For the sixth year in a row, Indian students have emerged as the largest group of international students in the US. In last couple of years, this has included many of my school and college friends, and also some relatives.
Why do all of you have to go to US? Is India so bad? Yes, i agree you get to have better standard of living over there, but doesn’t the place where you’ve grown up, the streets you’ve walked, learnt cycling with your dad/bro/sis holding your seat, the playgrounds you’ve played hours of cricket in the scorching summer sun, the footpaths you’ve walked on to your school/college make you nostalgic enough to hold you back? Is all that matters to you now is the money you will make? Doesn’t what you actually like to do bother anymore?
Don’t tell me so many of you actually ‘want to’ pursue graduate education for the love of the field, for i know most of you are neither aware of the intricacies of the field (as you were before taking up engineering) nor the on going research in those areas, Other than the job paying in dollars of course, and may be for more dowry you get being a techie in US over the Indian ones (ref.: AP guys). I’m sure many of you would not even want to be engineers given a choice.
Why can’t you be happy with the not-so-high paying ‘software engineer’ job in India? You wouldn’t anyway get to do earth shattering or noble-prize winning work even over there, if you aren’t already doing it over here. I think there is nothing you can do over there that you can’t do over here.
still hot..
is US of A. I was wrong in the thought that it was the preferred and hyped “places to be” of the 80’s and early 90’s. Of late India has enormous growth in economy and is creating enough jobs in the BPO and IT sector. Who the heck wants to go to US!? Yeah, i know there are hundreds of thousands of them. US of A is still damn hot! No more doctors are seen to be migrating to hatch their eggs there, nor are many of the famed IITians. The guys who are thronging to US are the ones who have an engineering degree (i’m careful in not calling them engineers) from a ABCD, XYZ, alpha, beta, gamma, delta Institute of Technology, who either can’t get a “software engineer” job in here or consider themselves worth much more than the kind of work the IT industry offers. They are the ones cramming Barron’s wordlist these days.
Whew, even a guy who struggled to clear the university exams talks about Cornell and places! Only to end up doing a masters in a much lower ranked university, working part time as a dish washer or baby sitter. (which is better than not having a job here you say?!)
This year Indian students comprise about 14.4% of the total international students in the US beating Chinese! There has also been an increase by 9.6% since last year. Read this for more information.
Best chance is that you’d end up at Mountain View with the so called technology company which appears to be the best job an average techie could dream of. Most of you are not working on majors you took in your engineering or in any of those fields you choose your electives with so much zeal. What makes you think that you will be able to get the ‘earth-shattering-job’ a 2-year Masters in US would provide that 4-year bachelors didn’t, reading more or less the same what you crammed to clear your 6th, 7th, and 8th semester exams!? Is Google, Yahoo, TI et al hiring only MS? What i am trying to say is, what you are doing now is not all that bad.
My near-Swades experience, not just in watching the movie, by going out, and seeing the actual things happening around has made it more hard for me to leave this country. It’s not all that bad for you guys, it’s much worse for many people out here. The disparity, the divide between rich and poor, is showing up. You still can have a much better lifestyle than a majority with the not-so-sacrosanct-anymore ‘software engineer’ job.
I’ll miss you guys, that’s why i am writing this blog!
‘If you can’t be happy with what you have, you can’t be happy even with a million dollars.’
UPDATE (4th DEC ’07, 2:32 pm):
P.S.: Exceptions would be there for almost everything that i have mentioned above, i have written this on happenings around me in the recent past.
I AGREE WITH YOU TOTALLY , I AM IN US , I GOT MARRIED AND CAME HERE BUT AFTER COMING HERE I AM CONVINCED THAT INDIA IS INDIA AND NO OTHER PLACE CAN REPLACE IT. I HAVE SOMETHING TO TELL YOU , WE INDIANS AND NOT LOYAL TO OUR LAND THAT IS THE REASON, WE STAYED SLAVES IN OUR OWN COUNTRY FOR 400 YEARS . THAT IS WHY WE STILL LAG BEHIND .THERE IS NOTHING WRONG IN GOING FOR BETER EDUCATION BUT IT SHOULD BE USED TO SERVE YOUR OWN LAND AND NOT JUST YOUR SELF. I HAVE A LOT OF PLANS BUT AT THE SAME TIME HAVE MY SAHRE OF RESPONSIBILITIES TOO .LET ME SEE WHAT I CAN GIVE BACK TO MY LAND .
