What do they do?
Ships, perhaps the most ancient mode of transport used by humans to explore the earth, still have a romance about them that is unmatched by even the fastest aircraft. Modern ships are to their early-dawn cousins what the moon rocket is to the Wright brothers’ glider. It is the marine engineer who manages the enormous propellant power and the intricate machinery of a ship, helping it cross an ocean within days.
“During the four years of training for a marine engineering degree, a student would be educated in all engineering aspects of the ship, including construction, running, operations and maintenance,” says JK Dhar, principal, Lal Bahadur Shastri College of Advanced Maritime Studies & Research, Mumbai. But this being a life on sea, there is more to learn than just about machinery. “More importantly,” says Dhar, “the student would be prepared for the career ahead, which is highly paying but hard at the same time. This career will keep him away from his family in the initial years, while he is sailing round the globe.”
On these long voyages, patience and diplomacy are as important as hardcore engineering skills. “You have to be flexible, as everybody is homesick, maybe frustrated,” says Sairam Mohan, a Bangalore-based third engineer with Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement. After eight years of sailing, Mohan, an alumnus of Vel’s Academy of Maritime Studies in Chennai, is thinking of options closer home, now that he has a wife and a child. His choices are power plants or coastal ships that largely connect Indian ports.
Months and months of living surrounded by water means not many women choose this career or go far in it. However, there are compensations — substantial ones at that. First, there is the pay, which is very high even at the starting level and then rises steadily as the promotions come. Then, there is the time off, which is four to six months in a year. Third, as a sailor, one gets to see the world.
For those who are not called away from the sea by family commitments, the top rung of the ladder is the post of chief engineer. “A marine engineer becomes chief engineer but not captain,” says Dhar. “To become a captain, one has to do a three-year degree programme in nautical science after Plus Two, then take an all-India entrance exam and subsequent exams conducted by the government of India. However, both the paths are parallel with respect to salary and career progression.”
A marine engineer normally sails for 15-20 years. After the age of 40, people usually take up shore jobs, which may be in shipyards, maritime universities or in management of a shipping company. Other employment sectors are banks, hotels and power plants. With the opportunities and rewards that this line offers, for a marine engineer, it seems, the sea is the limit.
Source: HT Horizons
