CONTEXT The structure of the first year of the engineering degrees at Griffith University was recently revised, and essentially requires students to choose their major at the end of the first term of study. This need to select an engineering major early can be a disadvantage, with previous research noting that students who lacked information about their discipline area were more likely to leave the discipline. As the first year has a crucial role to play in enhancing student identity development and connecting students to their future disciplines, it follows that students must be given suitable guidance to allow them to understand their degree and the engineering majors within it. This paper describes using virtual work experience modules offered by Engineers Australia (EA) as part of an assessment task designed to support students in choosing an engineering major. PURPOSE OR GOAL As this was the first time to use the online work experience modules in an assessment task, the teaching team wished to understand if the online work experience modules could help first-year students better understand the engineering industry and their preferred major. Therefore, this paper focuses on exploring first-year student perceptions of the EA work experience modules. APPROACH OR METHODOLOGY/METHODS Students were invited to complete an online survey regarding their major choices and perceptions of the online work experience modules. The resulting survey data was analysed and common themes were identified for discussion. ACTUAL OUTCOMES While there is positive support for the modules in terms of helping students to understand the engineering industry and engineering majors, it appears the EA modules may not be suitable for use with first-year engineers without additional support. Although some students described finding the modules as interesting or engaging, the difficulty level may be too high for the average first-year student. CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS/SUMMARY There is nothing wrong with having challenging work experience modules designed to mirror the workplace. A potential improvement could be to have a wider range of modules, with some designed to provide an introductory experience to a major, and other more difficult modules for later year students. Future research into the design of suitable modules is recommended.