Why study in USA in 2024: Reasons, Scope & Top Universities

USA as a country is one of the best study abroad destinations for international students. Every year, over 1 million international students enroll themselves in USA universities because of factors like quality education and unique academic structure. The country aims to offer education in an innovative way through 4,000+ unique courses and 4,000+ universities. Apart from this, USA is home to top universities like Harvard, Stanford and Princeton. As per the recent QS World University Rankings, 4 out of 10 universities in top universities of the world are located in USA.

The country aims to offer a huge variety of courses and apart from popular STEM courses, students can actively participate in management, fine arts and English courses as well. Pursuing a STEM courses in USA offer 24 months work opportunity for an F-1 visa whereas other courses have an eligibility of 12 months. Therefore, once a student secures a degree from USA university, stepping into a job market with top MNC’s like Amazon, Walmart and Apple is not a dream anymore!

Why study in USA?

USA hosted 1.057 million international students in 2023, the highest number ever recorded. This reflects the continued appeal of American education. Some other important factors that make USA one of the top study-abroad destinations for interntaional students are listed below:

Study in USA: Home to 25+ Top Universities

USA is home to some of the top universities like Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Yale, Princeton. And, as per reports of QS Top Universities Rankings 2024, 27 out of top 100 universities are from the USA. Additionally, another report from Times Higher Education suggests that 36 US Universities are among the top 100 universities in the world. Earning a degree from a USA university offers guarantee to students for employability across the globe. Therefore, American universities are known to have the best infrastructure, technology and offer excellent course curriculum.

Some of the best universities in USA for Indian students according to QS Top University Rankings 2024 are tabulated below,

Study in USA: Wide Curriculum of Courses

Students willing to study in USA have the opportunity to choose not only the program but also the structure of the program. Students enrolled at undergraduate level can find their interest by hit and trial method and after second year subject major can be taken. Similarly, graduate students can combine elective courses with degrees to customize their degree.

Apart from this, another feature that makes the US a preferred study abroad destination is transfer admission. Students can easily transfer their credits from one university to another. Processors at university maintain a healthy relationship with students due to which more and more Indian students prefer the USA.

The international student enrollment in various fields of study in USA as per Open Doors 2022-23 are represented below.

STEM Courses

As per the reports of Open Doors 2022-2023, 15% of international students were pursuing engineering courses, followed by 15% of students pursuing Maths & Computer Science. The data further suggests that more international students are choosing STEM courses in USA. Therefore, Indian students are no way back as 76% of Indian students are enrolled in either of two fields.

MBA in USA

Pursuing MBA in USA, is a 2 year program that costs around 170,000 to 220,000 USD. MBA is one of the popular programs and international students actively engage themselves in the program. Top MNC’s like Amazon, Apple, Bain & Company, BCG, Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, McKinsey recruit students after they complete their MBA degree in USA.

Study in USA: Cultural Diversity

USA is a diverse country and various cultures from different countries enhance the overall culture of university. American universities invite applications from various countries and accept their culture and tradition whole-heartedly. Hence, studying in USA as an international student opens various overall growth and personal opportunities. Employers in USA prefer students with multi-culture talent so that business across the borders run smoothly.

The overall enrollment for 2022-2023 in USA universities for international students is more than 1 million. Therefore, out of all, China and India are top contributors with 289,526 and 268,923 respectively. Some of the top international countries with student enrollment in USA for the year 2022-2023 are mentioned below.

Study in USA: Training and Work-Study Program

Alot of preference in USA is given to training and Work-study programs. During the tenure of the program, students are allowed to pursue part-time jobs in USA and enroll in training to gain hands-on experience. Optional Practical Training and Curricular Practical Training are two kinds of training modules under which students gain working experience.

OPT allows F-1 visa students to work up to 12 months during or after study in USA. However, students enrolled in STEM courses can work an additional 12 hours which makes it 24 hours. CPT is quite similar to OPT, the only difference between the two is that CPT is required to be completed before graduation. Hence, both these programs allow students to work in industry and gain overall professional experience.

Study in USA: Lucrative Post-study Opportunities

One of the major reasons why international students like to pursue their education in the country is post-degree opportunities in USA. USA as a country opens a variety of job opportunities and students can avail them through online sites and on-campus placement opportunities. 

Amazon, Walmart, JPMorgan & Chase and Apple are some of the top MNC’s in USA offering average salaries of 100,000 USD (83 lakhs INR) per year. However, the highest salary offered after studying in USA is 425,000 USD (3.5 crore INR). According to Forbes, some of the jobs in USA offered with the highest average salary are tabulated below.

Apart from this, USA as a country is geographically huge and every city has its own average placement record. Once completing the degree from USA, students can expect to get job offers from top MNC's and earn somewhat around 100,000 USD (83 lakhs INR). Apart from an excellent job market, USA as a country is also excellent in academic curriculum, culture, diversity and campus life.