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Hi Vijaya,Please find below 5 common differences between studying in India V/S studying abroad. Hope this will help you make a decision1. Diversity or FamiliarityAbroad: Colleges abroad will offer you greater exposure to a multi-cultural backdrop. You’ll be part of a campus buzzing with students and professors from across countries, nationality and culture. You’ll learn about various traditions and lifestyles, understand and appreciate the differences, would be able to relate with your international peers as well as realise a connection with your roots. Most alumni of foreign colleges find that the international exposure has made them more sensitive towards other cultures and helped them connect with people easily.India: Though you’ll not have as much global diversity as a study abroad program will offer you, your classroom may be filled with students pan-India. You will have a familiar landscape and peers with similar cultural and traditional perceptions, making the transition into college life smoother. You’ll readily be able to strike camaraderie with your peers and might find old acquaintances from school as your classmates.2. Self-Learner or Teachers’ GuidanceAbroad: Be prepared to dive into a completely different style of learning and academic rigour. A number of colleges abroad develop a holistic curriculum that focuses on continuous learning, interactive teaching, extensive research, self-study, collaborative enterprise, classroom presentation, excursions and exchange programs. Assessment and evaluation tools encompass a broad range of mediums including pop quizzes, project work, essays, seminars, class participation, project work etc. The curriculum strives for more student participation and initiative where professors relegate to the role of facilitators. Students must take responsibility of their own learning to be at par with the academic demand.India: The Indian curriculum relies on a teacher-centric lecture based system with exams at the end of each semester. It’s not a continuous learning method, which could be ideal for students who strive in this learning environment or those who wish to be involved in other commitments after college e.g. CA preparation or work in the family business. Many institutions are incorporating international pedagogical approaches to allow students take greater responsibility of their learning. Presently, given the number of students enrolled per course, teacher-pupil ratio, availability of resources and infrastructure, educators are trying to seek a balance between the two types of curricula to benefit learners.3. Academic flexibility or Professionally Oriented ProgramAbroad: Your college journey abroad is quite unlike your experience at an Indian college. You can take greater initiative to design your course based on your learning objectives. At an undergraduate level in the US for example, you can team Anthropology with Music to gain deeper insight into the collective consciousness of an indigenous community or choose an elective unrelated to your major to tap into newer fields of research. You can even change your major provided you meet department requirements. Additionally, you can double major meaning that you can complete two degrees in two separate academic areas. You can also major in one area and minor in the other. Most universities offer students the freedom to explore their academic interests before deciding to specialize.India: Colleges in India do not provide you with this scope. You have to take stipulated course prescribed by the college with defined program timeline. Though it limits flexibility of pursuing self-designed programs, in the Indian context it renders a structured system. Courses are more subject focused or designed to meet the requirements of getting into specific professions. For instance, if you are pursuing Maths, you cannot choose Dance as your elective but Statistics, Physics or related fields of study as your options are pre-determined by the course syllabus. It helps you to specialise in your subject area, and keeps you focused on your professional goals.4. Active Campus life or Individual PursuitsAbroad: If you have a passion for art, music, sports, community service or any domain, college campuses abroad will offer you immense scope to cultivate your interests. Most campuses harbour as many as 80 to 100 clubs of diverse kinds. Be it women in finance, photography, aqua jogging, fencing, archery or robotics, you’ll find your niche in one (or more!) of the clubs or organizations. This is one of the exclusive benefits of studying abroad that most alumni vouch for. It is these extra-curricular activities that shape up your personality for future success. You can begin your own club, or be the president of another. You’ll engage in a myriad of activities that’ll polish your organisational and leadership skills along with blossoming your potential.India: You’ll have a more academic focused ambience with most programs undertaken by specific departments and centred on subject enhancements. Compared to abroad, you have limited number of clubs and associations. This in a way provides greater freedom to students to pursue their own interests outside of college.5. Independence or Comfort of FamilyAbroad: You’ll have no help at all, and have to do everything from making your own bed to changing a bulb, from cooking to paying bills. When it comes to handling finances, you’ll learn to become discreet in managing and planning your finances. College life abroad will offer you a wonderful platform to discover your abilities of thriving independently. You’ll be self-sufficient, organised, take independent decisions, which will be quite a shift from being with parents.India: Your direct educational expenses will be much less. If you are commuting from home, you’ll get the added benefit of saving on food and lodging. You’ll have a constant support system there for you. You may not get the unique experience of taking major decisions but you’ll also not have to go through the challenges of staying alone and far from family.When you are considering a choice between colleges abroad or India, keep in mind your priorities, strengths and objectives. Studying abroad will impact you differently from studying in your homeland. Remember it is up to you on how you want to optimise the opportunities that each would offer you. Analyse your needs, do your homework, speak to your family and friends, and reflect thoroughly; you’ll certainly pick the option that best fits you!