WE INDIANS LACK PATRIOTISM
Haha! The firangs never stop sucking resources be it monetary or human. And most times it’s our own friends!
Too bad! maybe some day they’ll come bak to us! :)
Take care
yup …..but the population of our country is growing leaps and bounds , it is natural for people to diperse and search new land for oppertunities but one should never forget that what they are today is because of their mother land and they need to give back
Agree, population making us to seek out for better opportunity else where. Here i am talking about people who already have good job, they need not go else where. They already have high standard of living, even in contrast to that in US they might have.
a society tag-engineering degree
a peer tag-a fat pay packet
bah !!!
what a post to make me feel guilty! I’m one of those planning to go over there, and i spend most of my day wondering if i’m doing the right thing. I don’t even know WHY i want to go. maybe, in my case, it IS the love of my field. or maybe it’s just for the fun of ‘studying abroad’. i could even be giving in to the wishes of my umpteen relatives. But one thing i’m sure of- India is where i want to live. I signed a bond four years ago saying i would serve my country, and work (in rural areas and govt institutions) for my people, and i don’t intend to break that. ever. so even if i go abroad (IF), i’ll be back!
You sure fall to the exception i mentioned..
still you aren’t doing all that bad over here isn’t it? :-)
You’re always welcome to come back :P
Hi, i liked the way you have put your words.
the same my uncle who is IIT IIM grad told me.
Thanks Naresh.
Sandeep,
You certainly must have felt relieved after writing this piece. The reason I stumbled into this post was because I Googled “lonely Indians in USA”, out of sheer boredom at 1 AM. I have my “hi-tech” job to go to early tomorrow, but I cannot fall asleep as I am too tired from work at the same job today :) But every day’s a new challenge!
Anyway I got here the same way. Bachelors, software stint, masters, job, but I do not resent it. I think I learned many things that I wouldn’t have cared about back there. I saw many new places and met different people. After everything I realized how similar these people are to us. I relate to them at a level I couldn’t imagine before getting here.
Maybe it’s not only about “here”, but I am of the opinion that every Indian if given the chance should go outside, see the world and come back. It’s worth it. I love what the Chinese say. If you don’t leave, you can never return.
Hey Swaroop thanks for your comments.
Sure it’s good to leave to return, but leave looking for something that you can’t find here.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments once again. :)
you smell funny
I can so much relate to this article dude……you some kinda sixth sense or wat??!! Tagged.
~RJ
http://the-connexion.blogspot.com
Thanks RJ
Hey !!..
Nice post !!..
I did my engineering in India…Went to US after my graduation..Did MS from US … Worked terhe for 1 year and now I am back in India for good .. I have joined one of the indian softwsre giants and serving my mother-land ..
I hope many students will follow me .. The treans are changing, my friend !!
@Soham
Good to hear you are back :)
Thanks for visiting!
YOu know what –
Everyone in my office, everyone in my family, everyone in my friend group asks me always – “Why did you come back from US? You shoukd have stayed there .. You should hv worked there .. Idhar kyarakhha hai ?? ” ..
And what do I do after hearing all that bakwas – I hand them a print out of your post and tell them to read it .. After reading it, they understand why did I come back .. I also tell them that once you will go, you will realize that it’s no gold or diamond there .. Gold is here in our motherland .. Diamond is here in our mother land .. And that is our family, our friends, our relatives .. the love, warmth , sympathy, help and support which we get from all of them is just unbelievable ..
Thnaks for such a brilliant post .. u hv made my life easier .. Seriously !!
@Soham
I’m glad that my thoughts has got some change in the way people think :)
Thanks!
I agree with the part where you say that India is home and US of A can never replace that.
“Don’t tell me so many of you actually ‘want to’ pursue graduate education for the love of the field, for i know most of you are neither aware of the intricacies of the field (as you were before taking up engineering) nor the on going research in those areas” …. “You wouldn’t anyway get to do earth shattering or noble-prize winning work even over there, if you aren’t already doing it over here. I think there is nothing you can do over there that you can’t do over here.”
This, I have to strongly oppose. I miss home terribly sometimes to the point of even wishing that I hadn’t come here in the first place. But the kind of research I can do here, the equipment, the opportunity, the kind of guidance ~ I could go on and on. But I’ve been in three labs in India and four labs in the States and the difference hits you in the face.
