G rowing up in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, Sarika Ramanathan expected to go to an American university, just as her three older brothers had when they enrolled in UCLA, Syracuse and Yale. So when her father suggested she consider going to college abroad, “I thought he was crazy,” she recalls. “I hadn’t seen anyone I knew go so far away for school and never imagined living anywhere else.” Plus, she assumed she’d need to be fluent in another language and wasn’t sure how to choose or apply to a foreign school.

Still, her dad had moved from India to the U.S. to attend Southern Methodist University and loved it. And with a little research, she discovered IE University in Spain, with degrees taught in English and students from around the world. Moreover, IE’s four-year communications and digital media program looked a lot like the American programs on her list. “I was like, ‘Wow! This would be such a cool and fun and different experience,’” she says. Three years later, she has studied in Segovia and Madrid, made close friends from around the world and landed internships back in the United States.

Ramanathan is part of a still small but growing group of Americans looking beyond the traditional semester abroad to earning an entire bachelor’s degree overseas. According to a new partial count by the Institute of International Education (which depends on reporting from individual foreign countries), 67% of the more than 90,000 Americans enrolled in full-degree programs abroad in 2025 were undergraduates, up from 35% a decade earlier. During that period, the number of American undergrads more than doubled in the United Kingdom, Spain and Japan. Mexico, which only started reporting to the IIE in 2022, counted the largest population of American undergrads in 2025, with 24,466, followed by the U.K. with 10,200, and Canada with 6,865.

Driving some of the increased demand, college counselors say, are rising U.S. tuition bills and the shrinking odds of gaining admission to elite domestic schools—both of which can make a foreign degree an intriguing alternative for the right student. Some foreign universities, for their part, have tweaked their admissions processes to recognize U.S. credentials and, if English isn’t their primary language, expanded their English-language degree offerings.

The 15 colleges below, grouped by country, all offer respected three- or four-year English-language degrees and attract U.S. applicants. Some, such as Cambridge and Oxford, are highly selective “reach” schools for even the best students while others, such as John Cabot University in Italy, are more accessible. Admissions experts offer several key pieces of advice and some cautions, which we explain in detail below the list. Bottom line: Most foreign schools work best for motivated students who know from the start what they want to study. While tuition at these schools is generally far below the U.S. private school average, families need to be diligent about crunching all the costs, including travel and the financial aid they might get in the U.S., where private colleges offer a mix of need-based and “merit” discounts. U.S. dollar amounts are based on exchange rates as of Aug. 24, 2026, and rounded for readability. Students should confirm current costs and other details on university websites before applying.

Top International Colleges For U.S. Undergraduate Students

Founded in 1821, McGill is a large, primarily English-language public research university with a full roster of academic offerings including the arts, engineering, business and science and a special bachelor of agricultural and environmental sciences. It enrolls more than 28,000 undergraduates and 27% of all students are international. The downtown Montreal campus combines historic buildings and green space near shops, restaurants and nightlife.

Location: Montreal, Quebec

Degree Length: 3 to 4 years, depending on program, AP credits or IB diploma

Application Requirements: Some program prerequisites. McGill’s testing policy varies by program and cycle; applicants should confirm whether SAT or ACT scores are required for fall 2027.

Application Deadline: Jan. 15 for fall admission

Application Fee: $100 (CA$140)

Annual Tuition + Fees: Bachelor of Arts is $40,400 (CA$56,000), but cost varies by program.

Notable Alumni: Billionaire real estate developer Mort Zuckerman ; Moderna billionaire cofounder and chairman Noubar Afeyan , who is also founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering

Founded in 1872 as the École Libre des Sciences Politiques, Sciences Po was created to train the French political and social elite in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War. Today, its highly competitive (think Ivy League) three-year bachelor’s degree programs concentrate on the social sciences and humanities, including economics, political science, law, history and sociology. In 2025, U.S. students made up 6% of undergraduates in a total student body of 13,000. Undergraduates study at one of seven campuses, each with a different regional focus; several offer substantial English-language options. International dual degrees (including with Columbia University in New York and the University of California/Berkeley) are available in some programs. Every B.A. student spends the third year away from France at one of more than 400 partner universities.

Locations: Paris and six other undergraduate campuses in France; Reims hosts the most international students.

Application Requirements: Direct application through the Sciences Po’s International Pathway. U.S. applicants qualify through approved combinations of SAT, ACT, AP, IB and high school results.

Application Deadline: Admissions open in mid-September for 2027 intake; see Sciences Po website

Application Fee: $175 (€150)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $17,400 (€14,900)

Notable Alumni: French President Emmanuel Macron , author Marcel Proust, Christian Dior (who didn’t graduate)

University College Freiburg

Founded in 2012, University College Freiburg—part of the larger University of Freiburg (established in 1457)—brought an American- and Dutch-inspired liberal arts model to this public research institution in southwestern Germany. Its English-taught, four-year liberal arts and sciences program admits only about 80 students annually. After a broad foundational year, students specialize in culture and history, governance, life sciences or environmental and sustainability sciences. The city is on the edge of the Black Forest near the Rhine River; both the Swiss and French borders are less than an hour away by car or train. Classes are held in Freiburg’s historic Alte Universität (Old University), where liberal arts were taught centuries ago.

