word became a nautical term and described the assistant to a deck officer. Since the second half ...

(Navy) and

Unteroffizier () is a junior non-commissioned officer rank used by the . It is also the collective name for all non-commissioned officers in Austria and Germany. It was formerly a rank in the Imperial Russian Army. Austria , also , is the collective name to ...

of Heer or

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

. It is also grouped as OR-5 in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

, equivalent to

technical sergeant Technical sergeant is the name of two current and two former enlisted ranks in the United States Armed Forces, as well as in the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. Outside the United States, it is used only by the Philippine Army, Philippine Air Force and the ...

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

petty officer second class Petty officer second class is the fifth enlisted rank in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard, just above petty officer third class and below petty officer first class, and is a non-commissioned officer. It is equivalent to the rank of ser ...

in the US armed forces. In navy context NCOs of this rank were formally addressed as ''Herr/ Frau Seekadett'' also informally / short ''Seekadett''. The name to the rank-equivalent persons in uniform of Heer or

are ''Fahnenjunker''. Pertaining authority of command, promotion, and payment level, ''Seekadett'' compares with ''Fahnenjunker'' as well. The sequence of ranks (top-down approach) in that particular group is as follows:

*OR-5a:

Obermaat '' Obermaat '' is a military rank of the Bundeswehr and earlier other German-speaking armed forces. Bundeswehr '' Obermaat '' (OMaat or in lists OMT) is a rank of the German Navy. It belongs to the particular rank group NCO's without portepee ...

/ Heer and Luftwaffe

Stabsunteroffizier ''Stabsunteroffizier'' is a military rank of the German Bundeswehr. It was preceded by the rank ''Unterfeldwebel'' that was used between 1935 and 1945 in the armed forces of Nazi Germany, the Wehrmacht. The East German National People's Army used t ...

*OR-5b: Seekadett /

Fahnenjunker ''Fahnenjunker'' (short Fhj or FJ, en, officer cadet; ) is a military rank of the Bundeswehr and of some former German armed forces. In earlier German armed forces it was also the collective name for many officer aspirant ranks. It was establi ...

*OR-5c:

Maat Maat or Maʽat ( Egyptian: mꜣꜥt /ˈmuʀʕat/, Coptic: ⲙⲉⲓ) refers to the ancient Egyptian concepts of truth, balance, order, harmony, law, morality, and justice. Ma'at was also the goddess who personified these concepts, and regul ...

Rank insignia

An officer candidate's career is indicated by the enlisted rank with the golden nautical star on the shoulder strap and sleeve in the ''Deutsche Marine'', and a thin silver cord on the shoulder strap in ''Heer'' and ''Luftwaffe''. The rank insignia of '' Seekadett '' consist of sleeve badge and shoulder straps. Sleeve insignia are on upper arms, and form two open opposite faced angles, showing (by points) upwards and downwards. The shoulder straps are bordered by a golden braid that is open to the sleeve seam. Already below the lowest officer designated rank "Seekadett" any military person, assigned to an officer career, has to wear additionally to the particular rank the two capital letters “OA”, indicating to the “Officer Aspirant” career. The "nautical star" symbolises the "OA" career.

Training and career

Officer cadets in the ''Deutsche Marine'' begin their training at the

Naval Academy Mürwik A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...

(german: Marineschule Mürwik) in Flensburg-

Mürwik Mürwik ( da, Mørvig) is a community of Flensburg in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Situated on the east side of the Flensburg Firth, it is on the Angeln peninsula. Mürwik is the location of the Naval Academy at Mürwik, w ...

holding enlisted ranks with the qualifier officer candidate (german: Offizieranwärter), abbreviated as OA. After about a year, they are promoted to ''Seekadetten'', equivalent to the non-commissioned officer (NCO) rank Mate (german: Maat), and move to the

University of the German Federal Armed Forces The German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) runs two universities—one in Munich, (Bundeswehr University Munich) and another in Hamburg ( Helmut Schmidt University)—which focus on the scientific work and the academic study of the German armed fo ...

. About nine months later, they are promoted to ''Fähnrich zur See'' rank, equivalent to the NCO rank Boatswain (german: Bootsmann). After 30 months of total training they are promoted to the final officer candidate rank, ''Oberfähnrich zur See'', equivalent to the NCO rank ''Hauptbootsmann'', and after about 4 years of total training graduate with a bachelor's degree.

References

{{Authority control Naval ranks of Germany Military ranks of Austria

Rank

Rank insignia

Training and career

See also

References