Indian Maritime University (IMU) Chennai is obviously better than Vels University. It has a brand of its own and is known outside of Chennai as well. Vels University, on the other hand, is just like any other university and anyone hardly outside Chennai even knows about it.
The study environment at Vels University is not at all good though other facilities are good to decent. I would say that if you want to relax and just want a degree after 3-4 years of enjoyment, go to Vels University. Otherwise, IMU Chennai is the one to go for.
In the campus placement for Indian Maritime University, shipping companies recruit the cadets deck/engine. The placement packages offered by these companies vary. Usually, during the training period, the stipend offered to the students ranges between INR 30,000-INR 37500. After clearing the examination, as an officer (operational level) you will get around INR 2.2 lakhs depending on the company and the post. Your salary will increase as you get promoted.
Indian Maritime University offers fewer placement opportunities compared to private universities. It’s because Govt. colleges don’t pay placement fees to companies to hire students. However, If you want to join Govt. Sector, an IMU degree can help. Also, the Govt. has taken shipping as a challenge to boost our economy, so you can expect to get new job opportunities in the field.
Career change options are limited for Marine Engineers. As a Marine Engineer, you can’t fit into other professions and the opposite is also true. You need to be a 2nd engineer or a Chief to stop going to sea and start a career on shore. You can get some career options by doing an MBA. Various universities offer PG Diploma in Marine Engineering. Marine Engineering students can appear in GATE as well, but the questions asked in the examination are from Mechanical Engineering.
I am not familiar with the specialization in which you want to do your MBA. Comparing BIMTECH and IMU is not justified, it is like comparing apples with oranges.
IMU offers two MBA programs:
BIMTECH offers PGDM (equivalent to MBA) programs in the following streams –
Categories | MBA at BIMTECH | MBA at IMU |
Course Fee | 9-12 lakh | 4 lakh |
Highest CTC | 15 LPA | 13 LPA |
Average CTC | 7-8 LPA | 6 LPA |
Recruiting Companies | American Express, Infosys, Google, Pantaloons, etc. | Goodwood, Posh, Ocean Sparkle, Aurus, etc. |
I believe that you must first decide your interest in specialization and then proceed with the choice of colleges.
Some of my friends go to Indian Maritime University, Chennai. Based on what I heard from them, here is a brief highlight of the campus life at the university.
This should give you some idea about the campus life at IMU, Chennai.
Each campus of Indian Maritime University (IMU) specializes in a specific field. So, it depends on which stream related to the Maritime field, you are applying for.
You should choose your preferred campus according to the course and stream you are choosing.
MBA in Shipping and Port Management is a niche field of study. But this course is in high demand. If you are interested in the field, it doesn’t really matter that it is a specialized field. A graduate in Shipping and Port Management with decent skills makes almost double/triple of their equivalent MBA graduates. The reason for it is the less number of good Maritime professionals.
IMU offers decent MBA courses. The Kolkata campus has a good faculty base. However, you shouldn’t entirely depend on the on-campus placement drive for employment. If you have the required skills, you can easily get placement opportunities.
The placement scenario for Indian Maritime University hasn’t been great over the last few years, but the status of the institute is certainly not degrading. This year around 80% of the students got placed through campus placements. Fleet management, Thome, Anglo-Eastern, etc. are among the major recruiters. As a cadet, students get around INR 5 LPA - 6 LPA.
To join Indian Maritime University, you will need a fit certificate from a doctor approved by DG Shipping Govt. of India. They will do a medical checkup to see, whether you are fit for the Marine field or not. The required medical test will include eye tests, ear tests, etc. Your eye vision is more important here. Your eye vision should be 6/6. You also shouldn’t have color blindness.
If you have a choice between Indian Maritime University and Tolani Maritime Institute, you should choose the latter. I have friends from both these institutes. Based on their experiences, I will say Tolani Maritime Institute is better than IMU in terms of facilities, faculties, management, training, placement. According to the recent placement highlights, the placement average is 80%. Some of the major recruiters that visit the campus placements are Teekey, NYK, MSI, etc.