I am surprised that a guy as young as you has so much clarity … every point you made is spot on … I have been living 20yrs in USA and can vouch that everything you said is 100% correct .. couldn’t have put it better
Hey, excellent research and insights. I completely agree with you. I left a job in Fortune 1 back in India with a salary over 20 LPA to pursue studies and gain experience, not for the money. Even though I'm managing every day, life here feels like a constant struggle, and I can't help but compare it to my life in India. Clearing the debt will make it worthwhile, but if I had the chance, I don't think I would do it again. The cost is just too high, and it seems that luck plays a bigger role than talent these days.
Excellent clarity of thought and articulation including the choice of words and manner of presentation. I would like to offer you another perspective which you would lack due to your age and the stage of life you are in. Once you spend 5 years in US it is extremely difficult to move back if you have a family and your kids have lived in the convience of US society. Once you spent 7 or 10 years it becomes next to immpossible. At that point your kids are simply not ready to move to India and learn the hard grind. Second and third language mandates in Indian school makes the move immposible. At that point yours parents might need you, or you might have got some health issues that you cannot treat conviently in US healthcare system and you are frustrated of that GC will take forever; but if you move your kid will fail in second and third language so you can't move. There are more nuances, but I cannot type all of that 😊
I’m currently a masters student in mechanical engineering and this will be my second year. To anyone coming for fall semester, whatever major you are in please gain some experience and arrive here , most of us are suffering here without internship or work opportunities because of no experience, don’t make that mistake.
its not worth it, simply speaking its not. my cousin moved to US 4 years back, he graduated from NEU (MSDAE) got a job at one of the largest insurance company, got 2 back to back award for being the best DS, he has 4 certifications but he could not get his H1B the company really wanted him there and they did what they could, he is back in india now and is making 32 LPA but at what cost ?? he would have anyways made 32 LPA but now he is debt of whopping 38 lakhs ( it was 60 lakhs total but he has paid 24 lakhs ) even if you are talented, even if you have skills getting the H1B is pure luck based.
i don't think it's whopping, if you're making 32LPA, 3 to 4 years max he'd be able to pay off. But would he get that appreciation and experience in India? i don't think so. After a certain point money need not be the sole depiction of a situation. Maybe he'd be able to answer that better.
Agreed, the current H1B system is bad and can screw you over. You can work hard, do everything right, and come out with huge debt. I have an Indian friend from NEU who is working an "unpaid internship" (slave labor) and trying to ride out the tech market slowdown. It's not a skill issue. It's just random luck.
@@gaurav13020 yeah many people aren't basically paying the loan back nowadays. Thankfully their parents are loaded I guess. These fields like Data Science, IT, etc pretty much don't have as many jobs as the consultants advertise
Didn't realize it was a 16min video-it felt like only 4-5 minutes! You shared wonderful points that students need to consider. Please keep making these kinds of videos, they're incredibly valuable.
I feel like all this university ranking are just to pump up the tuition rates for international students at the end of the day, your knowledge and skills would be important in Job market.
@@cbazxy2697 Most of the students in Telugu states end up doing Btech, because of the pressure from society to become a software engineer, and there’re shitload of engineering colleges in Andhra and Telangana who’d gladly sell you an admission very cheaply. So, when they can’t find a job in India after graduation, their next option is to go to USA.
This was such a such a well put video. These exact thoughts were going in my mind from the past few days. Glad, I’m not the only one who thoroughly acknowledges that migrating to US in our Dad’s time was way easier and also logical. The ROI they got is unmatched but now I fear to put my feet in unknown waters. The risk is too damn high. Even after we get a job, we aren’t even sure how long this software field would sustain and also visa headache, oh and btw good luck getting not shot by a random angry person
Firstly, you speak very well so great job! Wish you lots of success. This is quite a realistic take on life in India vs the US. And yes, many people prefer the life of convenience in India over doing their own work in the US. I have been in New York since 2019 (moved from Delhi) and do recommend everyone to live abroad once in their lifetime. It helps build a lot of resilience. And one can always go back to their home country. I love living in the US, because I love clean air, disciplined driving and open spaces and respect of everyone, regardless of what they do.
