The conducted research was induced by the lack of research into the motivation for choosing a maritime career in Croatia, which is a traditional maritime country. The main objective of the research was to examine the reasons for enrolling in secondary school programs and undergraduate studies related to two maritime orientations (nautical navigation and marine engineering) in Croatia. The survey involved 403 students from seven secondary schools and 264 students of undergraduate studies. The reasons for enrolling in maritime education are categorized into two groups; motivation related to choosing a maritime career and motivation unrelated to a maritime career. The analysis of the obtained data indicated that the choice of maritime education orientation was dominated by the motivation underlying the selection of the maritime profession (79 % in the secondary and 93 % in the higher education students' sample). The identified reasons (strong interest in the nature and dynamics of the maritime profession, employment opportunities, wage rates and tradition) were categorized according to the level of autonomous regulation in selection. The reasons for choosing a maritime course of education unrelated to the maritime profession are particularly prevalent in the sample of secondary school students.