Maybe software is popular for its “lucrativeness”, but there are so many issues with research in India. Poor funding, partial bosses, pushy seniors. The quality of research maybe the same, but the environ here is much better suited for learning. Maybe my experience is different from your data set ;)
But I’d trade all the labs in the States for the feel of eating masala dosa in Jayanagar dosa corner. :D
@Deepu
Hey you are into biotechnology.. It might be true in your case where (i assume with my limited knowledge) the equipments necessary might not be available coz of prohibitive cost.
But consider this, if you were to pay the same fee as you do in your US univ, setting up such labs won’t be a problem.. ya you might not get Watson to guide you here :)
Also, you might fall into the exception i have mentioned for you might actually know since your school days what you wanted to do but at least 90% don’t including the IITins forget the rest. Guys who strive hard to get into IIT for CS take up consulting and financial jobs for lucrative pay! (software doesn’t pay much these days :D)
Partial bosses, pushy seniors.. ya have heard about these issues here.. :)
For EE, CSE what i have mentioned is to a large extent true.
Hehe… With all due respect, I’m thankful Watson isn’t guiding me. I have had countless arguments about people going into management jobs after a tech degree. Its a waste of technical know how. True, there are few out there who take time to figure out what it is they want and don’t realize until later in life. Hey, I’m no one to judge :D
And all said and done, home is where the heart is. And US of A can never be ‘home’.
Ya.. Until you have a family there :D
Dude this was an awesome piece. I actually came to the US for my Bachelors, and doing my PhD right now. I will return one day.
@Vickram
Thanks for visiting and for your comment :)
i’m just startin out wid my process for MS in mech. engg.
dunno wat to say to ur article…..its like “swades” in words
awesome man…i hav da full intention of comin bac, good to kno der r ppl like me as well
that said, hope i dont get caught up there…
@Dipen
Thanks.. I’m happy you felt my post to have an effect the kind swades has :)
Thought provoking post Sandeep..
I have nothing against NRIs (with reference 2 my post) but becoming critical of everything ‘Indian’ once u live abroad n those disparaging remarks is unfair..R u also in the US??
n tht was no cheap publicity lol..
@Swats
Thanks.. i know some ppl are over critical..
and I’m not in US :)
I am copying the first paragraph of ur post and mentioning it in my blog .. I hope u dont mind it .. All due credits have been given to you ..
Let me know if you have any suggestions to mke.. i will rectify it ..
Hey Sandeep, nice blog. Came from Soham’s.
Btw, I’m sorry but I didn’t understand what you’re trying to say. Are you saying?
– India is getting better and better
– USA is not any better than India
– Masters degree does no good than a Bachelors degree
– Indians living in the US don’t respect India
– Jobs in Mountain View are not worth getting
– Working part time as a dish washer or baby sitter is derogatory
– Everyone in the US does earth shattering or noble-prize winning work
– It’s not worth getting a Masters degree if it’s from a much lower ranked university
I don’t mean to sound argumentative, just trying to understand your POV. :) It’s a very intersting topic. Thanks!
@Soham
No problem :)
@Kanan
– India is no doubt getting better. Yes, there are more opportunities in US but for an average guy, the opportunities are equal here and there.
– Not better for a guy who struggled to clear unvi exams here.
– If you just want to start working or get a job, yes. If you’ve studied ‘properly’ in Bachelors, i doubt the need for doing Masters in a low ranked average university. Coz most guys going from, for such Univs, here don’t exactly know/like what they want to do.
– That depends from person to person. I’ve no comments on that.
– If you aren’t good to get a decent job here, there’s no chance that you’ll get a Mountain View job by doing a masters there.
It’s not a bad option to work for Yahoo or Google or TI or MS here in India. But if you can’t get that here, and you think you’ll get that by doing a masters there, you are wrong.
– Working part time as a baby sitter or a dishwasher is unnecessary.
– That’s what ppl want to believe, i’m saying that you’ll not do earth shattering work there if you aren’t already doing something like that here.
– Yes, it’s not.
Reply is in the same order. :)
– India is no doubt getting better. Yes, there are more opportunities in US but for an average guy, the opportunities are equal here and there. I agree with that.
