The engineer/doctor story is more of a middle class phenomenon in India. If you look at rich and/or elite families, business or finance dominate their choice of

The engineer/doctor story is more of a middle class phenomenon in India. If you look at rich and/or elite families, business or finance dominate their choice of profession. The poor sadly, have no access to even basic education. Education is/was the ticket for middle class families out of their "predicament". To them, (arguably so) few disciplines require an intellectual rigor as much as Engineering or Medicine do. It is like a badge of honor for them. Being a Historian might be regarded interesting out here in the US - over in India, it would be regarded more as "...ah poor thing, he didn't amount to much". The arranged marriage system driven by tradition and on-paper worthiness more than anything added to this - an engineer or a doctor's value shot up instantly in the market (but I hear things are a changing) Eventually, I think it is market-driven. Lack of opportunities elsewhere force the rest to take up professions that serve more as an insurance policy than a passion. It is changing though.