11 Engineers Who Chose A Different Career Path & Gained Huge Success

There is no denying the fact that Indians, especially Indian parents are obsessed with engineering. It is said that in India, people choose their career path after completing their engineering. Hence, it is not uncommon to see engineers taking up professions completely different from their degrees. Let’s have a look at some of the famous engineers from around the world who chose a career path completely different from their engineering degree and succeeded.

1. Anil Kumble – mechanical engineer who went on to become a Legendary leg spinner

Anil Kumble aka “Jumbo” needs no introduction. A Former Indian captain and the third highest wicket taker in test cricket, he is one of the greatest leg spinners in the history of the game. But before taking up cricket as a professional sport, he studied mechanical engineering. He graduated B.E from Rashtreeya Vidyalaya College of Engineering (RVCE) in Mechanical Engineering in 1991–92.

2. Harsha Bhogle – Chemical engineer turned famous commentator

Before gaining fame as a cricket commentator, Harsha Bhogle studied engineering for his undergraduation. He graduated as a chemical engineer from Osmania University and went on to receive PGDM degree from IIM-Ahmedabad. Post graduation he had brief stints at an advertising agency and a sports management company before becoming a full time commentator and TV presenter.

3. Rowan Atkinson A.K.A “Mr. Bean” – Masters in Electrical Engineering and a world famous comedian

Who could have guessed that TV’s funny man and our favourite “Mr. Bean” is an engineer by education. He attended Newcastle University, where he received a degree in Electrical Engineering. He also pursued the degree of MSc in Electrical Engineering at The Queen’s College, Oxford where he got inclined towards theatre and eventually turned to television.

4. “The Master of Suspense” Sir Alfred Hitchcock – Marine Engineer famous for his Psycho-thriller movies

Suspense-thriller filmmaker famous for movies like psycho & vertigo, Sir Alfred Hitchcock started his career as an engineer. He studied engineering at the London County Council School of Marine Engineering and Navigation and worked as a draftsman before launching his career in Hollywood in 1920.

5. Chetan Bhagat – IITian and famous novelist

Love him or hate him, you can’t deny the fact that Chetan Bhagat is one of the most famous novelists in India. But before he became a writer, he studied Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and MBA from the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.

He also worked as an investment banker in Hong Kong for nearly a decade and wrote his first novel Five Point Someone, before moving to Mumbai to focus full-time on his writing career.

6. Nagarjuna – MS in Automobile engineering and Telugu Movie star

Winner of 2 national film awards and multiple South Filmfare awards, this Telugu movie star is a man of many talents. He got his Bachelor of Engineering from the College of Engineering, Guindy and completed M.S. in Automobile Engineering from Eastern Michigan University. After completing his studies, he decided to follow in his father, veteran actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao’s footsteps and join the film industry.

7. “The science guy” Bill Nye – Mechanical engineer who became a star with his TV show for the kids

Not many people know that Bill Nye, famous for his science education series for the kids titled “Bill Nye, the science guy” is a mechanical engineer from Cornell University. This multitalented guy had a brief stint at boeing and also worked as a consultant in the aeronautics industry before turning to entertainment sector.

8. Sonu Sood – Electronics engineer turned model/actor

Sonu Sood, a model/actor who is famous for his physique and negative role in “Dabangg” is actually an electronics engineer by education. He graduated as an electronics engineer from YCCE( Yeshwantrao Chavan College of Engineering), Nagpur. After which he got inclined towards film industry and debuted in a Tamil movie as actor.

The following people aren’t “Engineers” in the true meaning of the word since they dropped out before completing their studies to pursue their passion, but as they say “Once an engineer, always an engineer”.

9. Sushant Singh Rajput – Studied Mechanical engineering before becoming a Bollywood star

Before making his bollywood debut, Sushant Singh Rajput studied Mechanical Engineering at the prestigious Delhi College of Engineering (now known as Delhi Technological University). During college he found his passion for acting and took the brave decision of dropping out to pursue career in acting.

10. Cindy Crawford – Studied Chemical engineering before dropping out to become the highest paid model in the world

After graduating from High School as valedictorian, Cindy won an academic scholarship to study chemical engineering at Northwestern University. She dropped out in order to pursue a full-time modelling career and went on to become a supermodel. She was named as the highest paid model in the world by Forbes in 1995.

11. Ashton Kutcher – Studied Biochemical engineering before joining the film industry

“Two and half Men” star Ashton Kutcher pursued biochemical engineering at University of Iowa, motivated by the desire to find a cure for his brother’s heart ailment. However, after winning a modelling competition in Iowa, he dropped out of college and relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting.

Engineering teaches you so many things, finding your way in unfavorable conditions is one of them. And these people prove that if you are determined enough, you can do anything you want. You just need to find out your passion and follow it.

P.S. This post is written by an engineer.

Fact source: wikipedia