– Not better for a guy who struggled to clear unvi exams here. Better in what sense? what areas? please elaborate.
– If you just want to start working or get a job, yes. If you’ve studied ‘properly’ in Bachelors, i doubt the need for doing Masters in a low ranked average university. Coz most guys going from, for such Univs, here don’t exactly know/like what they want to do. Are you saying that doing those extra 30 units does no good whatsoever for a person’s career? resume? make a person more experienced? makes them more confident?
– That depends from person to person. I’ve no comments on that. Well, thank you for confirming that. I appreciate it. :)
– If you aren’t good to get a decent job here, there’s no chance that you’ll get a Mountain View job by doing a masters there. It’s not a bad option to work for Yahoo or Google or TI or MS here in India. But if you can’t get that here, and you think you’ll get that by doing a masters there, you are wrong. Well, looks like you already have a Masters from the US and didn’t get accepted at any of those companies. What else could be the reason for you to say that so confidently, right?
– Working part time as a baby sitter or a dishwasher is unnecessary. Unnecessary for whom?
– That’s what ppl want to believe, i’m saying that you’ll not do earth shattering work there if you aren’t already doing something like that here. I don’t think everyone believes so. Do you?
– Yes, it’s not. Really?
Oh thank you for the responses. That clarifies quite a lot.
Btw, if you don’t mind answering, just curious, where did you get your bachelors and masters from? and what country are you working in now?
– ( no issue )
– Better in the sense of research opportunities, when one in India might be stranded coz of funds/equipments, maybe to some extent the profs. For guys who were no good or had no interest in that here, masters doesn’t make sense, even in India, forget US!
– Mostly masters have courses what you had as electives in 6/7/8 sem of bachelors, but the difference could be in the way you learn them if you are to write thesis etc.
Resume, MS makes difference, but 2+yr work experience in relevant domain makes more difference to resume and confidence.
– ( no issue )
– I have seen so many of my classmates and friends, who continue to go for Masters even after working for 3yrs!
Some think the kind of job offers they got are not true to their potential, and think they get to do much better in the quality of work. Some think they are not paid enough.
But i’ve seen guys from same class get offers from Google, and TI.
– Unnecessary for someone who has a job in companies like Robert Bosch, EFI, Cisco(India), Lucent, and so many IT services companies like Infy, wipro, Thought Works. They are paid enough but they then they aren’t when compared to what they can get from working US, and some have false belief in doing better quality of work.
– Not everyone, but i’ve seen many ppl like that. Of course there are exceptions to everything, and i’ve stated that :)
– Really.
I haven’t done my masters, I did my bachelors from PESIT, Bangalore. I’m working for a startup in dsp/embedded systems domain since i graduated.
Okay, let me ask this then. If not a Masters degree, then does a PhD make a difference?
In countries like US, where recession hits you every decade or so, it makes a huge difference what your resume looks like and how much you have updated your resume since you were last in market. A masters degree makes a huge difference in long run, 2+ years of experience doesn’t when you reach your 40s. Most of the times, when you have 2 years of experience, things you’ve worked on are outdated if you’re in Engineering. There is so much new technology coming out that there’s no way you can be out of school for long and still keep your skills updated. I personally don’t feel there is a substitute for education and for that matter MS degree is a must for anyone who wants to stay in market for better job opportunities.
It is not a matter of how long you can keep a job because in todays times, there is no guarantee of job anywhere. What matters is how does any job make you grow personally and professionally and how soon can you get another job when you want. And to get that kind of job that interest you, one constantly needs to be learning new technology and get familiar with the new innovations. Personal experience and observing the standard of living of family members among whom seven have PhDs, and a few other masters and rest Bachelors, I absolutely see a difference. That’s a domain of about 25 people I’m speaking of. And I see that the struggle for money is inversely proportional to the amount of education a person has had. If you look at a person’s career graph over their entire working period (say from age 25 to 65) and the amount of money they make, you might notice a difference in there depending upon their education. The higher education they have had, the more exponentially the graph will go up. I’m talking about an average person here, not those lucky exceptions like Bill Gates.