It would be really helpful if you could get batch mates from different streams. Parallely few topics you can help with is: 1. Is it the bad market or saturated industry? (Eg. UX Design, DS, etc.) 2. Purely psychological take on moving abroad. There's a significant information on monetary decision making but less of social impact. Parents usually put -loss of cultural value. 3. Role of infrastructure in tech or other industries. Maybe a list once you've enough data. 4. Personal: Current tech start-up ecosystem - I believe one can be on the innovation end of things, unsure if true. I might be joining ASU this fall :)
Bro your analysis is spot on, but earning 20-25 lpa is the best salary you can get. And most of these salaries are paid by startups which are very volatile in nature. Second thing you didn't consider is when company says 25 lpa, they are talking about CTC. It means that inhand salary is around 15-16 lac. Hardly you'll find anyone in india making 3lac per month. The whole CTC is inflated thing. Whereas these salaries are being offered in Banglore/Hyderabad where cost of living has increased significantly. I still believe it's much more easy to save 1000 dollars than 1 lac in India. Thanks for your analysis.
Yeah so the same goes US as well my man. Earning >100k$ is not common unless you are in California. Also take into consideration the visa constraint , who knows whether you will get an H1B. "If you make $100,000 a year living in the region of California, USA, you will be taxed $29,959. That means that your net pay will be $70,041 per year, or $5,837 per month. Your average tax rate is 30.0% and your marginal tax rate is 42.6%". So saving 1000-1500$ in USA in not too different than saving 80k or 1lakhs in India.
@@kattusking7146 that's not average salary brother, if you look at average salaries in IT you'll understand what I'm saying. Look at average salaries in US compare it with Indian salaries. Their are exceptions in US as well where people make 200-300k. Which is far more than on Indian counter part.
I had admits from university for fall 24 and by hearing the condition of the job market I dropped my decision to going to the US. The fresh graduates are competing with people who got laid off + the backlog of Students who are searching for job for the last 2 years. The situation is unlikely to change in the next 2 year sadly.
@@user-gx1tr7nu5b agree .. only come if you get through a very good school or low tuition fees ... I am h4 dependent and don't need to pay for rent and food and car.. and my tuition fees is 25k .. so it is ok.. I have eleven years work ex and moving to edtech.. better to be in a stem course that is not CS or DS.. maybe market is still ok for electrical and manufacturing
Only a fraction of student opt for masters for the sake of education and skills. They opt for masters as foot in the door in the USA so that they can do whatever it takes to stay back. This is a shame. Most of the students are able to do it as parents are more than willing to sponsor their children and take loans to send children abroad without knowing the implications.
Almost 10 years ago, people would go to USA for masters(and then to settle down there) ! Times have changed, in 2024. Software is eating away most of the jobs. MOST of the well paid jobs and programming jobs, and MOST of such jobs can be done remotely. Programming can ONLY be self taught. So, in future, schools and college degrees would be of use to less than 1000 people, on Earth, and most people humans would try to master a skill and shall try to gain mastery over it. Indians should start preparing themselves for global jobs, by ditching Indian education system, and depending solely, on Udemy/RU-vid for education.
It's not worth it anymore, I was in US last year and i was shocked at the cost of living, housing price increase and the lack of wage growth. To top it all, the frequent recessions and job losses. Earlier people used to think that once you had a green card it's all rose and glory, not anymore. Even citizens are being layed off left right and centre. If this is the case, what job guarantee and safety doing you have? Also GC backlog is also not going away anytime soon. Think and decide.
Exactly, every part of the world is doomed. Nowhere to go as of now...this is how the economic cycle works, from last so many years the US has been so rewarding in terms of monetary gains and a positive career trajectory but now the cycle is in a downwards trend be it housing, job market ...and will remain like this for years to come before improving again ( which completes the cycle)..also the US needs political stability, it's the need of the hour
The best route would be to have free education in Germany, Gaining experience in Germany for some years without any debt and getting german PR and later moving it to USA. This route has less debt, no issues with H1B and exploring europe being a bachelor.
