Higher Studies After Engineering
The fee on the website is only the start of what an MS abroad costs
Students are shown the tuition fee and a success story, and then discover the rest: living costs, insurance, application and test fees, travel, the currency, and a loan that starts costing money long before the first salary. This session sets out the full process and the full bill, using the experience of people who did it, so the decision is made with the real numbers.
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Decisions made on the headline fee are often regretted.
An MS abroad is for many families the largest single expense they will ever plan, and it is often planned from a brochure, a consultant's pitch and a few success stories. The people who describe it honestly are the ones who did it, including the ones who would choose differently now.
This session does not argue for or against it. It sets out what the process and the cost really are, so that the decision, whichever way it goes, is made with open eyes.
What the session covers
41 topics across 7 areas. Seven parts, from the first shortlist to landing. 6 apply to almost any business; the rest only in a particular case.
The Process, in OrderRoughly a year of work, and it starts earlier than most students think.7
- Deciding why, and whether it is the right route
- Choosing countries and shortlisting courses
- Entrance and language tests, where the programme asks for them
- Statement of purpose, recommendations and transcripts
- Applications, offers and funding decisions
- Loan, visa and proof of funds
- Accommodation, insurance and travel
Deadlines vary by country and by university. Read each programme's own page rather than a general timeline.
Adding Up the CostEvery line, in rupees, for the whole programme.7
Costs differ widely between countries, between universities in the same country, and between cities. Take figures from each university's own cost-of-attendance page, not from a blog.
- Tuition and compulsory fees, for the whole length of the course
- Living costs: housing, food, transport, phone and books
- Health insurance, where it is compulsory
- Application fees and test fees, which add up across several universities
- Visa fees and any mandatory health charges
- Flights, and a first month of expenses before anything is earned
- The income you would have earned in India during those years
Costs That Arrive LaterThe ones that are easy to leave out of the plan.5
- Interest that accumulates on a loan while you study
- Changes in the exchange rate between the day you plan and the day you pay
- Extra semesters if a course takes longer than planned
- The cost of a return flight and moving back
- Repayments that begin before you have a stable job
Choosing a Course and a CountryComparing like with like.6
- What the curriculum actually teaches, module by module
- Whether the course is research-oriented or practice-oriented
- What the programme itself says about graduate outcomes, and how it measures them
- Whether public universities in some countries charge little or no tuition, and what they ask for in return
- How a country's rules on working during and after study affect your plan
- Whether the cost makes sense even if you return to India after the degree
Rankings are one input. A well-known name with a poor fit for your field is a costly choice.
Funding Beyond SavingsWhat exists, and how uncertain it is.5
Never plan on funding you have not been offered in writing. A scholarship that might come is not a scholarship.
- University scholarships and fee waivers, which are competitive and usually decided with the offer
- Teaching and research assistantships, which are limited and vary by department
- External scholarships, each with its own conditions
- Education loans, and what they require
- Part-time work during the course, subject to the country's rules and a limit on hours
Agents and ConsultantsSome help. Some profit from your worry.6
- Ask how the consultant is paid, and whether universities pay them to send students
- Ask which universities they do not work with, and why
- Never pay for a guarantee of admission or a visa, since no one can give one
- Check that every application is made by you, in your name, from your own email
- Do not hand over original documents or passwords to anyone
- You can apply directly to any university, at no extra cost, and many students do
A good adviser is happy to answer every one of these questions.
Money Rules and the LoanIf it appliesTake the bank's figures in writing.5
- Whether an education loan covers all costs, or only part of them
- Whether collateral or a guarantor is needed
- When repayment starts, and what interest does in the meantime
- Rules on sending money abroad for study, including tax collected at source, which have changed in recent years
- A chartered accountant or the bank can confirm what applies to your family
A worksheet students take away
- A cost table to fill in, line by line, for two or three courses
- A monthly repayment estimate for a given loan amount and term
- A list of questions for universities, for an agent and for a bank
- A shortlist checklist: fit, cost, funding, outcomes, and the plan if it does not go as hoped
What this session does not do
- Rank countries or universities
- Recommend an agent, a lender or a test-prep service
- Promise admission, funding, a visa or a job
- Treat an MS abroad as better than staying in India
How the session runs
People who completed an MS abroad, and where possible someone who decided against it, walk through the process and the real costs in the order above, with their own numbers where they are willing to share them. Students work through the cost worksheet for a course of their own choosing, and the session ends with questions. Nobody from a consultancy, test-prep company, lender or university speaks, and speakers agree not to promote any service. Costs and rules quoted by speakers are their own experience, and students are told to confirm every figure on the official source.
What your students leave with
- The steps of an MS application, in order, and how long each takes
- A complete list of the costs to add up, not only tuition
- A simple way to compare courses and countries on cost and on outcomes
- What to ask a university, an agent and a bank
- Questions that expose a weak course or an unrealistic plan
- A rough calculation of what the whole thing would cost you
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Know the whole bill before you accept the offer.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.