Besides the usual working experience, some of the following certifications will be useful:

First Aid

Offshore Survival Training

Helicopter Underwater Escape Training (HUET)

Not every employer needs you to have all of these certificates, and those who require them may offer you training when you are hired. On the other hand, having these 3 certifications certainly gives you a leg up when HR looks at your resume.

Even if your company doesn't force you to take these courses, you may want to pay your own way, especially the Offshore Survival and Helicopter Escape courses. Consider what happened recently (Feb 18, 2009) - the helicopter sending 18 Scottish oil rig workers to their oil platform crashed into the sea. Fortunately, no one was killed. Their survival training certainly saved them.

How To Find Offshore Catering Jobs

First, you have the usual suspects - Monster, Yahoo Jobs, etc. But for offshore catering, you can also check out UK's Don Pedro Agency, which specializes in maritime jobs. And don't forget to check the local newspapers if you live in the Gulf states - the offshore rigs there will advertise their openings. The employment agencies can also offer a few leads.

But always remember to look up the offshore drilling companies who operate these oil platforms. Find out how to contact them, then ask if they have any openings for offshore catering jobs. Take the initiative to do what 80% of your competitors never do, and you will greatly increase your chance of employment. With hundreds of oil services contractors operating drilling rigs, you should have no trouble finding a job.

As you can see, offshore catering jobs pay very well. Even a moderately experienced cook earns double or triple the salary of a restaurant chef on land. And if you directly contact the offshore drilling companies who operate the oil rigs, you have a pretty good chance of getting hired.