Location: Freiburg, Germany

Application Requirements: For U.S. students, high school diploma equivalency may depend on AP coursework, taking the IB exam results or other credentials.

Application Deadlines: Vary depending on program of study; see the university website.

Annual Tuition + Fees: $3,900 (€3,380)

Notable Alumni: Billionaire biotech investor Andreas Strüngmann ; billionaire Nicola Leibinger-Kammüller , CEO of TRUMPF, the world's largest manufacturer of machine tools

Established in 1911, HKU is Hong Kong’s oldest university and its courses are taught in English. Entrance is highly competitive (recommended SAT scores start at 1380 and AP scores at 3). Fields of study include architecture, arts, business, dentistry, education, engineering, law, medicine, science and social sciences, giving American students a wide choice of undergraduate degrees; most are four-year but some professional degrees (such as in medicine) are six-year programs. HKU also offers several dual degree programs, including in economics, the arts or social sciences with UC Berkeley. The university enrolled close to 5,000 undergraduates (including 2.6% from North America) in 2024–25. The school’s 21 residential halls and colleges each have their own traditions and community.

Degree Length: 4 years for most programs

Application Requirements: Direct international application; U.S. applicants use combinations of SAT or ACT and AP results, subject to program-specific standards.

Application Deadline: Applications open Sept. 23, 2026, with deadlines in late November; see the HKU website for details.

Application Fee: $77 (HK$600)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $28,600 (HK$224,000) for non-STEM programs; $31,800 (HK$249,000) for STEM programs

Notable Alumni: Billionaire Allan Wong (VTech cofounder), entrepreneur Johnson Ko

Founded in 1592, Trinity is Ireland's oldest university and enrolls about 22,000 undergraduate and graduate students, 37% of them international. It offers broad English-language study in the arts and humanities, business, law, engineering and health sciences. The 47-acre campus sits in the center of Dublin and houses Ireland's largest library, home to the ninth-century Book of Kells.

Location: Dublin, Ireland

Degree Length: 4 years for most undergraduate programs

Application Requirements: Direct international application; U.S. applicants qualify through approved combinations of SAT, ACT, AP, IB and high school results. Requirements vary by course.

Application Deadline: Applications open in November for September 2027 admission. Priority deadline: Feb. 1. Certain programs have earlier or specialized deadlines.

Application Fee: $64 (€55)

Annual Tuition + Fees: Varies by program, with most ranging from $26,300 (€22,580) to $34,500 (€29,570)

Notable Alumni: Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary , former Irish President Mary Robinson, writers Oscar Wilde and Samuel Beckett

Founded in 1902, Bocconi was the first Italian university to award a degree in economics and is today best known for business, economics and finance. It also offers English-taught bachelor’s degrees in political science, data science, artificial intelligence and global law. Bocconi enrolls about 8,200 undergraduates; 53% of students in its English-taught bachelor’s classes are international. It partners with the University of Hong Kong and the University of Southern California’s business school for a 4-year World Bachelor of Business program, with graduates receiving a degree from each institution. Its urban campus is a 10-minute walk from central Milan.

Degree Length: 3 years for most bachelor’s programs

Application Requirements: Bocconi online application; SAT, ACT or Bocconi online test

Application Deadlines: Early Session: Sept. 29, 2026; Winter Session: Jan. 26, 2027

Application Fee: $120 (€100)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $19,800 (€17,000)

Notable Alumni: Billionaire Luca Garavoglia , chairman of Campari Group; billionaire EssilorLuxottica heirs Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio and Luca Del Vecchio

Founded in 1972 as an American liberal arts college in Rome, JCU offers all English-taught classes and 15 majors in business and economics, political and social sciences and the humanities. The school’s career center coordinates internship opportunities, and financial aid is available. Located in the Trastevere neighborhood along the Tiber river, the nearby cobblestone streets are lined with restaurants, bars and cafes—and packed with some of the university’s roughly 1,900 students from all over the world (28% of them hail from the U.S.). JCU provides one of the most American-style education experiences on this list.

Application Requirements: John Cabot application or Common App; SAT or ACT optional

Application Deadline: Early Action: Nov. 15; Regular Decision: March 1; Late Decision: May 1

Annual Tuition + Fees: $30,000 for 2026–27

Notable Alumni: Industrialist Ali Reza Arabnia, chairman and CEO of Gecofin SpA

Founded in 1882, Waseda is a major private research university in central Tokyo. American students can earn complete English-language degrees through six undergraduate schools, including in political science, economics, international liberal studies, social innovation, Japanese culture and science and engineering. Waseda enrolls more than 5,400 international students and sponsors roughly 600 officially recognized clubs and interest groups, offering unusually broad access to Japanese campus life.

