MIT vs Harvard vs Stanford vs Yale

If your goal is getting a CS job with more than $150k you can do that with an associate degree from Santa Clara U and pass the Google/Facebook hiring tests. A degree from Harvard/MIT gives you no advantage.

@jzducol Keep in mind that (1) I am Indian (2) I dont think Santa Clara U gives need based aid to internationals + need blind admission so exactly how is that going to help me?

The real question is how is the job scene for Indians graduating with CS in MIT/Harvard/Pton/Yale

^ If you are looking at the degree from investment return perspective an associate degree from a community college for 13K USD is a much surer thing than counting on an full ride offer from MIT.

and to everyone saying my post in naive and all, bear with me, that’s exactly the reason why I am asking questions early.

@jzducol Thanks for the advice. All I wanted to make sure was whether it is WORTH APPLYING. In case I do get in I can obviously then get down to the economics and make a decision. This is the first post which says APPLY. All other made me feel very scared, almost as if a Indian will be unable to get a job after MIT!

If you have gotten nothing to lose other than time and effort why not apply. Let us know how it turns out next April. Good luck!

If you do win the lottery by getting an acceptance and you have a net cost of $17k/year, will you be able to pay it? You as the student will not be able to get a loan for that amount. You questions about being able to repay in a short time, makes me think that you will have to borrow if the NPC is correct.

“almost as if a Indian will be unable to get a job after MIT!”

This is an over reaction to something that wasn’t said. Your OP specifically stated that your plan required that you are able to get a $100k job in America to justify your family’s investment. Many people responded to that exact point - that due to the H1b situation, you cannot count on the $100k American job. That is not remotely the same thing as saying you shouldn’t apply to those schools or that an Indian with an MIT degree cannot get a job.

Is the goal to get rich? You need to get into investment banking, finance, etc… The schools you mention here are not necessarily the best place to do that. A 30 seond search came up with this: https://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/199099/top-50-universities-getting-front-office-investment-banking-job

Why aren’t you considering LSE or UCL? Those grads do pretty well for themselves.

@Eeyore123 @Lindagaf @milee30 I apologise for not giving correct info. As I stated earlier it is not as if I have to take out a loan. My parent do earn a decent salary (20000$ combined) and we have assets worth 300000$.

My issue is that is there a reasonable chance of getting a 100K job or equivalent pay job in other countries (which no one except one poster has addressed)

I am ofc going to apply and will update in April.

Will be helpful if someone has actual anecdotal experience from relatives friends etc who were international students (preferably Indian) and what type of jobs they were able to get etc?

The issue here succinctly was this, I have admission to a very good college in India which I can attend for free (IISC) . On the other hand it pretty much restricts my scope to research, which I love doing but I may change my preference in the next 6 mounts so my priority right is getting admission to a good tech (engineering) school in India (IIT) or outside. I do have pretty decent credentials to ensure that it makes sense to at least apply. What I am worried about is this, if I am sure that the investment to go to USA for undergrad studies is mostly NOT going to be a good one, then there is no point applying at all and using this time going something else. Even a reasonably got chance (more than 50 percent) of earning a good enough salary anywhere in the world will be enough to justify this investment of time. This is what I am objectively trying to asses. I may have been very bleak regarding my financial situation in my first post, but it was a bit of overreaction.

Phrasing it scourger way, IITBCSE grads earn the highest salaries in India and the world. Even if a Indian MIT grad would be able to earn at least this much (preferably more) ON AVERAGE then it would be worth my time to apply.

The second issue I was facing was this, which college has the best culture/fit due to which it has the best opportunities for tech jobs for internationals (don’t include Stanford as it’s too costly for international students ).

Again, thank you everyone for taking it your time even though you all going owe me anything.

Just some stats

MIT Website states that the average salary for undergrads is 88000

Let’s assume that for internationals this is more closer to 75000

This is across all courses.

I am assuming that CS students would earn more than the 75000 average hence it should definitely be possible for significant amounts CS international grads to get 100K at least .

