MERCHANT NAVY : BORN FOR WATER

All you water babies, lend me your ears. Join the Merchant Navy where money literally flows like water. What's more, you can see the world at no extra cost.
If you can bear to be away from your loved ones (we aren't talking about the ones on the ports!) for months together let's set sailing…
CAREER OVERVIEW
We hope you know what the Merchant Navy is. It has nothing to do with the Indian Navy. They are not used as an army to defend our seas from infiltrators or any such thing. The Merchant Navy comprises of passenger vessels, cargo vessels, liners, ore carriers and other types of specialised ships. These ships are operated by private sector shipping companies and manned by trained navigators, Marine Engineers and crew. Merchant Navy fleet consists of cargo ships, container ships, tankers, bulk carriers, refrigerator ships, and passenger ships.
A closer look at each of these:
Bulk carriers carry heavy weight cargo such as grain, oil, ore, etc. Container ships carry cargo in containers.
Tankers are ships, which carry oil and other petroleum products in large tanks built inside the ship.

Refrigerator ships have huge cold storage plants to carry perishable food stuff and items on specific service routes.
Passenger ships carry passengers from one place to other. These ships are either just ships with different classes for carrying passengers or are luxury cruise liners.
You could join the Merchant Navy as a Junior Navigating Officer/Second/Third Mate, or Marine Engineer (as a Fifth Engineer). You could even join as service crew. You'll work on a contractual basis for a period of six to nine months. Thereafter, you will have to upgrade your skills, get a certificate of higher proficiency, and again get a new contract on board.
Don't you want to know your responsibilities in each of these job functions? Here it is:
Mate/Navigating Officer: You are in the operation side. You'll act like a pilot (in this case a ship) and help the ship navigate its way through the rough, handle loading/unloading of cargo and ensure safe operation of the ship. Apart from that you'll also keep a watch over the many seamen, crew and passenger, ensure safety, observe and implement national and international codes of conduct, etc. You will also act as a Radio Officer (not a radio, you will be handling sophisticated electronic communication system operated through satellite), handling the communication with other ships, land, and port authorities.
Marine Engineer: You'll handle the technical side of the ship - engine and all the electrical, mechanical and electronic equipments. Maintenance of the ship in tip-top condition is your forte.
The service department manages the kitchen, laundry, house keeping, medical and other services.
Your career in Merchant Navy will start as a deck cadet (the lowest order in the hierarchy). You'll do just about everything from deck maintenance, looking after ship equipment, cargo handling to ship handling (docking, undocking and manoeuvring). You'll also be trained in handling emergencies and paper work. In other words you'll work like a dog!
If you survive that, you'll be promoted to the post of Third Officer or Safety Officer. You'll be in charge of safety procedures and the ship's equipments. You are followed by Second Mate, someone who overseas navigation of the vessel and stationery.
If you reach the post of the Chief officer/First officer, you'll will be second in command to the master and supervise the Third and Second Officers. You'll also look after the cargo. If you reach the post of Captain, you have finally made it. You are the boss now.
Promotions and better salaries depend on clearing the requisite competency exams conducted by the Ministry of Surface Transport through DGS.
On the other hand, in the engineering side, your career will start as the Fifth Engineer, and thereafter Fourth Engineer, Third Engineer and finally the Chief Engineer.
REQUIREMENTS
A basic quality here is a love for the sea. You have to be water borne. Willingness to stay away from your family comes next. Of course as you rise in your position, you will be allowed to bring your wife and children on board. But that will take some years of service.
On the personal front you should:

• Love adventure
• Have willingness to travel
• Have strong leadership abilities
• Presence of mind
• An ability to adapt to different situations/environment/people
• Be very hard working - your working hours may be all 24 hours!

