Career in armed forces after engineering

The Indian Army is mainly divided into Combat Arms and Services:

The Combat Arms are the infantry, the artillery, and the armoured corps, The Corps of Engineers and Corps of Signals.
Services includes Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Army
Postal services, Army Medical Corps, Army Education Corps, Intelligence
Corps.

Combat arms are responsible for actual combat, whereas, services are
responsible to ensure continuous flow of required ordnance and
supplies, including food for men and animal, Fuel for vehicles and
tanks and ammunition.

The Indian Air Force, one can be an officer in the Flying Branch, Technical Branch and Ground Duty (or Administrative) branches.
Post graduates (that is those with a master's degree) who enter the Air
Force are not eligible to be in the flying branch but can work in the
technical branch and the ground duty branch.

The Flying branch includes Fighter Pilots who fly combat or fighter planes carrying ammunition and missiles; Transport Pilots who fly planes which carry men and materials and Helicopter Pilots who provide air support to a moving army, or are used for para-dropping men and supplies.
The Technical Branch which includes engineering sections and is
responsible for the engineering equipment and weapons systems of the
air force.
The Administrative (or Ground Duty) Branch includes all the
departments that provide Logistical, Meteorological, Educational and
Administrative support to the flying and technical branches.

The Indian Navy, one can join to be a Sailor or an
Artificer Apprentice (AA) or an Officer working as an Executive,
Logistics and Education officer or an Engineering Officer or an
Electrical officer or a Medical and Dental officer.

The Executive Branch manages the Navy's Warships and Submarines as instruments of tactical warfare.
The Engineering Branch is responsible for the maintenance
and service of engineering equipment and the propulsion systems on
board including electrical and electronic systems, weapon systems,
missiles, radar, and radio communication systems.
The Education Branch ensures that the officers and men are updated in their technical knowledge and tactical skills.

Careers in the Indian Army, especially those of officer rank are seen
as prestigious careers. Armed forces are seen as the defenders of the
nation. If one is ideologically suited to such a career and considers
oneself patriotic
then one may think about careers in the armed forces. A certain notion
of heroism is also attached to the army. If that appeals to you and if
- to use the adline of the SSC - You have it in you, then you may contemplate joining the Indian Army.
Careers in the Indian Armed Forces, especially those of officer rank
are seen as prestigious careers. Armed forces are seen as the defenders
of the nation. If one is ideologically suited to such a career and
considers oneself patriotic
then one may think about careers in The Armed Forces. A certain notion
of heroism is also attached to the defence forces. If that appeals to
you and if - to use the adline of the SSC - You have it in you, then you may contemplate joining the Indian Armed Forces.

Personality

A career as a soldier or an officer requires a special type of
personality. The screening tests that the Indian army conducts are
primarily designed to check a candidate's personality. More emphasis is
laid on the candidate's personality than on his (there is only a Short
Service Commission (SSC) for women called the Women's Special Entry
Scheme (Officers), all the other posts in the Indian armed forces can
only be filled by men) physical abilities. The Services Selection Board
(SSB) tries to find out whether a candidate has it in him to handle
mental and physical pressure. Since life as a soldier or officer
involves combat and the harsh realities of it, there are only a few who
can handle such mental and physical pressure. The tests that the
Services Selection Board conducts are not physically very gruelling but
are meant to assess the candidate's mental character more than anything
else. A successful candidate needs to withstand physical and mental
pressure. Even the courses in the National Defence Academy (NDA) or the
Indian Military Academy (IMA) test a candidate's ability to handle
pressure to an extreme. Punishments (which are the only form of ragging
allowed in these institutes) are justified on the basis that they are
part of the training - they are meant to build a prospective soldier or
officer's ability to withstand and not succumb under physical and
mental pressure.

Eligibility

One either joins the Indian army to qualify for the rank of an officer or one opts for other ranks.

For officers, there is a Permanent Commission
- A Permanent Commission means a career in the Army till one retires.
One has to join the National Defence Academy (NDA) in Pune or the
Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun for a permanent commission -
and then there is the Short Service Commission (SSC).

One can enter the NDA in either January or July and one has to reply to
advertisements brought out in leading newspapers in March/April for
admissions in January of the following year or in October/November for
admissions in July of the following year. One has to be between 16 and
a half to 19 years of age at the time of joining (that is in either
January or July) to be eligible. One also has to have completed school
education up to class 12 by the time of joining to be eligible. One has
to then appear for the NDA exam followed by the Union Public Service
Commission (UPSC) and Services Selection Board (SSB) interview and pass
through them successfully in order to join the NDA.