German PR and citizenship are too different things. Also, the average time to receive a German Citizenship is around 8-10 years and it’s increasing every year. Also, if you want employment in Germany, you need excellent command on German Language. Only few tech-specific roles do not require an advanced certification in German. Also, many states like Bavaria has already introduced tuition fee from international students. As per my knowledge, other major states are about to implement similar policies and in next 2-3 years, German universities would not offer free education to Foreigners. In short, there is no perfect country to emigrate to. They all have their own sets of challenges. You can get best opportunities only in your home country. I feel if you are working in tech, do not go abroad. You can literally have the same lifestyle and success here in tech with half the efforts. I have met IITians with CS background leaving 25-30 lpa packages right after Btech and going for masters in US. That’s an extremely dumb thing to do. People from non-tech backgrounds can definitely assess their options due to bleak outcomes in India but also remember non-tech jobs do have less competition than tech but the opportunities are also limited.
Thanks for giving a balanced perspective. This will help a lot of people before taking huge debts coming to the USA. On a personal level, I saw the immigration problems in the US and decided to go to Germany. It has worked out well but you are right about taking a calculated risk. There is no guarantee any life.
How fair is that if there is no financial background and my entire expenses for moving to US are from a loan , Job in India was not my area of interest but then landed as a contact center representative at hsbc with 4LPA as a fresher , and planning to move to masters ? Is that a wise decision?
iT is skilled based profession it's not much about what degree you have but what skills you have. 70% of Indian IT companies work for US based clients. If you come to USA to work and get opportunity to work closely with client then it makes sense. If you coming to do masters from some average university in USA and don't get work permit to work in USA after doing masters then you are just incurring student loan debt and not gaining anything much except for frustration. Most students won't get opportunity to do work in USA and won't gain must skilss. They will only burn money and waste time. To summarize come to USA after gaining experience in india and don't come to do masters leaving decent job in India. It won't help much, come on student visa only if you getting in tier 1 university.
My sis is going to US for job with US client. Few months back,I was curious to know when will my third tier city's state transport bus stand will get reopened. I didn't even thought about US before this new opportunity. My sis studied in our city college so that expenses are not out of budget. Now 10 years experience in top tier company in Pune.
Good points. Too many come to USA for studies with main (many times only) aspiration to get a great job. This was, is and will always be a bad reason to come to US.
I believe that most of the students who come to the US for their master's degrees are generally from tier-2 or tier-3 colleges, often driven by a rat race mentality. Taking on substantial debts for this pursuit is indeed a significant risk for the middle class in India.
It is because in India , there are two kinds of job available 1. Average job , 2. Aspirational jobs . Average jobs pay as per India's market rate (India's gdp per capita is around 2800 $) . Aspirational jobs pay far above market rate and almost pay at per developed countries (12k $ per capita GDP ) . Only a small section of our population has access to aspirational jobs and to quite tough to get it . But in USA the average job itself pays around 93k$ (USA's gdp per capita is around 76k$) . There is no concept of aspirational jobs in USA . Even electrician , plumber , cab driver can earn a lot of money in USA . India has very high income disparity (hence students chase those aspirational jobs which are tought to get ) .
Hi Abir, Quick Question: 1. Fully Funded PhD in Physics at LSU, Not sure about opportunities after PhD 2. A stable government police job, but salary and standard of living is low Which is better, if your plan is long-term settlement and earning a lot of legal money. Are there enough opportunities for Physics Phd graduates?
Excellent clarity of thought and articulation including the choice of words and manner of presentation. I would like to offer you another perspective which you would lack due to your age and the stage of life you are in. Once you spend 5 years in US it is extremely difficult to move back if you have a family and your kids have lived in the convience of US society. Once you spent 7 or 10 years it becomes next to immpossible. At that point your kids are simply not ready to move to India and learn the hard grind. Second and third language mandates in Indian school makes the move immposible. At that point yours parents might need you, or you might have got some health issues that you cannot treat conviently in US healthcare system and you are frustrated of that GC will take forever; but if you move your kid will fail in second and third language so you can't move. There are more nuances, but I cannot type all of that 😊
This analysis is spot on, providing a comprehensive breakdown of the decision-making process when considering studying or working in the US. Excellent job 👌
Hey, I am a doing material science engineering from a top college in India and i expect to get a decent placement in my core sector. ( between 12 to 15 lpa) but I don't know what will be my growth rate and honestly there is not much good scope . So how are the job prospects for material science engineers in the US and what sort of money can I expect to make? I come from a lower middle-class family and money is an important aspect of my life.