I agree that if you have a job that pays you Rs. 100,000 per month, then no need for odd jobs. But in the US, there is something called minimum wage. Any person who works one hour must get paid that amount regardless of anything else. Of course, doing a lousy job will get you fired in no time so everyone works hard for their money. And I think the latter is true everywhere, not just US. I don’t think in India we have concept of minimum wage, but I could be wrong about that. In the US, different cities have different markets and some cities are a lot more expensive than others. So if you happen to be having a job in one of those super expensive places, you just might be working a second job to may be pay off your cellphone and electricity bills, or health or car insurance, but hey, in that case, every little bit helps so I wouldn’t say it’s unnecessary. And if you have a home to pay mortgage for, then you’d see a lot of people working multiple jobs because it’s just so freaking expensive to buy a home.
If you don’t have a masters degree, how can you say it is no good? You know what I’m saying? You have to be in the situation itself to make that conclusion, no?
Hope you’re not minding my questions. :)
This is just very interesting discussion. Thanks for taking time to respond back.
Aahhh .. It was good that I came to this post again just to check my comment .. and I found a hell lot of explainations, questions and answers ..
It’s getting interesting here .. I might hv to update my blog to include this discusson !!
@Kanan
No, no, i’m not saying Masters is useless or anything like that. Excuse me if my previous comments indicate anything of that sort.
If masters is so important, you can as well do it in India. I’m complaining about setting out to do Masters in a low ranked US school all the way from India.
And the question of doing odd jobs doesn’t arise if you are doing masters in India.
PhD definitely makes more sense than just doing MS. MS is just for converting a rupee paying job to dollar paying job. This is true in most cases, and if you say the two year education is the cause of the higher earnings, so it be or so it is.
Sandeep, that’s what it sounded like to me thus those questions.
Ok one more question: take two engineers in India. One has a Masters degree from India the other from US. Who would have better chances of getting an IT or other tech. job or for that matter comparatively a higher paying job that you mentioned above?
Also, how many students of age 40 or above do you think attend Indian universities/colleges to take classes or earn higher degrees?
hmm ok, but it was not my point.
see, as far as earning more money goes there is no doubt a degree from US will get you that.
I’m not saying you’ll get more money by staying back in India, isn’t that obvious?!
I’m asking, is all that matters to you is just money?
hope you get that point.
40+ very few or none in India, and i know there’d be many in US.
I’m asking, is all that matters to you is just money?
No. That’s the exact point I’m trying to make. That people don’t come to US just for money.
In the post above you said: Is all that matters to you now is the money you will make? Well, I think it’s much more beyond just money; it is more than money.
Why can’t you be happy with the not-so-high paying ’software engineer’ job in India? Because at the end of the day, it’s not just about that not-so-high paying job. Living a life requires much more and people will go where they get better return for their money, for their hard efforts, where those efforts are fruitful, regardless of where that place is located geographically.
Just because someone chooses to not live in India, does not mean they are betraying India. In life, when your essential needs – roti, kapda, makaan – are met only then you can think of doing something for others and an average Indian is a middle class person who is responsible for not just feeding himself/herself but his/her family too. And if your wish is to visit/see a foreign land, I don’t see anything wrong with it. In fact, I personally felt that when I got away from India I realized her true value and started appreciating all things Indian that matter to me, that have shaped me.
It’s hard to believe India doesn’t pay for your hard efforts, and only US does. Come on.. we are not living in a monarchy or in China!
I never said they are betraying India! Where do you get such ideas from!?
I’m not asking anyone to do anything for others.. is it so bad here for you to live!? (You’d say yes, i know :D :D )
Don’t tell me one can’t feed their family and that’s why they are going to US! :D that’s like the most absurd explanation ever!
you wanna leave back your family, loved ones etc., for a better return for your money and see a foreign land?!
All your explanations leads to only one point: More money, and better standard of living in US than in India. There’s nothing wrong with that, if that’s what you want.
I agree to you point that INDIA is having enormous growth in terms of job and opportunities. But the problem is that we are growing only economically but socially we are still backwards and mentally we are still conservative.
People in developed countries have better purchasing power than us. The difference between an average person here and there is quite hight.
Developed countries at least have better BASIC infrastructures like good roads, good traffic discipline, better employment rate, freedom of expression etc etc.
Its not matter of money but matter of having better status economically and socially.
@Vishal
I didn’t miss the standard of living.
