Studying outside India has always been considered a privilege for elite-class people, however, with the availability of many scholarships from governments, private organizations, or NGOs has made it possible for people from different sections of society to fulfill their dream of going to any foreign country and to peruse their education; internet boom has also helped tremendously to the access of information and breaking the stigma of elite class theory.
Now, the real question is how to choose the suitable University, Country, and course for higher studies. One of the mistakes, or I would rather say lack of research that most students do, is only looking for the courses directly related to their bachelor’s degree or the name of the course they heard about before. For example, if a person has a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, and only searching for a master’s program in Mechanical engineering. This approach need not necessarily be wrong if one has a very clear idea, but if you are just starting and have a clean slate, a better approach can be very helpful in the long run. Let’s discuss the second case in this article.
The first and foremost thing to do is to know where to find information related to courses and Universities. One website that I used is www.mastersportal.com (for any master’s degree globally). Some other useful portals are www.bachelorsportal.com (for any bachelor’s degree globally), www.daad.de (for any courses in Germany). These websites will help you discover numerous courses offered by many Universities worldwide. Spending a considerable amount of time on these websites can give you a good perspective on the wide variety of courses available around the globe and can also save some money from spending it on counseling services.
Knowing a bit about the desired country is also very important. Some of the points to be known are:
- If the desired country offers a post-study visa? (Most important)
- If so, then what is the time frame?
- Is it important to know the local language to secure a job at least at the initial stage? (Important for any European countries except the UK, Ireland, and Scotland.)
- Living cost?
- Job market for the desired field of study?
- Political situation (sometimes it is important)
This process requires a bit of research work and is also time-consuming, which I understand is worth it, especially if we are discussing building our future. Documenting each detail gathered from the research can provide more clarity while taking decisions. I would personally suggest making an excel sheet to fill up the information and analyze it. Most importantly please start as early as possible.