Those were only the personal qualities. Now for the real issues.
To qualify a place on a Merchant Navy ship you should complete B.Sc. in Nautical Science/Deck Cadet Officer course at any of the training academies. Alternatively, one of the shipping companies could sponsor your studies, but then you would be contractually obliged to serve them for a certain number of years.
Eligibility for Deck Cadet Officer:
HSC or B.SC with Maths and Physics as their main subjects from a recognised university.
Age Limit: The age restriction is 20 years for HSC and 22 years for B.Sc. candidates. This restriction is however, relaxed for some Foreign Shipping Companies and must be verified with the companies.
Medical Standard: Candidate should be physically fit for sea service under standard norms.
Engineering branch requirements are as follows:

Degree in Marine Engineering/Mechanical Engineering from a university or institute recognised by the Ministry of Human Resources Development.

Medical Standard: Candidate should be physically fit for sea service under standard norms.

Age Limit: Maximum 25 years at the time of entry.

For Service department:

Any background will do. However, background in hotel management with experience in the hospitality business will be a great help.

In this field you need to upgrade your skills every nine months or so, through proficiency development or skill development courses in the maritime academies and pass examinations conducted by the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS). This will be your key to new contracts.
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
You could join any of the shipping companies - Indian or foreign.
Your career graph would be as follows:

• Deck Cadet
• 3rd Officer/Mate
• 2nd Officer/Mate
• Chief Officer/First Officer/Mate
• Captain

In the Engineering branch, you'll join as a Junior Engineer/Fifth Engineer. You could rise to the post of Chief Engineer Officer after upgrading your qualification. But, you cannot be the captain of the ship as that is only for deck officers.
After a successful stint or retirement, you can return to land where you work in:

• Government Surveyors of Ships
• Cargo and insurance surveyors
• Marine Superintendents of Shipping companies.
• Pilots of ships at ports.
• Lecturer in Maritime Education/training academies

Mostly you would have earned so much that you would be working just for the fun and to keep yourself occupied.
MONEY & OTHER BENEFITS
The money is good in this field. You could start off with as much as Rs 27,000 per month and work up to 1.5 - 2 lakh a month.
If you work for foreign vessels then well you will earn in dollars. Your gross salary can be as much as Rs. 4 lakh a month at the top of your career. You are usually allowed 4-months leave every year. Items like imported liquor, cigarettes are all duty-free on board.
CAREER PROSPECTS
First of all, the future does not look great at the moment. Domestic shipping industry accounts for only 30 per cent of India's total sea-borne trade (aggregate of cargo coming in and out of India). It is also decreasing over the years. This means, foreign shipping companies control rest of the 70 per cent. And it is not always easy to get jobs in a foreign shipping company. So, as a whole the job market is not growing.
The crisis has been deepened by the overall decrease in the movement of cargo across South-East Asia. Only exception is the increase in movement of petroleum products.
But the plus point is that the shipping industry is a global industry and has a cyclical nature. This means, even if South-East Asia is seeing a down turn, on a global scale, it is not that bad. Also, the industry is bound to come back on a growth track because it is cyclical in nature.
Books

Life Line: The Merchant Navy at War 1939-1945
Peter Elphick,
Combined Books
 

Gear up for a life on high seas

Merchant navy aspirants can join institutions approved by the Directorate General of Shipping to become either navigating officers or marine engineers, depending upon their choice.

Training in merchant navy in India is planned, organised, controlled, and executed under the guidance and supervision of the Directorate General of Shipping, Government of India. Every training institution should have the recognition of the DGS. There are different styles of entry as officers in merchant navy. Let us look at the important paths of entry and prominent institutions in this discipline.

There is a basic division in training: As marine engineers, and as navigating officers

Indian Maritime University

The Indian maritime university was established with its headquarters at Chennai as a Central University in 2008. It integrated into its fold seven maritime academic institutions, which were in existence:

National Maritime Academy, Chennai

TS Chanakya, Mumbai

Lal Bahadur Shastri College of Advanced Maritime Studies and Research, Mumbai

Marine Engineering Research Institute, Mumbai

Marine Engineering Research Institute, Kolkata

Indian Institute of Port Management, Kolkata

National Ship Design and Research Centre, Visakhapatnam

It is a teaching and affiliating University which will offer degree, post graduate degree, and research programmes in all maritime disciplines, including the following:

Port management

Nautical science

Marine engineering

Transport and logistics (business school)

Marine sciences

Maritime law

Naval architecture and ship building

Inland water transport

Contact: Indian Maritime University, East Coast Road, Uthandi, Chennai-600 119; Ph: 044 24530343; e-mail: info@imu.co.in.