It’s hard to believe India doesn’t pay for your hard efforts, and only US does. Come on.. we are not living in a monarchy or in China! I remember my neighbor kicking out a person who helped him carry things from store to his vehicle and didn’t pay him at the end saying he did lousy job. I’ve seen this happen to maids also; they don’t get paid for their work because they did something wrong by mistake. Then where are those poor people going to go and complain? No where.
I never said they are betraying India! Where do you get such ideas from!? You said so yourself, folks who go to study engineering to US think India is so bad. No? :)
I’m not asking anyone to do anything for others.. is it so bad here for you to live!? (You’d say yes, i know :D :D ) I never said India is bad to live, did I? And you already assumed from my questions that you think I wouldn’t live in India. I’m just saying people will go live where they find better outcome for their input. If you have two job offers, which one would you pick? That kind of situation.
Don’t tell me one can’t feed their family and that’s why they are going to US! :D that’s like the most absurd explanation ever! May be you haven’t seen that kind of hardship in your life where you have to think about what you’ll do next month because all your income is spent on food and there’s nothing more left for the family to spend on little kids uniforms, books, new notebooks. I’ve seen that happen to others around me and even in my own life so do I like the US better? Of course I do.
you wanna leave back your family, loved ones etc., for a better return for your money and see a foreign land?! If that family is not even living a decent standard then why not? Would you rather be sitting there wasting your effort or go to a place where you’re getting enough money to feed yourself and give a better life to your family members? Having loved ones around is one thing and to not be able to feed them with your income is the other.
All your explanations leads to only one point: More money, and better standard of living in US than in India. There’s nothing wrong with that, if that’s what you want. Exactly. The US is for people who don’t have enough money to survive in India. People who have money and don’t know where to spend it, India has everything for them that they want.
What US doesn’t have, that’s a topic for another post altogether. I’m planning to write something about it in a few days. Will share it then.
And in case you’re wondering, I didn’t come to US for masters and engineering. Though I did end up getting into both of them later on. Migrated here with my family when I was 17.
hmmm… may be what you say is true..
but till now in my life i’ve never seen anyone going to US coz they are really poor and can’t feed their family. (there are ppl who’d do to gulf countries, but not US)
I know I’ve created real mean image of myself on here by asking so many questions but in any case, something I learned from experience is just because we haven’t seen something happening, doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen in reality. :)
I’m just saying people come to US for so many reasons.
In case for America to be good or better for someone, India does not have to become bad. And She is not. At least in my opinion. Jai Hind!
I know ppl go to US for many reasons. Read the title of this post. :)
Hmmm.. I know what you mean Sandeep. Just that people have this “fascination” for going to the US. Specially people in Gujarat are “star struck” with USA flag in their eyes all the time!!! Those who are denied the VISA sink into depression!!
Its crazy! Its mad! Its useless!!
Yes USA is good in terms of research, but I think you must come back once done!! Staying in US for academia is fine, not after that!!!
Yeh jo des hai mera
Swades hai tera
tujhe hai pukaara
yeh jo bandhan hai wo kabhi toot nahi sakta
:)
@Nova
I think it’s not just in Gujarat.. it’s in the Indian blood, the fascination towards US :)
Hey man, I had commented earlier. I have my own blog now and have discussed a journal article related to this issue there. Here’s the link:
http://vikramvgarg.wordpress.com/2008/08/29/thoughts-on-indias-culture-of-migration/
Hi,
I’m in the US now doing my bachelor’s and I feel much the same way you do. I feel REALLY lonely..its almost as if I’ve lost a very important part of my life. Homesickness and nostalgia keep nagging at me and I often ask myself what is it that I am going to get in return for these long years of loneliness in this country…just money? I miss my hometown..I miss my friends. I’m tired of the sophisticated and “work! work! ” lifestyle that people have here…Sometimes it’s way too much for me and I feel like going back but I don’t know if that would be a good choice or if it would just be foolishness on my part as many might call it…
@Nirosha
You should get used to it, sooner the better.
Make new friends, join clubs of your interests.. loneliness is a creepy thing.. try and keep it at bay.. make yourself busy.
It seems some US universities like USC are like “masters degree factories” and they simply take you money and give you a useless degree after two years…
It seems to be a widespread problem.
Of course top universities like caltech MIT do not fall into this category…
I agree that financially things have definitely turned around in India and there are plenty of good jobs out there. And, yes, when I first went to the US I went just to get a Masters degrees. Ten years later, I have a small home and great job satisfaction in the US, all of which all my friends back in India too have.
