Electro-Technical Officer (ETO) on Ships

Keeping a ship's power plant, generators, high-voltage switchboards, motors, lighting, alarms, navigation electronics and automation systems running. This means fault-finding, planned maintenance, safety checks and working with the engineers on board.

A day in the work
You start with the morning watch-round or planning meeting with the Chief Engineer and check alarms, generators and switchboard readings. Then you might trace a fault in a pump motor, test insulation on a cable or repair a navigation or automation card. Some days you do planned maintenance and safety paperwork. Other days a sudden breakdown means you work late with the engine team. Meals, rest and calls home fit around the ship's schedule, and you may be away from home for months.

1. Step 1 · Class 10–12Take Physics, Chemistry and Maths in Class 11–12, with English as a subject. Approved institutes ask for at least 50% in English in Class 10 or 12, and some want much higher marks overall. Keep your marks healthy. (reported — check with the official body)
2. Step 2 · After Class 12, 3–4 yearsComplete a recognised 4-year B.E./B.Tech in Electrical, Electronics, EEE, Electronics and Telecom/Communication, or Electronics and Instrumentation (about 50% or more). Or complete a 3-year diploma in the same fields (about 60% or more). Make sure the college is recognised by the State/Central Government or AICTE. (reported — check with the official body)
3. Step 3 · Before joining the coursePass the sea-going medical with a DG Shipping-approved doctor. Eyesight, hearing and normal colour vision are tested. You also need a valid Indian passport and must clear the institute's admission test. Institutes set their own age caps, commonly about 26 to 28 for fresh graduates. (reported — check with the official body)
4. Step 4 · 4 monthsDo the residential ETO pre-sea course at a DG Shipping-approved institute. It includes the basic STCW safety courses. Afterwards you apply for your CDC (seafarer's identity document) and join a shipping company as a trainee ETO. (reported — check with the official body)
5. Step 5 · About 6–8 months at seaWork as a trainee ETO on a ship and fill in the approved ETO Training and Assessment Record (TAR) Book. DG Shipping's rules ask for at least 6 months of sea service in an approved training programme. Institutes describe around 8 months of onboard training. Many institutes arrange sponsorship from shipping companies, and stipends are paid (reported).
6. Step 6Appear for the written and oral examinations held by DG Shipping and get your ETO Certificate of Competency.
7. Step 7 · OngoingSail as an ETO on ships of 750 kW or more. Keep your certificate and medical valid. Later you can grow into Senior or Chief ETO roles, shore jobs, or other pathways that DG Shipping may open.

• Degree route (most common)Class 12 PCM, then 4-year B.E./B.Tech in electrical or electronics, then the 4-month ETO course, then sea training and DG Shipping exams. Many companies prefer this route.
• Diploma routeA 3-year electrical or electronics diploma with about 60% can lead to the same 4-month ETO course. Institutes also list the Class 10 and 12 conditions, including PCM and English. If you took the diploma straight after Class 10, check your exact eligibility with the institute and the latest DG Shipping rules before paying anything. Some institutes ask diploma holders for job experience (reported).
• Through a rating (ETR)A seafarer who has worked at sea and holds the Electro-Technical Rating certificate can move up. With an electrical/electronics diploma or degree you need 12 months of qualifying sea service, including 6 months with the TAR Book. Without one you need 24 months, including 12 months with the TAR Book. After that comes the 4-month ETO course and the exams (DG Shipping Circular 25 of 2026).

Fees from: Officers Maritime Academy: ETO course fee range (reported) · Anglo-Eastern Maritime Academy: ETO admissions and onboard stipend · Kalyani Government Engineering College – Admissions 2026–2027 (B.Tech fee table) · Tolani Maritime Institute – ETO Course fees · SIMT Institute – Electro-Technical Officer (ETO) · SCI Maritime Training Institute – Electro Technical Officer course page · SCI Maritime Training Institute – ETO admission advertisement (Oct 2023) PDF. Fees change every year — check the college's own fee page before you pay.

Pay is usually in a monthly wage with contract-based work, and it rises with rank, ship type and years of sea service. Indian and foreign shipping companies pay differently, and time ashore between contracts can mean no pay.

• Class 7–9With an adult, build a simple battery, bulb and switch circuit, then add a second bulb in series and in parallel. Notice what changes. Use only batteries, never mains power.
• Class 10–12Take PCM seriously and keep your English strong, because training institutes check both. Also get your eyes, including colour vision, checked by an eye doctor so you know early whether sea-going medical standards will suit you.
• College or afterDo a free NPTEL or SWAYAM course on electrical machines, power systems or PLC and automation. Note down topics a ship's engineer would use.Open link ↗

• An engineering degree alone does not make you an ETO. You also need the approved 4-month course, onboard training and the DG Shipping certificate exams.
• Eligibility is set by DG Shipping, but each institute adds its own rules on marks, age, height and fitness. For example, one institute asks for 65% and another for 70%. Read each institute's admission page carefully.
• An ETO certificate is separate from a Marine Engineer Officer certificate. DG Shipping says holding one does not by itself give you the other. A bridging pathway is only in draft so far.
• If you want to be a ship's engineer instead of an electrical specialist, look at Marine Engineering routes.