Here are 5 differences between college life in India and abroad.1. Diversity or FamiliarityAbroad: Colleges abroad will offer you greater exposure to a multi-cultural backdrop. You’ll be part of a campus buzzing with students and professors from across countries, nationality and culture. You’ll learn about various traditions and lifestyles, understand and appreciate the differences, would be able to relate with your international peers as well as realise a connection with your roots. Most alumni of foreign colleges find that the international exposure has made them more sensitive towards other cultures and helped them connect with people easily.India: Though you’ll not have as much global diversity as a study abroad program will offer you, your classroom may be filled with students pan-India. You will have a familiar landscape and peers with similar cultural and traditional perceptions, making the transition into college life smoother. You’ll readily be able to strike camaraderie with your peers and might find old acquaintances from school as your classmates.2. Self-Learner or Teachers’ GuidanceAbroad: Be prepared to dive into a completely different style of learning and academic rigour. A number of colleges abroad develop a holistic curriculum that focuses on continuous learning, interactive teaching, extensive research, self-study, collaborative enterprise, classroom presentation, excursions and exchange programs. Assessment and evaluation tools encompass a broad range of mediums including pop quizzes, project work, essays, seminars, class participation, project work etc. The curriculum strives for more student participation and initiative where professors relegate to the role of facilitators. Students must take responsibility of their own learning to be at par with the academic demand.India: The Indian curriculum relies on a teacher-centric lecture based system with exams at the end of each semester. It’s not a continuous learning method, which could be ideal for students who strive in this learning environment or those who wish to be involved in other commitments after college e.g. CA preparation or work in the family business. Many institutions are incorporating international pedagogical approaches to allow students take greater responsibility of their learning. Presently, given the number of students enrolled per course, teacher-pupil ratio, availability of resources and infrastructure, educators are trying to seek a balance between the two types of curricula to benefit learners.3. Academic flexibility or Professionally Oriented ProgramAbroad: Your college journey abroad is quite unlike your experience at an Indian college. You can take greater initiative to design your course based on your learning objectives. At an undergraduate level in the US for example, you can team Anthropology with Music to gain deeper insight into the collective consciousness of an indigenous community or choose an elective unrelated to your major to tap into newer fields of research. You can even change your major provided you meet department requirements. Additionally, you can double major meaning that you can complete two degrees in two separate academic areas. You can also major in one area and minor in the other. Most universities offer students the freedom to explore their academic interests before deciding to specialize.India: Colleges in India do not provide you with this scope. You have to take stipulated course prescribed by the college with defined program timeline. Though it limits flexibility of pursuing self-designed programs, in the Indian context it renders a structured system. Courses are more subject focused or designed to meet the requirements of getting into specific professions. For instance, if you are pursuing Maths, you cannot choose Dance as your elective but Statistics, Physics or related fields of study as your options are pre-determined by the course syllabus. It helps you to specialise in your subject area, and keeps you focused on your professional goals.4. Active Campus life or Individual PursuitsAbroad: If you have a passion for art, music, sports, community service or any domain, college campuses abroad will offer you immense scope to cultivate your interests. Most campuses harbour as many as 80 to 100 clubs of diverse kinds. Be it women in finance, photography, aqua jogging, fencing, archery or robotics, you’ll find your niche in one (or more!) of the clubs or organizations. This is one of the exclusive benefits of studying abroad that most alumni vouch for. It is these extra-curricular activities that shape up your personality for future success. You can begin your own club, or be the president of another. You’ll engage in a myriad of activities that’ll polish your organisational and leadership skills along with blossoming your potential.India: You’ll have a more academic focused ambience with most programs undertaken by specific departments and centred on subject enhancements. Compared to abroad, you have limited number of clubs and associations. This in a way provides greater freedom to students to pursue their own interests outside of college.5. Independence or Comfort of FamilyAbroad: You’ll have no help at all, and have to do everything from making your own bed to changing a bulb, from cooking to paying bills. When it comes to handling finances, you’ll learn to become discreet in managing and planning your finances. College life abroad will offer you a wonderful platform to discover your abilities of thriving independently. You’ll be self-sufficient, organised, take independent decisions, which will be quite a shift from being with parents.India: Your direct educational expenses will be much less. If you are commuting from home, you’ll get the added benefit of saving on food and lodging. You’ll have a constant support system there for you. You may not get the unique experience of taking major decisions but you’ll also not have to go through the challenges of staying alone and far from family.When you are considering a choice between colleges abroad or India, keep in mind your priorities, strengths and objectives. Studying abroad will impact you differently from studying in your homeland. Remember it is up to you on how you want to optimise the opportunities that each would offer you. Analyse your needs, do your homework, speak to your family and friends, and reflect thoroughly; you’ll certainly pick the option that best fits you!