One thing that my friends don’t have and that I do have is independence. Keep in mind, I am a single 34 year old Hindu female. In India, I would be hounded left and right by well-meaning family, friends and even colleagues about why I am not married yet and how sad and pointless my life is (inspite of the fact that I have a fantastic career and actually enjoy my life through travel and a great group of friends.)
There are a lot of social issues that really restrict the life of an Indian woman. While woman are progressing (working, becoming independent, balancing careers and families), most men are not changing their mindset. You hear of so many incidents of women being harassed for not dressing appropriately or going to a pub or being assaulted simply when going home from work. It is really scary.
Worse still is what you hear about how children are treated. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6539027.stm) http://www.indianexpress.com/news/one-in-every-10-indian-children-is-sexually/437574/
And, there is no concerted effort by society to help these children or educate them about how to report these issues or protect themselves.
So, it’s not just about materialistic things. There is something to be said about quality of life which has nothing to do with driving an air-conditioned car or eating at a fancy Italian restaurant and has to do with feeling safe and having the support of the community when something bad does happen.
Hi,
I like all that all of you have written…but you forgot one thing…let me explain. There are 3 reasons why a person leaves one’s homeland –
1. better opportunities (money, standard of living etc, as you had mentioned),
2. desire to travel (also mentioned by you)
3. and lastly, (excluded from the discussion abve) the desire to escape unhappy family situation at home (in India) and make an emotionally fulfilling and happy life for oneself somewhere abroad – not necessarily the US.
There are several of us who come from dysfunctional families in India – and it is v challenging – esp if one is a woman- to deal with set conservative rigid ways of thinking. Hence, it being easier to maintain one’s privacy and dignity in these countries, one moves and sometimes never returns…!
Just wanted to add my 2 bit contribution…
Hey, there is one special thing in the US, that is well worth coming to this country. That is the diversity of the land and it’s people. I get to work with Chinese, Japanese, whites, blacks , gays, straight people which is an amazing experience. Also the roads and the scenes in this country are superb. Anyone who comes to the US thinking only about the exchange rate and focusing on money is missing out on the real value of living in the US. But one thing though, getting an American girlfriend is not easy, as far as I know, they are not open to dating Indians that much.
Hi ..well written .it is almost 9 years completed since you have written this
.But even today what you had written seems to be applicable. Hence I thought I would write this
.First of all after closely analysing Indian students who seem to have one leg here one leg in the flight to go to abroad especially US
..I think that majority seem to lack pateince and they dont seem to understand or (should I say …dont wish to understand )that even in India they can be successful with patience /constant skill upgradation/ and time.
1.First of all they wish to have a comfortable/ hassle free life abroad but they dont seem to remember that nothing comes free and the amenities/comforts there would cost at every step .
2.They seem to think that they should become multi millionaires quickly and going to the US is the best way .
3.I agree that education is good abroad ..but majority of them dont go for that aspect but go for economic prosperity .
The question is it is absolutely necessary to go abroad taking loans using personal money ?etc . is it going to be really worth?Is it that easy to get jobs and sustain those jobs?
What is it going to give ultimately ?
Well..There are no customised answers for this .. it is upto the individual to think and weigh all the aspects and not follow a blind herd mentality of studying abroad
Another thing the students opting for studies abroad seem to feel and comment is that there is too much politics in Indian companies or work places and lack of work ethics /professionalism etcand they need to slog here with no results and there are no challenging jobs here which is not fully true in the current sceneraio !
because Indian environment does realise the importance of professionalism and though there might be lobbying politics etc here and there (Let us remember no country is fool proof from all that ) …No one can ever stop a deserving person from achieving his dreams sooner or later
..If not now it would be tomorrow that they become successful ,,
If requires patience/ faith in self /discipline/ involvement /updating skills/ hard work and time and luck etc would automatically favour them in course of time .
but the important thing is students of todays age are not prepared to wait /they are really impatient and take decisions thinking one sidedly that the other side of the valley is much greener and everything is so easy there .
Anyways like already sid studying abroad is a individual/collective family decision and no advise would ever have an influence .
It is ultimately upto each individual .,But wish to say people who aspire for true success can achieve it in any country including India
It is only question of time ., It may take some few more years here .But not that it is impossible here .