Top courses to study in USA
When the topic of studying abroad comes up in any conversation, the USA is the first name on everyone's lips. The reason is obvious. With over 11,00,000 international students enrolled in its various universities, the USA stands the tallest as far as global education is concerned. Be it the wide variety of options or the flexibility of the programmes, US universities continue to lure the ever increasing mass of foreign students.
Once you decide to study in the USA, you need to figure out what you want to study, which is the best course to study in USA and the highest paying jobs in USA for Indian students. The top fields of study remain the same over time when it comes to international students studying in the US - engineering, math and science, and business management.

In this article, we bring you the top five courses that international students are pursuing in the US which also offer the highest paying jobs in USA. Before we take you into the details of the top courses to study in USA and why they attract students, the table below lists the top 5 courses for 2023 that are popular among international students in USA.
Top courses to study in USA for international students
No. | Top courses |
1 | Business and Management |
2 | Engineering |
3 | Mathematics and Computer Sciences |
4 | Social Sciences |
5 | Physical and Life Sciences |
Here is more about the best course to study in USA for 2023 which yields the highest paying jobs in USA.
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1. Business Management
With over 20% of international students pursuing related courses, business management surpasses all other fields as the best course to study in USA for Indian students. Of course, the USA has ample reasons for international students to take up business management programmes in US universities, most importantly because they lead to the highest-paying jobs in USA. The country boasts of the maximum number of universities to be listed in the top business school rankings by Financial Times and The Economist. Five US business schools feature among the top 10 business schools for MBA by FT. In fact, names like Harvard, Wharton, Columbia are enough to excite students who dream of becoming business leaders. The US being the world’s largest economy also plays a big part in ensuring students have a multitude of job opportunities. Not just in the US market, an MBA degree from a top notch university in the US is one of the highest paying jobs in USA and globally.
Here are the top five business schools for MBA in USA in the QS rankings 2022:
S.No. | University | Overall Score |
1 | Stanford Graduate School of Business | 94.5 |
2 | Penn Wharton | 92.6 |
3 | MIT Sloan | 92.5 |
4 | Harvard Business School | 92.1 |
5 | Columbia Business School | 90.6 |
Being the highest paying jobs in USA, the mid-career salaries for MBA graduates from schools such as Stanford is $200,287 and for Harvard it's $177,895.
2. Engineering
STEM subjects, of which engineering is a part, are the top courses to study in USA for Indian students and are the highest paying jobs in USA. In terms of numbers, international engineering students are second only to business students in numbers . Like in business schools, US tops here too with the maximum number of engineering colleges in the top 10 ranking by QS. In fact, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is known as the most sought after engineering college in the world and regularly features at the top of the rankings list. Further, MS which is a research oriented masters degree offered by the majority of the US universities is the best course to study in USA and is most searched for out of the top courses to study in USA for Indian students. Of course, engineering is also one the highest paying jobs in USA and the world with specialisations like civil and mechanical engineering fetching the highest salaries.
Here are the top five engineering colleges in USA:
No. | University | QS Ranking | Overall Score |
1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | 1 | 98.1 |
2 | Stanford University | 2 | 96.3 |
3 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | 5 | 93.5 |
4 | Harvard University | 12 | 90.9 |
5 | Georgia Institute of Technology | 13 | 89.7 |
The mid-career salaries for these schools are some of the highest in the world. For example, at MIT, it is $167,200 and for Stanford, it's $156,500.
3. Math and Computer Sciences
Another chunk of the STEM subjects, Math and Computer Science, are known to attract the most international students after business and engineering and are the top courses to study in USA for Indian students yielding the highest paying jobs in USA. STEM constitutes 30% of the total number of international students studying in the USA, making STEM the top courses and highest paying jobs in USA. Again, names like MIT, Stanford and Harvard are prominent as the top US universities for both Mathematics and Computer Science. An added advantage of studying in US universities is there is ample scope to explore research opportunities in the country.
Here are the top five Computer Science colleges in USA:
No. | University | QS Ranking | Overall Score |
1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | 1 | 94.3 |
2 | Stanford University | 2 | 93.9 |
3 | Carnegie Mellon University | 3 | 93 |
4 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | 4 | 89.7 |
5 | Harvard University | 6 | 88.3 |
One of the highest paying jobs in USA, the mid-career salaries for computer science majors from a school such as Stanford is $183,100 and UCB is $181,100.
Here are the top five Mathematics colleges in USA:
No. | University | QS Ranking | Overall Score |
1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | 1 | 96.5 |
2 | Stanford University | 2 | 96.3 |
3 | Harvard University | 3 | 96 |
4 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | 6 | 93.6 |
5 | Princeton University | 7 | 92.8 |
The mid-career salaries for mathematics majors from a school such as Harvard is $205,600 and MIT is $158,900.
4. Social Sciences
Social Sciences make it to the top courses to study in USA for Indian students and branches such as Economics is one of the best course to study in USA offering the highest paying jobs in USA. Social sciences and humanities cover a number of subjects like anthropology, journalism, international relations, economics, and so on. “Besides engineering and MBA, students usually opt for social sciences because the scope for research in this area is huge in USA. Also, unlike in many countries, job opportunities are also easily available here in these sectors offering some of the highest paying jobs in USA,” says Kent D Thomas, Assistant Vice President, International Programmes, Missouri State University, US.
Here are the top five Economics colleges in USA:
No. | University | QS Ranking | Overall Ranking |
1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | 1 | 97.7 |
2 | Harvard University | 2 | 97.4 |
3 | Stanford University | 3 | 92.6 |
4 | Princeton University | 4 | 91.1 |
5 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | 5 | 90.6 |
The mid-career salaries for social sciences majors from a school such as Harvard is $159,600 and MIT is $166,800.
