Established in 2012, Tamil Nadu Fisheries University, Chennai (TNFU) is a State-funded Fisheries University imparting professional education, research and training to enhance fish production and utilization by following the State Agricultural University (SAU) pattern and syllabi. With head quarters at Nagapattinam, the university has 3 constituent institutes which offer various undergraduate, postgraduate and research programmes to its students.

The university offers the following senior-level programmes every year: 

• Master in Fisheries Science (M.F.Sc. in 10 disciplines)
• Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D. in 7 disciplines)
• Master in Philosophy (M.Phil. in 1 discipline)

Candidates seeking admission to the PG and research programmes must possess graduation degree in the relavant field of specialization. Admission to these programmes will be done on the basis of marks secured by the candidates in the university entrance examination in addition to their performance in qualifying degree examination.   

Those who wish to apply can register themselves through the online registration available at the official university website. Upon submitting completed applications along with the required processing fee, the applicants can appear for the university entrance examination.

Important Dates

Eligibility Criteria

The following section contains detailed information for various courses offered by TNFU.

Master of Fisheries Sciences (M.F.Sc.)

The university offers M.F.Sc. programme in the following 10 disciplines:

• Aquaculture – 4 seats
• Aquatic Animal Health – 3 seats
• Aquatic Environment Management – 2 seats
• Fish Biotechnology – 1 seat
• Fisheries Economics – 2 seats
• Fisheries Engineering & Technology – 2 seats
• Fisheries Extension – 2 seats
• Fish Processing Technology – 3 seats
• Fish Quality Assurance and Management – 3 seats
• Fish Resource Management – 2 seats

Eligibility:

• Candidates must possess B.F.Sc degree of TNFU or any other University recognized as equivalent thereto     
• Candidates must have obtained an Overall Grade Point Average (OGPA) of 2.75 out of 4.00 under trimester system or 6.5 out of 10.0 or 65%aggregate under semester pattern alone in their qualifying degree. For SC/ST candidates, a minimum pass is sufficient 
• A candidate can at most apply for two disciplines of his/her choice in M.F.Sc. degree course    

Ph.D. Degree Course in Fisheries Science

The university offers Ph.D. Degree in Fisheries Science in the following 7 disciplines:

• Aquaculture – 5 seats
• Aquatic Environment Management – 2 seats
• Fisheries Economics – 3 seats
• Fisheries Extension – 2 seats
• Fish Processing Technology – 2 seats
• Fish Quality Assurance and Management – 2 seats
• Fisheries Resource Management – 3 seats

Eligibility:  

• Candidates with M.F.Sc degree in the relevant field of specialization from a recognized university shall alone be eligible to apply
• Candidates should possess an OGPA of 2.75 out of 4.00 under trimester system or 6.5 out of 10.0 under semester system or 65% aggregate in the Master’s degree. For SC/ST candidates, a minimum pass is sufficient
• Candidates having qualified for Senior Research Fellowship of ICAR are exempted from appearing for entrance examination. They will be given admission on priority basis subject to availability of seats

M.Phil. (Climate Change and Fisheries) – 4 seats

Eligibility:

• Candidate should have secured at least 60% aggregate in any Masters degree with Science background. For SC/ST candidates, a minimum pass is sufficient.

How to Apply

How to Apply:

Candidates can download the prospectus and hall ticket from the official university website.

• Candidates can register through online application process and submitting the prescribed form available on the university website. Candidate should fill-in all the relevant details in the application form
• A recent passport size image and a digital signature must be uploaded along with the online application form. The image size should not exceed 50kb and the size of digital signature should be below 20kb
• Candidates must also submit the required Registration fee of INR 1000 (INR 500 for SC/ST candidates) through Demand Draft (DD). DD should be drawn in favour of “The Finance Officer, TNFU, Nagapattinam”,payable at Nagapattinam
• Printed copy of the hall ticket along with a set of attested copies of all original certificates must be submitted at the time of entrance examination
• At the time of counselling, the candidate must bring the following original documents:

1. Nativity Certificate in the prescribed format (if applicable) 
2. S.S.L.C. / H.S.C. mark sheet or First page of Service Register in proof of date of birth
3. Community Certificate
4. Provisional / Degree Certificate of Bachelor’s / Master’s Degree
5. Statement of Marks / Report cards / Transcript card showing the details of courses underwent and the marks/OGPA obtained in the degree course concerned
6. Conduct certificate from the Head of the Institution last studied  
7. Service Certificate showing the details of service / experience
8. Three copies of recent passport size photograph 
9. Copies of research article, popular article, book, manual, booklet published, proof for medals / awards, etc

• Candidate must submit the following original documents at the time of admission:

1. Provisional/Degree certificate of Bachelor’s/Master’s degree
2. Transfer Certificate/Migration Certificate
3. Conduct Certificate from the Head of the Institution last studied
4. Mark Sheets/Report Cards of Bachelor’s/Master’s degree
5. Community Certificate 

Admission Process

This section contains detailed information regarding selection process for different courses offered by TNFU.

Master of Fisheries Sciences (M.F.Sc.)

Candidates will be selected on the basis of marks obtained in the university entrance examination and the qualifying degree examination

The following table shows the distribution of marks for admission to M.F.Sc. Courses:

Note: In case of equal total marks, candidates will be shortlisted on the basis of marks secured in the Entrance Examination alone. In case of further tie, the date of birth of candidates will be considered and older candidate shall be given priority over the younger candidate.

Entrance Examination:

• The entrance examination for M.F.Sc. admission will be at undergraduate level, consisting of 80 objective type questions. Each question will carry 0.5 mark and the examination will be of 1 hour duration.
• The entrance examination hall ticket and counselling information letter will be sent only to the eligible candidates through email. The examination will be conducted at the Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi  

Counselling Procedure: Candidates will be intimated for counselling as per the merit list. Minimum required aggregate out of the total marks to appear for counselling is:-

• For General candidates: 40%
• For SC/ST candidates: 35%

Ph.D. Degree Course in Fisheries Science

Candidates will be selected for the Ph.D. programme on the basis of the marks obtained in the Entrance Examination.

The following table shows the distribution of marks for admission to Ph.D. courses: 

Entrance Examination:

• The entrance examination for Ph.D. admission will be conducted in the concerned subject studied at Master degree level. The exam will consist of 80 objective type questions and each question will carry 0.5 mark
• The examinations will be of 1 hour duration and will be conducted at the Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi    

Counselling Procedure: The eligible candidates for the Ph.D. programme will be called for counselling as per the merit list. Minimum required aggregate out of the total marks to appear for counselling is:-

• For General candidates: 40%
• For SC/ST candidates: 35%

M.Phil. (Climate Change and Fisheries) – 4 seats

Candidates will be selected on the basis of marks obtained in the entrance examination and other criteria as detailed below:

Counselling Procedure: The eligible candidates for the M.Phil. programme will be called for counselling as per the merit list. Minimum required aggregate out of the total marks to appear for counselling is:-

• For General candidates: 40%
• For SC/ST candidates: 35%

Reservation Criteria

The rules of reservation shall be followed as prescribed by the Government of Tamil Nadu. Rules are applicable only when there are 4 or more seats in each discipline. If the number of seats is less than 4, selection will be based on merit alone.

75% of the total seats are reserved for the candidates belonging to Tamil Nadu. The remaining 25% will be filled by candidates from other states through ICAR.

If there are any unfilled seats in State quota, the same will be filled with candidates from other states who have appeared for the Entrance Examination conducted by the University.

Notes

Hostel Facilities:

Hostel for the students is available in the Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi and the messes are run on a dividing system.

Scholarships offered:

For M.F.Sc. students only

• Adi-Dravida Welfare Scholarship     
• Backward Class Scholarship
• TNFU Merit Scholarship 

For Ph.D. Students only

• Adi-Dravida Welfare Scholarship 
• Backward Class Scholarship       

TNFU Merit Scholarship 

Students who do not avail any of the above scholarships are eligible to avail the following TNFU merit scholarship:

• INR 4000 per month for M.F.Sc. courses
• INR 5000 per month for Ph.D. courses

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College