Fundamental Course

Fundamental Maritime
Business (FMB)

Joining the Fionia Academy creates new opportunities for seafarers

Creating individual opportunities

The Fundamental Maritime Business course lasts 6 weeks, with 1–2 sessions per week. The price is 1000 USD (incl. VAT). In order to ensure high-quality learning we only enroll 50 participants per course.

A route to further education

Life aboard a vessel can be busy. So, how do you find time to learn? At Fionia Maritime Academy, we’ve designed our learning approach to be as flexible as life at sea.

A tailored route to enrollment diploma program or university BSC programs

Firstly, you can watch the 8 sessions whenever it suits you. Some sessions are pre-recorded, while others are live-streamed. Don’t worry if you miss a live session—they are always recorded so you can watch them later at your convenience.

Secondly, each of the eight sessions is divided into four shorter parts. This means you can watch a 25-minute module, take a break, attend to your duties, and then return to watch the next module when you’re ready.

This approach ensures maximum flexibility and enhances the learning process by breaking the content into shorter, more manageable modules.

A global network of maritime professionals

Join a global community of seafarers where mutual support, socializing, and career advancement take center stage. Experience social mobility in shipping and unlock further career opportunities on land.

Fundamental Maritime Business (FMB) Course Objectives

Learning Objectives

The FMB course equips participants with essential knowledge and analytical skills across five key dimensions of the maritime industry. These learning objectives focus on understanding and navigating the legal, institutional, and commercial frameworks that shape the global maritime ecosystem.

Have a fundamental understanding of relevant theories and concepts within maritime law, maritime governance, and maritime business.
Be able to describe and analyze the fundamental legal setting of the maritime ecosystem.
Be able to describe and analyze the fundamental institutional setting of the maritime ecosystem.
Be able to describe and analyze the fundamental logic of maritime markets, companies, and communities.
Be able to situate themselves in the broader legal, institutional, and commercial settings of the global maritime industry.

8 sessions over 6 weeks

Introduction to FMB

In this session we introduce the overall learning purpose of the course. We will go through each session and explain which role the sessions play to the overall learning goals. We will also briefly introduce the format of the sessions and the various teaching methods including life sessions, quizzes, questions opportunities and individual supervision.

Maritime Law

The Maritime Law session consists of three interrelated parts. Firstly, you will be introduced to the fundamental concepts within maritime law, including Charter Parties, Contracts of Affreightment (CoAs), Bills of Lading (BoL), and Claims and Damages. Secondly, each of these legal concepts will be illustrated with real-life cases and examples to make them relevant for seafarers. Finally, participants will be introduced to the commercial and economic aspects of maritime law, including the logistics of international seaborne trade.

Maritime Governance

Maritime Institutions and Governance includes an introduction to the institutional setting of global shipping at various levels: global (IMO), regional (EU, ASEAN, etc.), national (national maritime authorities, FoCs, etc.), and local (Port authorities, etc.). Participants will be introduced to theories and tools to understand and analyze these maritime institutions. Then follows an introduction to the decision-making procedures at the various institutional levels, enabling participants to analyze the governance processes affecting their daily work on the vessel.

Maritime Economics

This session introduces the relationship between shipping, the world economy, and seaborne trade. The purpose is to facilitate an understanding of the relevance of trade in the global shipping market. Participants will familiarize themselves with the drivers of supply and demand in shipping commodity markets, economic models and their application, and varying revenue sources.

Maritime Digitalization

This session addresses how digitization is fundamentally changing the dynamics of the maritime sector. The course focuses on optimizing existing processes and opening entirely new and innovative methods. Understanding the commercial and economic logic of digitization is essential for competitiveness in the maritime industry.

Maritime Sustainability

This course provides participants with insights into the concept of sustainability in the maritime sector. Sustainability is broadly understood to include Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aspects, with an introduction to the most critical maritime ESG challenges. Participants will receive an overview of international maritime regulations in this field, along with selected relevant cases of ESG policies and corporate responses.

Maritime Geopolitics

Shipping & Geopolitics provides a fundamental introduction to the key terms and theories within geopolitics. This session dives deeper into the relationship between international shipping and geopolitics, focusing on specific examples of geopolitical developments and events, including conflicts, wars, and political regimes that have directly impacted the maritime sector.

Personal Coaching

The purpose of the personal feedback sessions is threefold. Firstly, we discuss the future educational aspirations of the participants, mapping their educational background and career plans. Secondly an overview of relevant accredited educational opportunities, including but not limited to the Danish Shipping Academy, CBS HD Maritime, and the Master classes at World Maritime University. And thirdly, we discuss the outcomes of the FMB course and which aspects the participant could focus on in the future.

Who is Fionia Academy for?

Next Course Start

The Fundamental Maritime Business course takes six weeks with one to two sessions per week. The eight sessions each take approximately 1,5 hour including quizzes and videos and personal coaching. It begins on the following dates below:

September 21, 2026 Cohort
November 2, 2026 Cohort

Price

Our aim is to make education accessible to everyone. We keep our pricing reasonable to ensure that high-quality, accredited training is accessible to seafarers worldwide, regardless of their location or background.

Price
USD 1.000 incl. VAT

Have Questions?

If you still have questions, feel free to check our FAQ or reach out to us – we’d be happy to help and provide further information!

What our participants say

Testimonial

“This course is a major stepping stone for anyone passionate about Maritime Management. As a seafarer, especially as a marine engineer, we rarely get the opportunity to understand the complexities of cargo operations, contracts, geopolitics, and maritime law. This course bridges that gap, providing invaluable insights into the industry beyond the technical aspects.”

John Michael C. Baruc

3rd Engineer, Hafnia

Prerequisites to participate

To be admitted to the program at Fionia, you need to either be signed up by your employer or meet these requirements:

Fluent in English at a business level: Either approved by your employer or certified.
Minimum of three years of post-graduation education.

Let us know if you need more information or have any questions about the admission process.