Training Ship Chanakya

This is no ship in the conventional sense. It is a quality training institution spread over forty acres of land close to Palm Beach Road in Navi Mumbai. A shore-based academy managed and maintained by the Government of India, Ministry of Surface Transport through the Directorate General of Shipping. (TS Chanakya, Karave, Navi Mumbai 400 706. Ph: 022 - 2770 1935; e-mail: tschanakya@hotmail.com). This is the successor of TS Dufferin (1927-1972), and TS Rajendra (1972-1993).

It has fine infrastructural facilities for training. The flagship programme is that of the three-year B.Sc. (Nautical sciences) degree awarded by the University of Mumbai. Some of the other programmes in TS Chanakya are one-year diploma course in nautical science, and a three-month pre-sea course. It runs short-term programmes in areas such as fire fighting, GMDSS as well.

The selection to the three-year B.Sc. (nautical sciences) is through the All India Joint Entrance Examination conducted by IITs. Those who have passed the Plus Two examination with mathematics, physics, and chemistry as optional subjects with the prescribed minimum of marks are eligible to apply for the test, subject to age and marital status. There would be 185 seats.

The syllabus for training is drawn with a view to giving a broad based marine education with special emphasis on navigation. Other marine professional subjects and their application are also covered. The candidates are trained to take up responsibilities of navigating officers up to the captain of a merchant ship. The programme is designed to inculcate officer-like qualities and a high sense of discipline. Physical training is an essential part of the curriculum to keep the young persons fit for the tough and adventurous career at sea.

It is compulsory for all cadets to pass the swimming test before passing out from this institution.

The syllabus would touch the following areas as well.

Scholastic: Subjects like English and communication skills, applied mathematics, physics and electronics, computer science and marine management, laboratory exercises.

Professional: Navigation, astronomy, practical navigation, voyage planning including chart work, magnetic and gyro compasses, electronic navigational aids viz. radar, decca, loran, satellite navigation, GPS, GMDSS and ship operation technology, naval architecture, cargo work, ship maintenance, collision prevention and marine communications.

Applied subjects: Maritime law, marine engineering and control systems and environmental sciences (meteorology, geology, oceanography, marine pollution, hydrographic survey).

Certificate of Competency: To be employed as a navigating officer on a merchant ship, you should obtain a certificate of competency. The examinations for these certificates are conducted in India by the Ministry of Surface Transport through DG Shipping. There are specific norms relating to manning of ships and examinations for issuing Certificates of Competency. The first Certificate of Competency in the navigation department is that of a Second Mate (F.G). After successful completion of the three-year degree course in nautical sciences, the officer cadets are required to complete one-year sea service on board a merchant ship before becoming eligible for grant of Second Mate (F.G.) Certificate of Competency. You have to appear only in an oral examination and certain other mandatory courses. During sea service, you get a nominal stipend. Usually cadets get appointment in shipping companies through campus recruitment.

After acquiring a Certificate of Competency as Second Mate (F.G.), an officer is eligible to be appointed as a Third or a Second Officer. For subsequent promotions, you have to render further sea service and progressively pass the higher examinations appropriate for that rank viz. First Mate (F.G.) and Master (F.G.). The Certificate of Competency as Master (F.G.) entitles you to become the captain of merchant navy ships.

The Merchant Navy

The Merchant Navy is a non-combatant commercial fleet, which deals with transporting cargo and occasionally, passengers, by sea. Its fleet is therefore composed of passenger vessels, cargo liners, tankers, carriers, as well as other special types of vehicles. A career in this field is full of adventure and long voyages to exotic places. Above all this, the excellent pay and promising promotional opportunities make the career lucrative and exciting in spite of all the hard work life and long absence from family and home.


