Would You Change Your Destination Just Because You Found a Better Vehicle?

 

Imagine you want to travel from Pune to Goa. You reach the bus terminal and find two options. One is a rather ordinary-looking bus going to Goa.

And parked next to it is a luxurious Volvo—comfortable seats, great interiors, excellent reputation...But it is going to Nagpur.

Which one would you choose?

Sounds like a ridiculous question, doesn't it?

Obviously, the vehicle matters only after we know where we want to go.

Strangely, when it comes to engineering admissions, many intelligent students and parents seem to forget this simple logic.

A student begins with:

"I want Computer Science."

Then counselling starts.

Ranks. Cut-offs. College reputation. Placements. Campus. Brand.

Suddenly he discovers that he can't get CSE in  a CAT A college ...he can get the same in a CAT B college  ( Lets say College B) .. but he is getting  Civil or Mechanical in the much more prestigious CAT A  College .. ( Lets say College A)

And slowly the conversation changes.

"College A is a much bigger brand."

"Once you enter a good college, branch doesn't matter that much."

"Take whatever you get. You can change your branch next year."

And finally...

the vehicle changes the destination.

That bothers me.

College matters. Of course it does.

I would be foolish to argue otherwise.

A genuinely good institution can give a student an excellent peer group, better faculty, laboratories, industry exposure, internships, alumni networks, entrepreneurship opportunities and perhaps most importantly—a stimulating ecosystem.

Institutional reputation can also open doors.

But does that mean a student who genuinely wants to study electronics should choose Civil Engineering simply because the college has a better brand?

I am not convinced.

Because the college will remain with you for four years.

What you learn to think about, build, solve and eventually become capable of doing may influence several decades of your working life.

Oh yes ...there is another dangerous assumption:

"I'll take this branch now and change it after first year."

Please don't build a four-year decision around that hope.Branch-change opportunities are usually limited, highly competitive and dependent upon vacancies and institutional rules. Some leading institutions have even discontinued branch changes altogether.

If you wouldn't willingly complete four years in the branch being offered, think very carefully before accepting it.

But there is another side to this argument.

Suppose you get Chemical Engineering at an IIT and Computer Science at a very ordinary college.

Now what?

I still wouldn't mechanically say:

"Choose CSE because branch comes first." I would first ask:

Why do you want Computer Science?

Have you actually coded? 

Do you enjoy logical and computational problems?

Have you built something?

Or does "I like computers" actually mean...

"CSE students are getting the best packages"?

That's not career clarity.

That's market influence dressed up as interest.

Similarly, I would ask whether you genuinely dislike Chemical Engineering—or simply know very little about it. At 17, nobody expects you to know the exact job you want at 27.

But some directional clarity certainly helps.

Machines excite me.

Electronics fascinates me.

I enjoy coding.

I love building physical things.

Structures interest me.

These are useful signals.

And then comes the BUSINESS called  Education.

We must also acknowledge today's reality.

Higher education is increasingly a competitive marketplace.

Colleges need admissions.

So naturally we hear:

"100% Placement Assistance"

"Industry Ready Curriculum"

"AI Enabled Programs"

"International Collaborations"

"Highest Package ₹XX Lakh"

Nothing necessarily wrong with these claims.

But remember:

Marketing information is information provided by someone trying to sell you something.

Verify it. Don't just ask for the college's highest package.

Ask:

What is the median placement?

What happened specifically to students from this branch?

Which companies recruited them?

For what roles?

How many students remained unplaced?

How good is this particular department, not merely the university?

Who teaches there?

What are students actually building?

What internships are they getting?

Suddenly, the glossy brochure starts becoming an educational decision.

Also Understand one more important trap.

Few years  ago Mechanical engineering was the hot cake.. Then came CSE.. 

Then came Data Science.

Now AI....Machine Learning.

Tomorrow there will be another fashionable specialization.

Understand something...

A student entering engineering today may remain professionally active until 2065 or 2070.

Do we seriously believe today's placement trends can predict that world?

So don't choose an engineering branch merely because today's market loves it.

And equally, don't reject a branch merely because today's market doesn't celebrate it enough.

Choose a direction that reasonably aligns with your aptitude, curiosity and the kind of problems you enjoy solving.

Then find the best possible institution and ecosystem available to you within that direction.

If two colleges are broadly comparable? I would prioritize the branch.

If the difference between institutions is enormous and your branch preference itself is weak? I may prioritize the institution.

There is no mathematical formula that fits every student.

And that perhaps is exactly the point.

Career decisions should begin with the student—not the cut-off table.

A great vehicle can make your journey faster, safer and more enjoyable.

Choose the best one you can afford.

But first...

make sure it is travelling reasonably towards YOUR destination.

Because changing vehicles during a journey is possible.

Discovering years later that you have travelled beautifully in the wrong direction...

can be far more expensive.

— Avinash Deshmukh