[mendigou]

I worked for years at ESA and at least there this was not true at all. Most of us came from pretty normal backgrounds and had a passion for engineering.

It's definitely not a place where "money ambitious" people go. It's not particularly well paid compared to other engineering jobs (and I think this is even more true at NASA). What we all had in common was fierce passion and a sense of fulfillment that I haven't found anywhere else yet.