Bachelor of Science in Fisheries Eligibility, Top Colleges, Syllabus, Duration, Salary

B.Sc. in Fisheries is a 4-year full-time undergraduate graduate course divided into 8 semesters. The course focuses on the fishing sector and its many sub-divisions.

The program involves the application of concepts of Biology and Physical Science to a study of fish, their ecosystem, food habits, diseases occurring in them and breeding practise, etc. The program is a specialized study of:

• Scientific concepts used in stages such as fish capture, processing, preservation, packing of fish and fish products, and subsequent transportation of them to other places.
• Legal as well as marketing aspects related to the fishing industry.
• An interdisciplinary examination of information from different fields like Oceanography, Management, Economics, Ecology, and Biology.
• Various aspects related to the breeding of fish along with farming and husbandry of important types of fish and aquatic organisms.

Fish farms employ technicians and general workers to carry out feeding duties, monitoring stock, and identifying any problems or diseases. These engineers are in charge of operating and maintaining fish farm equipment such as water pumps and water treatment devices. Fish farm managers oversee all but everything, and deal with corporate responsibilities such as budget control and client meetings.  

Some of the top institutes that offer the course in India are listed here:

• Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore
• BAMU, Aurangabad
• CSU, Imphal
• Salipur College, Cuttack
• Lovely professional university, Jalandhar.

Some of the top entrance tests conducted for admission to the course in India are:

• LPU-NEST
• AUCET
• GPAT
• JEE.

The basic eligibility criterion for pursuing the course is a 10+2 or equivalent qualification in the Science stream, from a recognized educational Board, with a minimum aggregate score of 50%.

Admission to the course is based on the candidate’s performance in a relevant entrance exam, or merit obtained in the last qualifying exam.

The average tuition fee charged for the course in India ranges between INR 10,000 to 3,00,000 for a span of 4 years.

Successful graduates of the course can expect anything between INR 2 to 20,00,000 as annual salary in the industry, increasing with experience and skillset.

B.Sc. in Fisheries: Course Highlights

Tabulated below are some of the major highlights of the course.

B.Sc. in Fisheries: What is it all About?

As an academic discipline, Fisheries Science involves the management of fisheries. It is a multidisciplinary science, which draws from the sub-disciplines of aquaculture including:

• Fish breeding, genetics, biotechnology, nutrition, farming, diagnosis of diseases in fish.
• Aquatic resources, medical treatment of aquatic animals.
• Fish processing including curing, canning, freezing, value addition, by products and waste utilization, quality assurance and certification.
• Fisheries microbiology, fisheries biochemistry, fisheries resource management including biology, anatomy, taxonomy, physiology, population dynamics.
• Fisheries environment including oceanography, limnology, ecology, biodiversity, aquatic pollution.
• Fishing technology including gear and craft engineering, navigation and seamanship, marine engines.
• Fisheries economics and management and fisheries extension.

Such graduates are typically employed by environment-based governmental organisations. Some large private fisheries employ fishery officers and bailiffs internally to monitor the fishing activity that happens on their land. However, the majority of career roles in this area are offered by the government.

Fishery officers primarily act as consultants to fisheries and fish farms; offering them advice and guidance on how best to manage their fish stocks and fisheries in accordance with environmental regulations.

Such graduates may also work towards implementing relevant schemes to promote fishing as recreation and a profession among people.

Other job duties for graduates of the discipline may involve:

• Checking illegal fishing activities and making sure that people who are fishing have the valid licence to do so.
• Ensuring across ponds, patrol rivers, and lakes that people have the valid documentation for fishing. In case of absence of such documentation, such fishery officers are often given the power to make arrests or administer fines to the angling culprits.

Also, such professionals could work for government organisations or regulatory authorities, such as the Environment Agency. The line of work essentially requires such professionals to work outdoors in remote rural areas, usually on the banks of lakes, ponds and rivers, or in coastal regions.

Top Institutes offering B.Sc. in Fisheries

Listed below are some of the top institutes in India that offer the course.?

Eligibility for B.Sc. in Fisheries

Listed below are the minimum criteria which candidates interested in pursuing the course are required to fulfil, in order to be eligible to apply for the course.

• Successful completion of the 10+2 level of education in the Science stream, completed from a recognized educational Board.

• A minimum aggregate score of 50% (45% for SC/ST candidates) at the 10+2 level.

B.Sc. in Fisheries: Admission Process

Most institutes offering the course admit students based on performance in a relevant entrance test, often followed by a round of personal interview, wherein their general aptitude for the course is tested. Admission process generally varies across colleges.

A few institutes also provide direct admission based on the candidate’s performance at the 10+2 level.

Listed below are some of the top entrance exams conducted in the country for admission to the course.

• LPU-NEST
• AUCET
• GPAT
• JEE.

B.Sc. in Fisheries: Syllabus and Course Description

A semester - wise breakup of the course’s syllabus is tabulated below.

B.Sc. in Fisheries: Career Prospects

Professionally, such graduates can go for entrepreneurship or self-employment in their own fisheries-related business. Popular areas of employment include central government agencies like Marine Product Export Development Authority (MPEDA), Fisheries Survey of India (FSI), NIO, WHO, and many others.

Such professionals may also apply for research projects or pursue further study in the discipline. Graduates in the discipline of aquaculture manage and regulate fisheries, fish farms, and fishing activities.

Some of the top professional jobs open to such graduates are listed below with the corresponding salaries offered for the respective positions.

Candidate should have passed 10+2 with Medical & Non-Medical from recognized board.