Meghan Thurlow, President of GE Aerospace Foundation and Global Head of Public Affairs at GE Aerospace, addresses a press conference at the launch of the Next Engineers programme in India, in Bengaluru on September 24, 2025.
GE Aerospace Foundation has expanded its global career-readiness programme, Next Engineers, that is aimed at building a pipeline of STEM talent, to India by launching the initiative in Bengaluru, on September 24.
The expansion of Next Engineers to Bengaluru would help increase access to STEM education for students and grow the local engineering pipeline by inspiring and preparing the next generation of engineering leaders, GE officials told mediapersons.
“Bengaluru has long been a centre of innovation and engineering excellence, making it a natural fit for our Next Engineers programme.”Meghan ThurlowPresident of GE Aerospace Foundation and Global Head of Public Affairs at GE Aerospace
Next Engineers equips students ages 13 to 18 with hands-on learning experience, career exposure, and university preparation to encourage them to pursue engineering careers. Under the programme, over 4,000 students in Bengaluru would be offered training in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) over a period of four years, starting early CY 2026.
GE Aerospace Foundation has already trained over 26,000 youth across Cincinnati, Greenville (U.S.), Johannesburg (South Africa), Staffordshire (UK), Warsaw (Poland), and Bengaluru is the latest addition to the list. The programme would be executed in partnership with the United Way Bengaluru (UWBe), an NGO and employee-volunteers from GE.
Meghan Thurlow, President of the GE Aerospace Foundation and Global Head of Public Affairs at GE Aerospace, said, “Bengaluru has long been a centre of innovation and engineering excellence, making it a natural fit for our Next Engineers programme.’‘
According to her, the Next Engineers programme will include Engineering Discovery for early secondary school students and Engineering Academy for older students preparing for higher education. Students in the academy will be able to engage in immersive design challenges, career coaching, and university-readiness workshops. Eligible students who complete the training and pursue engineering degrees will have access to scholarships.
“India’s engineering talent is unmatched, and Bengaluru stands as its innovation hub,” said Rajesh Krishnan, CEO of United Way Bengaluru.
Published – September 25, 2025 09:42 am IST
