[w1ntermute]

> Do Indian children have their major chosen for them via parents, tests, or administrators?

Parents. Their future job is usually decided for them before they're even born. The number of people who go into a particular profession because they enjoy it is exceedingly small.

[movingahead]

As J K Rowling puts it brilliantly, there is an expiry date on how long you can keep blaming your parents for everything that goes wrong. http://www.ted.com/talks/jk_rowling_the_fringe_benefits_of_f...

We lack a culture where hacking and playing around with things is encouraged.

[sparkymat]

I agree. A lot of blame lies with the educational system which promotes rote learning and at times, even penalizes thinking out of the box.

[bdhe]

> Parents. Their future job is usually decided for them before they're even born.

This is patently untrue. Parents usually have high expectations of stable, well-earning jobs, but in no way decide before they are even born. It might apply to the minority of businessmen who insist that their children carry on the "family business", but even that is rare.