Thanks for the informative video Masters in Health Informatics would be a good decision to do at this time ? Does recession affect health sector also ?
Problem with Indian is they hang around in west with mostly Indian friend and never tried to understand local life or have local friend. You have much better family and happy life in India compared to west. West is good for 15 to 20 years max to work if came after college. In india even after so much struggle earning average 10/12 lakh per year from adult to middle age life is more happy in India compare to west where lonliness and problem start after 50 or 55 years of age and lonely life and less attached children for rest of life..
Just one question , i am in tier 3 college purusing Btech CSE, family barely a mark of "1 cr wali family" and me and my father are bullish for a ms now, i have been watching these videos but, cant understand what to do now, should i still have the american dream or should i opt for jobs in india? i know its getting luck based but what if the odds gets favourable to me or what to do if it doesnt! please reply.
Try to optimize for costs, and quantify risk: A university that has a lot of assistantship opportunities (this is very difficult to research, so you'll have to cold DM a lot of people) is going to be your best bet.
Better go to Germany which has free education. The quality of education is better than the US. The tech field is dynamic and whatever you have learnt in your masters might not be there after some years. So invest less on tech degrees
Very well-made video, my research matches with yours. Even my motivation is a change of pace, a new experience, and the quality of education. In Australia, where I'm headed, I feel there is a small chance for people whose net worth is around 2 Cr to even have their visa approved. They're asking for a minimum of Rs 10 Lac ITR (single person) for the past 3 years these days and above 16Lacs in FD or savings (outside of loan amount), and overall the visa application is pretty expensive and a huge headache. Moreover, the housing crisis and job scenario are worse than in the previous couple of decades. You need to have a strong backup plan or it's not worth it anymore.
See I'm Doing BE in AI in mumbai and honestly want to study more like go deep and study bit by bit how things work (I love technologies so much and want to excel ) and at the same time about money my family is above 2Cr mark so its fine but its in asset form so have to sell to be get in, Sooo my quesion is that is it worth it...(af course i want your opinion)
Its a bad idea to go to US at this time as recession may hit at any time unless it is for research programs and/or the student is very good with street smart skills. The jobs are getting harder, and as soon as recession hits, there will be no jobs for immigrants. Think about tens of lakhs you have to spend that took decades for your parents to earn. Think twice; India is doing very good, chances of succeeding in India is better is as India is progressing very fast. Wait for next 4-5 yrs.
I am thinking to come to the Us for 2026 fall in Ms in Business Analytics. What I am really worried about is hearing the horror stories regarding the visa situation. Do you think it is worth the risks taken?
Nice analysis This is my take For Example consider someone in Twitch makes 10 lakh per year and then you come to us on your own money and some loan. One should also calculate time to repay loan and recover tuition fees and then make up for all this lost time in India ( in terms of money which one can earn in india while working) which people don't consider. So your next 5 years are locked then you after that toy start again making something and then people buy house again they are in debt.
Since I am planning my Masters abroad, I have gone through many vudeos on "Should you come to USA" and I must say this is the most relatable and to the point video.
thank you for your insights! do you happen to know anyone who switched from CS to another niche stream within STEM by coming to the US for their masters? i have no research experience in bioinformatics and i didn't pursue biology in 10+2 but i would really like to pursue this stream and i'm ready to take the time to put in any work required to improve my profile. seeing all these videos makes me wonder if i'm cooked
A niche that is seeing a lot of growth is semiconductors (Nvidia, Micron, TSMC, ASML) - so I think CS + embedded/firmware/GPU exposure is a solid niche (because supply of talent is low) I'm afraid I do not have any solid info on the bioinformatics side.
Hi! I was wanting to come to the US for my mba, to go to top B schools after my engineering in india because in the US i feel like the networking opportunities in these unis r very diverse and also ROI is very much high than indian b schools. Please give me some advice from ur side x
Bro, how is the job market for CPA in the USA? Many institutions are claiming shortages of Accountants, is it a boon to Indians who pursue CPA in India? Is it really worth it?
You should have spoken about the safety issues in US - mass shootings are so common. Just curious - how do your parents sleep peacefully knowing that you are in US?