5. Physical and Life Sciences
Some of the top physical and life sciences courses to study in USA are Biology and Medicine and they have always been a big hit among international students. In fact, more and more students are moving from traditional fields and joining combined courses in these fields. “Both my parents are doctors. But I want to stay connected to healthcare via the path of technology. Hence, being a healthcare business analyst in USA is my dream," says Shirish Dhar who says it is the best course to study in USA.
Here are the top five Medical colleges in USA:
No. | University | QS Ranking | Overall Score |
1 | Harvard University | 1 | 98.9 |
2 | Stanford University | 3 | 94.8 |
3 | Johns Hopkins University | 5 | 93.2 |
4 | University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | 7 | 92.2 |
5 | Yale University | 8 | 91.4 |
The mid-career salaries for physical and life sciences majors from a school such as Harvard is $147,500 and Yale is $149,100.
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Questions related to United States of America
Hi All, I will be travelling to US on visitor Visa. Can i use that time to study any short term course.
Hi there
Yes you can try to learn various courses that are for approximately 3 months to 6 months in duration.
Yes you can learn before going to us. Learning skills definitively adds some value to the life of a candidate and also improves in getting good recognition in life..
Below i have mentioned some courses that you can try before visiting us:
- Social media marketing
- Content writer
- Content creation
- Video editing
- Photography skills
- Digital marketing
- Stiching
- Makeup artist course
- Hairstyling course.
So these are some courses you can try.
Hope this answer will help you. Revert incase of any query.
Thank you and good luck:)
Hi my self Samarasimha Reddy, I am from Hyderabad I need clarity on that am I eligible to do ms in the USA after my BSc statistics? What are the requirements to get a software job in the USA?
Hello Samarasimha,
YES, you can MS in UA after completing Bsc in Statistics. . All you have to do is score good marks in your PG and prepare for GRE. You should also decide upon the country and the university in which you are going to study.
Furthermore, the requirements to pursue MS in USA are as follows :
- 3 to 4 years bachelors degree in relevant field.
- 3.5 or higher GPA, equivalent to 87% in bachelors.
- GRE score of 330 or above.
- Statement of Purpose.
- Research Internships/ Published Research Papers.
- Project work/Seminars.
- 2-3 Letter of Recommendation.
- Social & Leadership Activities.
Further, requirements for Software jobs in USA are as follows :
- Enroll in a software development program. The first step to becoming a software engineer is to enroll in a software development degree program. ...
- Gain internship experience. ...
- Choose your specialty. ...
- Pursue industry certifications. ...
- Continue your education.
I hope that this will help.
Hi my self Priyanka i am from Hyderabad i need a clarity that can i do ms in us after my bsc statistics ? what are the requirements to get a software engineerg job in usa ? software Engineering in usa is my dream
Dear aspirant hope you are doing well..
To study at foreign universities/abroad in U. S , the admission process will require the candidate to give one language exam and one standardized exam. However, depending on the country, course, college, or university you are applying for you may be exempted from standardized exams. The language test will showcase your English proficiency skills. These exams are required for pursuing almost all courses abroad. Different countries have different language exams such as
- TOEFL exam for getting admission to the universities in the US and Canada. The score of this exam is valid for two years after the declaration of results
- There are plenty of universities abroad where you can apply to do master-level course, MSc in statistics, MSc in Operation Research, and Applied Mathematics, MSc in Mathematical Modeling, etc are some of the Master level Course in Mathematics that are available abroad. Students who have completed their graduation or bachelor's degree in Mathematics can apply for these courses. Foreign universities like Uppsala University, Dublin City University, Oxford Brookes University, University of York, University of Liverpool, etc offer all the above-mentioned courses in mathematics.
Top university of The USA for master degree courses
- John Carroll University
- Missouri University of Science and Technology
- Michigan State University
- West Virginia University
- Rhode Island College
- University of Arkansas
- Vanderbilt University
- DePaul University
- Delaware State University
- Texas A&M University-Commerce
- University of South Florida
- California State University Northridge
You can get the detailed information about the process how to apply for MS in USA. read the given article. Link is given below
https://studyabroad.careers360.com/articles/how-apply-for-ms-in-usa/amp
Hope it's helpful for you..
Thank you
I am Bawa from India.I am Bachelor in Hotel Mangement and catering technology Now I am on J1 visa in usa for 1 year.what to do next.Study in MBA or any Post graduate course is suitable for me
Hello Student
You are aBHM means Bachelor in Hotel Management so after doing BHM,to gain a bright future inthis trade you have to do MSc in Hotel Management,post graduation in Hospitality Management,Master degree in travel and tourism management,or MBA in hotel management,AFter doing post graduation in Hotel management or travel and tourism management will give you the best return in employment opportunity.
Hope this will help.
I am currently pursuing my first year Masters in Commerce at Mumbai University and am possible to complete in 2023. I would like to know which universry in US to pursue my PhD. Also would like to know which are the fields for commerce students to acquire PhD. Also like to know about the expense
There are many ways to choose your university such as fees, the ranking of the university, which state it is located and scholarships. My suggestion is to choose your research focus and write academic papers. In the US, PhD in Commerce admission into the university depends on what you want to study (your area of research) and your already completed research papers. You can begin your research by searching online for US universities offering PhD in Business Administration. One example is University of California Los Angeles (https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/phd-program/admissions#app-req) .