Cost to Study in USA
Last Updated : March 15, 2016, 10:26 a.m.
USA is the most sought after destination among the students who want to study abroad. It is one of the most favourite destination and ranks at top place among the top five study abroad destinations across the world. It is also the most expensive choices to pursue your higher studies. There are many leading universities and colleges in the USA, which are ranked among the top 10 or top 50 colleges of the world. The cost of tuition fee and living expenses are much higher as compared to getting a degree from some other international destination. Although the tuition fee, living cost and other charges varies from university-to-university and place-to-place. You should not drop your idea to get enrolled in any of the leading USA University just because of higher cost of studies. You can borrow a loan from any bank or financial firms. There are many universities, which offer financial grants and aids to students. Colleges also offer scholarships on merit bases to fund your studies. There are many universities in the USA which offer 100% scholarships to their students. Loan is something, which you need to return, but if you managed to get scholarships, grants or financial aids, these financial help you need not to return even after completion of your course.
Before finalising your college to pursue higher studies in USA, you should first check your available funds and expected living charges in USA. This way you will come to know how much money you are required to complete your education from any of the USA University. You can also get information about the tuition fee, cost of living, and other charges related to your stay and studies there. You should at least find out cost of living and tuition fee of five to ten different universities where you want to apply to get an idea of estimated cost you are going to spend there.
Type of courses: There are different types of courses available to choose from. You can apply for short-term, long-term, full-time, degree or diploma, professional and vocational courses. The duration of the course varies similarly the tuition fee of these courses.
Accommodation: You have three options to stay there. The first and most economical way is to get a seat in college hostel. There are many benefits to stay in college accommodation such as you will not spend much money on travelling. You will save your time and most importantly it is really economical.
The second option is to find an accommodation at of campus location, which is really nearby the campus. However, to get this kind of accommodation you need to spend some more money, but still you find it easy to commute and saves you’re travelling cost. The third option is you can stay with a family. Staying with host family can put extra burden on your overall budget as this will be most expensive among all options. But, there you will get the family support and you don’t feel alone.
Let’s take a look at some important and necessary expenses to calculate your overall spending to get a degree from USA University.
Cost of application
Application Fee: The cost of application form many range between $ 50 to $ 200 per university.
Entrance Test Fee: An academic entrance test might cost you between $ 100 to $ 500. Generally, candidates take two to three different entrance test. Therefore, you can assume that you will spend approximately $500 on your entrance test.
Score Reporting: To get admission in any of the university you are required to submit some basic test scores such as TOEFL, GRE, IELTS, GMAT and SAT. This may cost you $20 per university.
Mailing charges: Most of the universities require hard copies of your documents for authentication of your documents. Therefore, you will spend Rs 1200 to Rs. 1500 as mailing charges.
Tuition Fee & Living Cost
Fee of private institutions: The cost of getting your degree from a private institute is higher. You might spend $ 15,000 to $ 50,000 per year, depending upon university and programme.
Fee of public institution: You might spend $ 10,000 to $ 20,000 per year for your degree programme.
Community College: It might cost you between $ 8000 to $ 15,000 per year.
The tuition fee might be different for different colleges. These are the average costs, generally charged by different colleges and institutes for various courses. The fee mainly depends upon the stream and course you opt for and the reputation of that college.
Living Expenses
Estimated living cost: The living cost majorly depends upon the type of accommodation you have choosen. The average living cost including your room, food and travelling might range between $7,000 to $ 15,000 per year.
Clothing & Personal Expenses: For your personal expenses and clothing you can keep a budget of $3000 to $5000. This cost mainly depends upon the kind of expenditures you will be doing along with your spending habits.