There is so much competition right now for too few spots. I see 100's of OPT/CPT Indian students posting for positions in the company I work for all the time. They are now enacting an HR policy of not sponsoring H1B, which is a big risk for these students. That coupled with AI and Automation, im not really sure how these students are all going to make it. You really need a lot of luck.
Quick question: a) Offer from Georgia Tech MS Mechanical Engineering? b) or Offer from Airbus north of the hard salary number? Leaning towards Airbus, as I feel that even though market for tech is bad, the market for AE is non existent.
Run the hard numbers: Ask yourself 1. How much are you making and saving with the Airbus salary? 2. How much would a 100K job compare to this salary? 3. Is your inclination towards a short-term or a long-term plan in US?
Good analysis at this very young age. Keep up the good work. Let me put this way: In 1998, a person making 60K USD was able to buy a 31 grams of gold at 450 USD, In 2024, with the same salary of 60K, 31 grams of gold is price. Price of gold is 3.2x today compared to 1998 and the same cannot be said about Salary i.e. 60K in 1998 vs 192K today. Pursuing MS in US is not worth, If you do not have a citizenship or PR to begin with. Also application programming as reached a saturation point and there is no further paradigm shift in technology that I see in the next decade. The hype around Artificial Intelligence has reached worrying levels and the people who are getting displaced are not able to get Jobs anywhere and therefore US unemployment rate will reach is highest levels not see in decades. Another thing is the food inflation has also reached astronomical levels not seen before and the savings potential is being wiped off.
3 years ago our clients forced us to accept payment in USD, but seeing US minting trillion of dollars out of thin air Europe clients have understood and started payment in Euros Pounds instead years ago eg To pay us 1.5 USD they were shelling out there just 1 pound. But if now they do the same to pay the same USD dollar amount to us they need 1.25 Pound. Our cybersecurity Europe client had predicted which many others still have no clue And now all major countries are forming alliance and also finding USD alternative Its not only russia india and china but UK Europe as well Please enlighten in uSa i
The video is really helpful. Will you make videos of transition from CSC related bachelors to Masters in Data science/engg. In my case if you see i've bachelors in Aerospace and 3 years of exp in IT and looking forward to enroll in MS in Data science/engg. So, video about the academic transition may help us in order to selecting colleges and possibilites of thesis?
Hi brother, great insight and interpretation. My profile is based out of finance and I'm planning for the msba program. I hold 4 yrs if work ex. And I'll be looking for financial roles in the US once I grad. Any advise or insight from your end is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance 😊
Depends on what exactly are you looking for. If you are looking to get into core finance - a finance degree is generally needed. MSBA generally helps you get into analytics. An overlap can be financial analyst roles. But I'd recommend going through the curriculum of both MS Financial Engg and MSBA degrees once and figuring out which is more relevant to what you want to pursue.
Hi Abhi, your video just got pop up on my RU-vid channel and I love it. I just want to ask one question that I have gotten admit for Clarkson University for MBA program in business analytics and the Tuition fee is around the 40 lakhs. In India, I am making five LPA annually, so do you suggest me to come to US? And I want to know how is the market there for management consultant? Is it worth spending 40 lakhs and studying in US?
@@abirbhattacharjee5227 Bro for incoming fall 24 MS CS Student at GSU without TA/RA... would you suggest going for it? The salary is not great... It is around 6 LPA
HEY CAN YOU PLEASE TELL ME HOW SHOULD I JUSTIFY MY GAP YEAR. After passing my high school i was diagnosed with a disease and that why i took a year gap. How should i put it in my visa interview. please help me out. should i upload these on ds160 or take my reports with me in visa interview. thank you should i mention my health issues in ds 160. If yes then , where should i mention in ds160 form.
The VO doesn't care a lot about your gap year. They care about your immigration intention (that you are going to study), ties to your home country, and your finances (most of the time I20 is proof that your finances are already vetted) So taking a gap year is totally fine. You could mention some personal projects that you might have worked on, to upskill yourself.
Hi abir, you are right many are stuck in this decision phase. I myself am on of it. I got visa for fall 24 ( MS civil @ Florida Tech). But, after asking around many students there online, all are suggesting to not come as part time jobs are not at all available. Coming from a middle class household, taking a loan of 25 lacs from credila @ 12.25% roi seems to be a huge risk for me. I am sceptical whether i should go or not. I don't want to be in a Debt trap.