Eligibility & Course Areas

qualification: The minimum eligibility for courses in Nautical science and Marine engineering is 10+2 or an equivalent examination with physics, chemistry and mathematics. He should also pass a medical fitness test for sea service under standard norms and with eyesight 6/6 with no colour blindness.
Candidates wishing to enter the navigational and engineering fields of Merchant Navy need to complete a Bachelors degree in Nautical Science or Marine engineering, before they can gain admission to the field.
Selection: Candidates are selected for the B.Sc. Nautical Science degree of TS Chanakya, Mumbai; and the four-year Marine Engineering degree course at Marine Engineering Research Institute (MERI), in Calcutta and Mumbai, known as DMET, through the Joint Entrance Examination conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), which assesses the candidate’s knowledge of physics, chemistry and mathematics. The examination is followed by personal interviews/counseling, where the interviewers assess the degree of alertness, and awareness of the external environment, in the candidates and their suitability for a career in the Merchant Navy.  
The entry level for a fresh Marine Engineer (ME) is at the rank of fifth engineer or junior engineer and a Nautical Science graduate is as a Deck Cadet. Promotions depend on further examinations conducted by the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS), the quality of experience and personal merit. On successfully completing these examinations the candidate receives the 'Certificates of Competency' needed for promotion to the respective classes. This examination is conducted by the Ministry of Surface Transport, in association with the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) Mumbai, for determining the promotion prospects for the officers.



Job Prospects
Merchant Navy is the backbone of international trade, carrying cargo across the globe. Without the merchant navy, much of the import-export business would grind to a halt. Therefore trained personnel is required for various departments of the ship and this widens the scope for employment in this field.
They are offered jobs in the following major areas :
 •  By various shipping companies in the government and private sector.
 •  Foreign shipping companies also offer good job prospects.
Career options
Deck Department
The Deck Officers: Deck officer or navigation officer as the name suggests is in charge of the navigation of the ship. That particular department is called Deck department. The captain or the master of the ship is in charge of the ship. He is not only responsible for the safe navigation of the vessel but also for the discipline on the ship and safety of passengers, crew and the cargo. He must ensure the observance of national and international codes of conduct guiding sea transportation. The captain of the ship is further assisted by first mate, second mate and third mates. The First Mate / Chief officer is the right-hand man to the Captain; the second in-command. He overseers all the cargo planning, assists during navigation, allocates duties and work for the maintenance and upkeep of the ship to the Deck Cadets and deck crew, ensures that discipline and order are maintained. The Second Mate / Second officer, assistant to the First Mate is in-charge of checking all mails and keeping the navigational equipment and charts in good condition and also assists in navigational watches at sea and cargo watches at port. The Third Mate / Third officer is responsible for keeping safety equipments -the lifeboats, firefighting and signaling equipment in top condition; acts in the capacity of signal officer and assists with cargo work. 
The deck department also has other staff with specific duties called 'ratings'. They act as look outs and helmsmen, assist with the securing of the ship as it docks at ports and help clean tanks and holds before the cargo is placed in them.

Service Department
The work undertaken here revolves around the living and catering services for all the crew on board. A chief steward heads a large team of stewards, bakers, mess men etc. Apart from this, the department also has other services such as the services of Divers for underwater examination of the heel of the ship, propellers, pipes etc. Light Keepers, who operate light house signaling equipment to guide incoming and passing  ships, and Nautical surveyors, who prepare charts of particular regions of the seas, with regard to topography and conditions of the sea.

   
After completing 18 months of sailing time the third officer can appear for the Chief Officer/ First Mate Foreign Going Examination. Here again the candidate is required to attend 6 months classes in Lal Bahadur Shastry Nautical College, Mumbai. A further period of 18 months sailing time is required before a candidate can appear for Masters foreign Going Exam. The process of rising from a deck cadet to the master of a ship will take a minimum of at least 12 years.


Institutes

Coaching center for Merchant Navy Selection
The Horizons
B-xx-83, college road civil lines
Ludhiana, Punjab
Phone  :0161-3941308
E-Mail :Contact Us, Contact Us 
Website : http://www.thehorizons.in/
The institute is Authorized by stet maritime education pvt ltd Singapore, to select candidates and send them to Singapore for training and jobs. The institute also prepare fresh candidates and help them for selection into world's best shipping companies. It is  run by a master mariner, committed to quality and excellence.
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