Son wants aerospace engineering at 14. We know the JEE route by heart and nothing about the job

linen_marigold_52864 Oct 2026

My son is in class 9 and has decided on aerospace engineering. Between my brother-in-law and two cousins we already know every coaching option, the rank cut-offs and which colleges offer the branch. What nobody in the family can tell him is what an aerospace engineer actually does on an ordinary Tuesday. I teach primary classes, so I am no help either. I would like him to see the real work before he signs up for two years of coaching on the strength of rocket videos. How did others arrange this at 14 or 15? Talking to someone, a visit, a short course? I am wary of anything that turns out to be a coaching sales pitch.

3 comments

lilac_gecko_78354 Oct 2026
I mentor a few engineering students. The most useful thing for a 14 year old is half an hour with someone 3 or 4 years into the job. Not a professor, and definitely not a coaching counsellor. Ask around your own circle, someone always knows someone at a design firm or an aircraft maintenance unit. Let your son prepare the questions himself, he will ask better ones than we would.
ivory_balcony_85355 Oct 2026
Disclosure: I run an education services business, so I see a lot of these programmes from the inside. The good short ones are hands-on, building a small glider or drone over a weekend and finding out why it doesn't fly. The weak ones are three days of slides ending with a brochure. Ask what the children make by the end. If the answer is a certificate, skip it.
mint_compass_21026 Oct 2026
My daughter wanted aeronautics at 14, architecture at 16, and is doing economics now. None of the exploring was wasted. I'd keep it light in class 9, no big commitments yet.