Cost & living Questions

This roughly 100,000 dollar fee, about Rs 95 lakh, could make employers far more reluctant to sponsor entry-level Indian graduates, since the premium only makes sense for rare, senior hires. A federal court has already blocked the original H-1B version, but a similar OPT fee is being weighed.

No, cancelling was not a mistake, it was a rational, risk aware call. US master's loans often run 50,000 to over 100,000 dollars, while tightened visa policies and tech layoffs have made H-1B sponsorship far harder. Avoiding dollar debt without a guaranteed salary protects your freedom.

Stay in the US and stop your ninety day unemployment clock using an unpaid internship, volunteer role or research assistantship tied to your MIS degree. A USD salary clears a dollar loan in one to two years, while an INR salary can take a decade.

It is worth it mainly for high-yield STEM majors and top-tier MBAs, where starting salaries of over a hundred thousand dollars comfortably cover a large monthly loan EMI, while humanities and lower-tier programs with much smaller salaries can turn the same loan into a genuinely negative return over time.

It remains viable only as a high-risk, high-reward bet: choose a STEM-designated program, keep the loan under your expected first-year salary, and know that under half of international graduates land full-time jobs quickly against a strict 90-day OPT unemployment window before your visa status becomes invalid without a job.

Financially, it is worth it mainly if you land a tier-1 or FAANG US job and win the H-1B lottery, since a large loan at high interest can total over Rs. 1.2 crore, and it typically takes two to two and a half years in the US to break even.

Physically and socially it remains safe with strong Indian communities on most campuses, but financially it is high risk now: sponsorship-offering job postings have fallen sharply, total costs run Rs. 60 lakh to Rs. 1.8 crore, and your outcome depends heavily on the university tier you choose to attend.

Yes, strongly consider it. Your US citizenship eliminates F-1 visa limits, employer sponsorship needs and H-1B lottery risk, and makes you eligible for FAFSA federal aid. Real challenges remain around out of state tuition, holistic admissions, and adjusting to independent daily living.