Total Expenses for MS in US - Costs in USD and INR

Wondering how much it costs to complete your MS from US? We've summed up most of the factors here and you'll get a fair idea of the expenditure for MS in USA (unless, of course, you travel business class). We've divided the expenses for MS in USA based on where you'll be making them, i.e., expenses in India and expenses in USA.

EXPENSES FOR MS IN USA WHILE IN INDIA

1. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Exam Fee

This is, usually, the first step towards the entire journey for your MS from USA. This parameter is like the poker face - nobody knows whether it can make or break the chances; and hence, it has always been the most popular of all. You need to have a good GRE prep study plan. The cost of the exam is $205

Low scorers and a bunch of restless high scorers might retake the exam adding another $205. (or INR 15,200).

 

2. Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)

While you MIGHT skip the GRE test for your applications to the States (some universities do take in applications without GRE), TOEFL is something that you can't skip. It is like the passport to the United States. The universities need to know your proficiency with the language and hence, it is a compulsory exam, if not at the time of applications, at least during the VISA interview. The cost of the exam is $170 (or INR 12,600).

 

3. Applying to US universities:

Fees for applying to each university varies from $50 (INR 3700) to $100 (INR 7400) with former being the most common. However, applications are incomplete without sending your official test scores (GRE and TOEFL) through ETS, adding another $47 (GRE: $27 and TOEFL: $20)

On an average, students apply to 10 US universities and the total estimate comes out to be as follows:
Application Fee ($60) + Sending GRE and TOEFL scores ($27 + $20) = $107. Let's be on the safer (read higher) side and assume $110 per university. So, applications to 10 universities will be a whopping $1100 (or INR 81,400)

 

4. Other Expenses During Applications:

Now, this list might be long and will drastically vary from every applicant. Still, the normal expenses in this category are as follows:

a) Counselling: Applicants, rather lazy applicants, who feel that a counsellor can fit in their shoes and get them to Stanford or Berkeley shell out anything from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 50,000. We've assumed the average at Rs. 25,000.

b) Transcripts on the college letter head (around 15 copies), Bank Statements (15), Affidavit (15) with the sponsors name on it (15) and Dispatching them to the university (major expenditure of the lot). This, altogether, should not cost more than Rs. 12,000.

In some cases, students make multiple copies of the Letter of Recommendations (LoRs) and Statement of Purpose (SoP) and unnecessarily burn an extra 500 bucks or so. There may be other charges for like late registration, reinstating cancelled scores, sectional reviews, rescheduling which ranges from ($20-$160 each). (appx INR 7400). To avoid these extra charges we suggest to make a good GRE prep study plan and start applications early and well before the deadlines

 

5. VISA:

While the costs are just a notable factor, it's really important to know the entire VISA Procedure.

Once you receive your I20 (official document sent by the university which states your stay in the United States and the amount to be spent for year), you need to pay up the VISA Fee which is $160 (INR 11,840) followed by the SEVIS fee which is $200 (INR 14,800)

 

6. Flight Tickets:

Single way airfares in Economy Class vary between Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 60,000 depending on your city, destination and airline. Return airfares cost somewhere between Rs. 60,000 to Rs. 90,000 and are a better deal if you're gonna miss family too much.

 

EXPENSES FOR MS IN USA WHILE IN USA

Students who plan to study in universities located in states/cities like California, New York City, Chicago, New Jersey, Washington, Florida, Boston have to keep in mind that owing to the popularity of the location, they might have to spend more for their MS in US.

Moreover, if you plan to stay alone or with a single roommate in a nice furnished apartment, the expenses certainly will be higher. So find yourself a nice roommate before landing there.

Having said that, it is not only safe to share your apartment with a couple of students in a new place, the fun factor is what makes the Masters course all the more interesting.

The two primary expenses after reaching the States are Tuition Fee and Living Expenses.

1. Tuition Fee:

This is a highly variable expense and differs from university to university and is also based on your course. It's also the biggest expense you'll be making. Please check the list of University Reviews on Yocket for complete list of universities with tuition fee and more details. On an average, we can consider tuition fee to be USD 40,000 (INR 29,60,000) for a two-year MS program. Of course you may get scholarships or other financial aid which can reduce these costs. You might also want to consider financing your tuition fee with an education loan

2. Living Expenses:

Well, there's no accurate way to estimate living expenses as factors like

• Location
• Apartment Size
• Number of Roommates and
• Proximity to the University

drastically vary from individual to individual. However, on an average students tend to spend betwwen $500 to $1100 per month which includes everything. If your course length is 2 years you'll end up spending around $15,000 (INR 11,10,000). Most of the students however never end up spending so much as assistantships and internships cover up a lot of these costs.

 

SUMMARY OF TOTAL EXPENSES FOR MS IN USA:

Factors/Parameter	Amount in USD	Amount in INR
GRE	$205	₹15,200
TOEFL	$170	₹12,600
Applications	$1,100	₹81,400
Counselling (optional)	$340	₹25,000
Other Expenses During Applications	$162	₹12,000
VISA Fee	$160	₹11,840
SEVIS Fee	$200	₹14,800
Airfares (one-way)	$675	₹50,000
Tuition Fee	$40,000	₹29,60,000
Living Expenses	$15,000	₹11,10,000
TOTAL EXPENSES	$58,000	₹42,92,000

Note: The above table is derived based on numerous assumptions and actual costs may vary for different individuals. We've only summarized some important expenses to get a rough estimate of the costs.