All this is assuming I do get through the H1B lottery, if I don’t then

Are there any good jobs available to MIT grads in Europe. I am not aware of salaries in Europe but I am summing that visa situation there is much more friendlier to Indians than USA. If yes, is the salary enough to pay back 70k with in 2-3 years?

It might seem that I speculating too much when I don’t have admission at all (and going by the abysmal admit rate of Indians this is the most likely result) but I want to have as much info as I can have before i commit to apply and I crossover this is the best place. If anyone knows done better website where I can ask these question, feel free to recommend!

For MIT 2017 grads with a BS entering industry, the median salary was $85,000 according to MIT.

I think you are trying to get a hard answer when there are no hard answers available.

With only 5 Indian graduates per year at any of these schools, the odds of someone here having firsthand knowledge of exactly what you are asking for is pretty small.

And you have made comments that make people question why you are looking at these US universities and how you will pay for them.

So I’ll cut to the chase a bit - your chances are low. Very low. You need to be able to explain why Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT (or wherever) is the correct next step for you, in a convincing way that does not include “so I can get a great job that pays $100k when I graduate”.

Do you have a chance of admittance at one of these schools? Presumably yes given the Olympiad medal you have referenced. But schools will also need top grades, top test scores and an interesting narrative. And there are still no guarantees. My daughter’s high school had two students with big accomplishments apply to MIT last year - one was a Siemen’s Science award winner and the other was an ISEF award winner. One was admitted to MIT, the other waitlisted. Both are of Indian descent, but I do not know if they are US citizens.

Can you get a well paying job right out of university? Sure. No one here can tell you what the salary will be, where the job would be, and if it will let you pay back your expected loans on the schedule you are suggesting. If you cannot get a well paying job out of any of these universities, the problem will be something other than the name of the school you attended.

Not sure how accurate this website is but it breaks down pay scales at MIT by degree and major. https://www.payscale.com/research/US/School=Massachusetts_Institute_of_Technology_(MIT)/Salary/by_Degree

Try asking your specific question about work visas on the international student forum on CC. You may get more answers.

I think the reason you are getting frustrated with the responses here is that no one can predict how long it will take you to pay back student debt. There are just too many variables - the main one being the cost of living where you get a job. And unfortunately, cities with highest starting salaries tend to have the highest cost of living.

As far as H1B visas, my husband’s last company stopped interviewing international students for both internships and full time work because there were just too many hoops for them to jump. Even renewing existing employees visas has become problematic. It’s absolutely not something you can count on.

You can also do a google search for average CS salaries in Europe and you’ll get a country by country breakdown. It varies greatly.

I will end by echoing the sentiments of the other posters that if payback is your main criteria for US university, you aren’t going to be able to put together a compelling application. Schools here want to know what you can contribute and bring to their campuses. It’s not enough to want to go to a prestigious school that provides aid, everyone wants that!

IMO, you have nothing to lose by applying since it sounds like you an afford the application fee. If you are accepted, then worry about if it makes sense. I think you are putting the cart before the horse.

Trying to have $70k in free cash flow in 2-3 years is going to be tough. Never underestimate your ability to spend what you earn. If you would have told me in high school that I would be earning what I am today, I would think I would have a lot more spending money. The problem is your feeling of wealth is very localized. If you are making $200k/ but everyone around you makes $300k, you will feel “poor”. If instead you are around people making $100k, you will be “rich”.

Entry level CS jobs from great schools (or even not so great schools) may well pay over 100k, which sounds like a lot, but they are almost always in cities where the cost of living makes it hard to save more than 10k or so (after taxes). Just a fact of life. I know, both my kids are in that situation. Not complaining-- they are debt free, but there’s not a whole lot of room to pay off debt.

All the schools you’re interested in have career services offices. Why don’t you just email them, explain that you’re from India, love their school, but want to be realistic about your ability to find employment in the US after graduation and ask them what the current situation is for Indians w/o us citizenship or a green card who want H1-B visas?

Please do not tell them how you’ve got to make big money right away.