CS+AI student interested in Space Tech — what path should I take?
Hey everyone,
I’m currently a 3rd year BTech student studying Computer Science with AI specialization.
My background/interests so far:
- Full stack development
- Basics of core CS subjects
- Machine learning
- Agentic AI / AI systems
The thing is, I don’t really want my career to become only “building websites with AI wrappers.” I want to work on something more technical, meaningful, and connected to real-world systems.
I’ve always been interested in space and space-tech related work, but I’m not sure what actual software engineering roles exist there for someone from a CS/AI background.
Since I only have around 1 year left before my internship year starts (I need to do 2 internships before graduation), I’m trying to figure out:
- Is there a good scope for software engineers in the space industry?
- What kinds of roles exist for CS/AI students in space tech?
- What skills/projects should I focus on right now?
- Should I go deeper into AI, robotics, embedded systems, geospatial tech, simulation, distributed systems, etc.?
- Are there other engineering fields similar to space tech that are exciting and technically challenging?
I’d also really appreciate advice on:
- What should my long-term goal/path look like?
- What should I prioritize in the next 1–2 years?
- What kind of internships/projects would actually help me break into these fields?
I’m okay with working hard and learning difficult things — I just don’t want to drift into generic development work without direction.
Would love honest advice from people already working in:
- Space tech
- Robotics
- GIS/geospatial
- Aerospace software
- AI for engineering/science
- Autonomous systems
- Deep tech startups
TL;DR:
3rd year CS+AI student interested in space/deep-tech careers. I know full stack, ML, and basic AI, but I don’t want to end up doing generic web dev work. What skills, projects, internships, and long-term paths should I focus on if I want to work in space tech or similar engineering-heavy fields?
formatted using ai