I find math really hard, I couldn't even score well in class XIIth board exams this year due to this subject so I'm not sure if I'll be able to survive in an engineering college, that to tier-3.

Now, until a few days ago, I had no idea that an exam called CLAT exists. I actually stumbled upon it out of coincidence and decided to give last year's question paper to test myself and when I did, I found out that I've scored 90+ marks in it.

Including that, I also find law as a subject quite interesting even though I've no idea about it and I don't know if they will be a part of the curriculum or not, but I'm heavily interested in subjects like History and Philosophy too. And, I believe if I work hard, I will be able to get a tier-1 NLU along with getting a good job as a corporate lawyer by the completion of the degree.

But the problem is, that if do B.Tech, I will receive my degree and most probably a job too(a low paying-one) in 4 years. But, if I go with BA.LLB, it will take 1 year drop+ 5 year college= 6 years. My family's financial situation is also pretty bad and I desperately do need to earn as soon as I can to pay off debts.

So( and TL;DR), which one is a better option- Taking CSE in a tier-3 engineering college or

Taking a drop to prepare for CLAT and getting into a tier-1 NLU ?

Yeah kinda funny when I think about it, maybe that's because since last 12-13 days, I've spent a lot of my time exploring this field along with looking for engineering colleges. And speaking of it, the more I'm delving in, the more I'm realizing how much giant of a rock I was living under all this time. I mean, only today I was looking at the syllabus of NALSAR Hyderabad and all those subjects they teach you there, they all were looking so tempting to my eyes.

But the thing is that my parents don't want me to take this entrance test this year. Even there problem I can understand, but yeah.

I am a dropper myself, I know it sucks to be 1 year late than everyone. But, I personally like it. This is not a degree one should take drop for. After doing law, there are a lot of things you can do, not just becoming an advocate. Like Policy making etc. etc. But, keep that in mind that this degree is not just about the law school and law subjects. It is about making connections, and a lot of hustle in general. If you are a first gen., like myself, and you don't make it to top law schools (I hope you do), it becomes insanely hard. But, it's all part of the process. Hopefully it's worth it.

I was exactly in the same situation, except that I found out about CLAT at the beginning of class 12th. By the end of class 11th, I was clear that Science is not for me. I hated it, instead, I had an interest in politics, finance, public policy etc. Thats when I started exploring other career options. I found out about CLAT through Google and attempted the previous year's paper. I remember that I scored 47.25/150. I thought with adequate prep I could crack the exam. I started preparing from YouTube. I worked hard for 9-10months alongside my board syllabus and cracked NLS. It's been 4 years now and I have not regretted my decision for a day. My advice would be to follow something that you love. A lot of my batchmates here don't really enjoy law and life is miserable for them. I am sure that a lot of students in Engineering colleges face the same as well.

Congrats for getting into such a nice college! And I agree with you for even I've read countless stories of several engineering students who regret every single day they spend in their colleges, especially the one which my parents want me to join. And even I like finance and sociology as subjects and love to spend time with them as a hobby.

I believe I will be able to do really good in both CLAT and law college but it's my parents who don't want me to get into this field and I understand the reason they don't want me to. And this whole law v/s engineering thing has been gnawing up my mind like crazy since past few days. After applying all the factors, I don't know what to decide and the decision isn't easy for my whole career depends on it.

A good engineer earns much more than a good lawyer, straight out of college. You have better chance of earning in 8 figures being an engineer than a lawyer.

A decent engineer earns as much as a good lawyer, or even more. A decade down the line, if engineers keep upskilling, they're likely to earn much more than law firm partners.

A mediocre engineer has more prospects of growth than a mediocre lawyer.

I have told this, now you can decide.

The grass is always greener on the other side. Most of the engineers in India get placed in companies like TCS that Pay 3-5LPA. In terms of growth opportunities, the career of an engineer usually finishes at 40-50 unless they do MBA.

The only positive about engineering is that work life balance would be better than lawyers but in terms of pay, there is no competition.

If you are bad at math, don't even think of core engineering subjects. ECE, EEE, etc. are all calculus heavy. Trust me, I've been there and struggled.

May be you can manage CSE or IT related subjects. But if math is tough for you, engineering won't be easy.

Law is good but it's vastly different. Anyone can study law and do well in it. But the money is only in tier 1 law firms and the life there is something you need to consider if you're up for it.

There's no guarantee your drop year will lead to a Tier 1 NLU. Think well and decide what you really want. Rest is noise.

B.TECH in CS or circuital branches. Rest don't bother. Law is not a better option because of how saturated the market is. Corp law is an uphill battle even in T-1 colleges. My reco: Do btech from any decent college and if you are still interested in law you should do LLB from NLS, GLC or IIT Kharagpur (if interested in IP Law)