Indian Maritime University (IMU): Campuses, Courses, IMU CET & Fees Guide (2026)

What Is Indian Maritime University?

Indian Maritime University is a Central University established by an Act of Parliament in 2008, functioning under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India. Headquartered in Chennai, IMU is a teaching-cum-affiliating university — meaning it runs its own campuses directly while also affiliating a network of private institutes that follow its curriculum and admission process. IMU is a member of the International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU), reflecting its role as India’s primary institution for global maritime standards compliance.

IMU Campuses

IMU operates six campuses across India’s major port cities:

• Navi Mumbai – flagship campus, home to the historic T.S. Chanakya nautical training ship-turned-campus
• Mumbai Port Campus
• Chennai – IMU’s headquarters
• Kolkata
• Visakhapatnam
• Kochi

Beyond these six, IMU has around 18–19 affiliated institutes across India — private colleges that offer IMU-recognised degrees and admit students through the same IMU CET process, extending its reach well beyond the six directly-run campuses.

Courses Offered at IMU

IMU offers programs across diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral levels, spanning four broad streams — nautical science, marine engineering, maritime management/logistics, and general engineering:

Not every course is offered at every campus — course availability differs by location, so it’s worth checking the current IMU prospectus for which campuses run which programs before finalising your IMU CET city/state preferences.

IMU CET: The Entrance Exam

Admission to IMU campuses and affiliated institutes runs almost entirely through the IMU Common Entrance Test (IMU CET) — a national-level exam conducted annually.

Exam structure:

• Computer-based test, single sitting
• UG technical programs: 200 multiple-choice questions covering English, General Aptitude, Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics at Class 12 level
• MBA and MTech entrance papers: 120 questions each
• Negative marking of 0.25 marks per wrong answer applies across all papers
• All three papers (UG, MBA, MTech) are held at the same time on the same date, so a candidate can attempt only one

Eligibility for UG courses:

• Minimum age 17 years
• 10+2 (or equivalent) with a minimum 60% average in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics
• Minimum 50% marks in English in Class 10 or Class 12

Eligibility for PG courses:

• A BSc or BTech degree in Mechanical, Civil, Naval Architecture, or a related discipline

Registration fee: ₹1,200 for General, General-EWS, and OBC (NCL) candidates; ₹800 for SC/ST candidates, for both UG and PG programs.

Admission process after the exam:

1. Appear for IMU CET and receive an IMU-CET Rank Certificate
2. Register on IMU’s online counselling portal once the rank list is released
3. Select preferred campuses/affiliated institutes and courses during counselling rounds
4. Complete document verification and confirm seat allotment
5. Complete DG Shipping-mandated medical fitness test before final admission

Important note for DNS aspirants specifically: IMU does not conduct a separate entrance test for later-year batches — candidates targeting a particular admission cycle must appear for the IMU CET held earlier in that same year, so timing your application correctly matters.

IMU Fees

Fee structures vary by course and whether you’re at a directly-run IMU campus or an affiliated institute:

Affiliated private institutes admitting through IMU CET (like Tolani Maritime Institute, HIMT College, and Samundra Institute of Maritime Studies) typically charge higher fees than IMU’s own campuses, even though admission runs through the same entrance exam — so it’s worth comparing a direct IMU campus seat against an affiliated-institute seat before finalising your counselling preferences.

Placements at IMU

IMU campuses attract placement visits from major shipping companies and maritime-adjacent employers each year, including names like Delta Corp and MMSI among the recruiters known to participate in campus placement drives. As with any maritime institute, actual placement outcomes vary by course, campus, and individual performance in interviews — treat placement claims (from IMU or any competing institute) as a starting point for your own verification rather than a guarantee.

Is IMU the Right Choice for You?

IMU’s biggest advantages are government backing, comparatively lower fees than most private alternatives, six campuses to choose from, and a curriculum aligned with international STCW standards. The trade-off is that admission is competitive and entirely rank-based through IMU CET — there’s no direct-admission or management-quota route at IMU’s own campuses the way there sometimes is at private institutes. If you’re aiming for the most cost-effective, academically credible route into merchant navy and are prepared to compete on IMU CET rank, IMU is generally the strongest starting point; if you’re prioritising guaranteed company sponsorship above all else, it’s worth comparing against private institutes with direct shipping-company placement pipelines as well.