Here’s a few initial thoughts:We focus on quality of life over wealth - we understand that money beyond that which provides you with sufficient resources to live comfortably has minimal further role in your overall level of happinessWe have very good state education services, far better than US, with much greater social mobility as a result - your kids will get a great education irrespective of your level of wealth (our average IQ is actually higher than the US). You still have the choice to use private education if you prefer,We have a police service rather than a police force. One interaction with a UK policeman and you will understand the differenceThe royal family, especially Queenie, our very own head of state - far more class than all US presidents in the last half century (possible exception with Obama) and she is far more cost-effective as head of stateWe have universal healthcare, which means that wealth has a diminished role in your health compared to US - this also supports greater social mobility and happinessIf you have medical concerns in the UK you never have to worry about the cost before deciding whether to go to the doctor or hospital and you will be seen as quickly as the urgency of your situation demandsIf you are in a medical emergency in the UK the doctors and surgeons will immediately do what is best for you, they won’t waste vital time verifying that you have the necessary insuranceSingle-payer healthcare incentivises the government to improve general public health resulting in better education on health issues and higher food standards…We (generally) have a good sense of humour, in particular being happy to poke fun at ourselves and our friendsWe understand irony and sarcasmWe have lower obesity and lower diabetes ratesWe have higher life expectancy (80.8 vs 80.0) and lower infant mortality rates (4.3 vs 5.8 deaths per 1,000 births [2017])We don’t mix up religion and politics - religious freedom is strongly supported, but it’s a private matter; we don’t have people expounding their virtuosity and denigrating other ‘non-believers’We have strong national support for women’s rights and LGBTQ+ rights - this includes allowing a woman to choose whether her body can be used for a pregnancy or if she wants an abortionWe have lower levels of racism and more multi-cultural communities - we don't have Muslim-only or black-only areas (don’t believe anything Trump says about UK)We don’t try to prevent abortions in the name of murder, but then refuse medical treatment to a child because they don’t have adequate medical insuranceOur politics has far less corruption than the US - voter suppression is virtually non-existent, lobbying is far more restricted, significant political donations have to be transparent and face more restrictions than in the US, it doesn’t cost billions to be elected as the prime minister of the UK, vs US presidentIn the US you will get 2–3 weeks paid vacation (excluding bank holidays) and you might work some of those. In the UK we have at least 4 weeks paid vacation and everywhere I’ve worked has been 5 or 6 weeks (8–9 bank holidays are on top of this)The UK job market is very fluid, it is easy to find a new job or opportunity somewhere else, but it is also hard for an employer to fire you without strong causeThe UK workplace is often a fun place to be, with great banter and camaraderie - we aren’t generally constantly competing against each other to prove who is working the hardestWe work less hours than in the US which gives us more free time - we work to live, we don’t live to workOur cost of living is generally lower than in the US; cheaper utility bills, TV bills and broadband bills, many food items are cheaper tooWe have a better spread of wealth across the country with more people having disposable income. The US lower middle class is similar in disposable income to our working class. The top 1% in US have 38.5% of the wealth. The UK top 1% have only 21% of the wealth.Our food standards are higher and we have lower rates of food poisoning (that chlorine wash for the chickens is there to try and hide a multitude of sins before the wash)We have strong gun control - guns are not illegal but they are hard to purchase and face a lot of restrictions - open carry is illegal. This means you do not have to fear your kids being shot at school or being caught up in any gun massacres - even terrorists are now relying on using knives or vehicles now as it is so hard for them to get hold of assault weapons or make bombs without being caught by our very strong intelligence servicesWe have so much culture to explore across historical sites, art, theatre, architecture, music, film and community eventsThe distance across Great Britain is tiny compared to travelling across US, but with huge variety of landscapes and peopleTrips to other European countries are very affordable and easy, we have lots of fantastic neighbours that we share strong relationships and cultural ties withWe are still a nation of opportunity, invention and entrepreneurialismWe’re like the funny, eccentric aristocrat with “old money” - we don’t feel the need to show off, we’ve been there, done that. We had an empire for centuries and have the history and culture that came with that. The American empire (or place as no.1 in the world) will be much more short-lived, China will overtake you this century given the shambolic and elitist way that the US is being run.US is heading in the direction of FUBAR - I hope it sorts itself out, but with the advent of deep-fakes I worry it could just get worse…