Application Requirements: Direct application to the individual English-based undergraduate school; recognized credentials include SAT, ACT and IB; required tests and supporting documents vary by school

Application Deadline: Varies by school. Early application Jan. 12; regular application Jan. 28 for the School of International Liberal Studies’ September 2027 enrollment

Application Fee: Varies by school. For the School of Political Science and Economics it’s $63 (¥10,000) for applicants from outside Japan.

Annual Tuition + Fees: $7,900–$11,900 (¥1,256,800–¥1,889,000); varies by school

Notable Alumni: Billionaire Tadashi Yanai , founder of Fast Retailing (the parent of Uniqlo); Sony cofounder Masaru Ibuka; several prime ministers of Japan

Technológico de Monterrey

Founded in 1943, Tec enrolls around 52,000 undergraduates across a campus network spanning northern and central Mexico from Mexico City to Guadalajara. Known for business, engineering, technology and entrepreneurship, Tec also offers a four-year B.A. in global business with a full English curriculum at select campuses, including Monterrey. The university has held U.S. institutional accreditation since 1950. A new collaboration with Purdue University also lets top Tec seniors spend a semester conducting research at the Indiana campus.

Locations: Monterrey and more than 20 other campuses; English-language global business curriculum available at select Tec locations

Application Requirements: Tec online application; accepts SAT or ACT

Application Deadline: Rolling. The English global business track has limited spaces, so applicants should apply early and confirm the campus-specific timeline.

Application Fee: $120 (MXN 2,000)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $21,600 (MXN 365,580). Health insurance and payment-protection charges may cost extra.

Notable Alumni: Billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego , founder and chairman of Grupo Salinas

Amsterdam University College

A liberal arts and sciences bachelor’s college inside the larger University of Amsterdam, AUC offers a small, English-taught honors program jointly run with Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. About 300 new students a year design interdisciplinary programs within the sciences, social sciences or humanities. All students live together at Amsterdam Science Park, and AUC guarantees housing for all three years—an especially valuable benefit given the city’s tight housing market.

Application Requirements: At least four AP exams with a score of 3 to 5; a foundation year program or one year of undergraduate study; some majors have specific competency requirements

Application Deadline: Early application: Dec. 1; regular application Feb. 1, 2027; late application: May 1, 2027

Application Fee: $120 (€100)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $23,800 (€20,430) for non-EU/EEA students entering in 2026–27

Notable Alumni: Maarten Alblas and Jonas Ruyter, cofounders of DataSnipper , a Forbes Fintech 50 honoree for the past three years

Yonsei University (Underwood International College)

Founded in 1885, Yonsei combines the scale of a leading South Korean research university with Underwood International College (created in 2005), its selective English-language liberal arts division. UIC enrolls around 3,000 students from more than 70 countries across 16 majors, spanning economics, comparative literature and culture, international studies, political science and life sciences. First-year students join a residential college program at Yonsei's Songdo campus before moving to the main Seoul campus.

Location: Seoul and Incheon, South Korea

Application Requirements: Direct application or Common App; SAT, ACT, AP or IB results; select applicants complete an online interview

Application Deadline: Spring 2027 application period: Aug. 26–Sept. 22, 2026; fall 2027 dates not yet confirmed

Application Fee: $72 (₩100,000)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $9,600 (₩13,227,800)

Notable Alumni: Billionaire Lee Boo-jin , president and CEO of Hotel Shilla; filmmaker Bong Joon Ho , director and co-writer of the 2019 film “Parasite,” which won four Oscars, including Best Picture

With more than 10,000 students from 160-plus nations, IE offers English-taught bachelor’s programs spanning business, international relations, law, technology, architecture, design and the humanities, along with numerous five-year dual degrees. Students in the global bachelor’s in business administration program study in Madrid, Singapore and Dubai. Classes take place either in a high-rise tower in Madrid’s financial district or on IE’s Segovia campus, housed partly in a 13th-century convent.

Locations: Madrid and Segovia, Spain

Degree Length: 4 years for most single-degree programs

Application Requirements: Personal statement and IE admissions assessment; SAT or ACT; interview required

Application Deadlines: Early Round: Sept. 18, 2026; additional rounds: Nov. 6, 2026, and Jan. 15 and March 5, 2027

Application Fee: $175 (€150)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $31,000 (€26,500); Global BBA is $51,000 (€43,800)

Notable Alumni: Sanofi CEO Belén Garijo; Nestlé Chairman Pablo Isla, former CEO of fashion giant Inditex

Founded in 1209, Cambridge is one of the world’s oldest universities, with 12,850 undergraduates divided among 31 constituent residential colleges where students live, eat and socialize. Students can apply to a specific college or submit an open application, but they do need to apply directly to a chosen course of study. Classes blend lectures with Cambridge’s distinctive small-group teachings. Its 30-plus programs cover more than 65 subjects, with particular strengths in mathematics, natural sciences, engineering, computer science, economics and the humanities. Admission is exceptionally competitive: In 2025, just 5% of the 597 U.S. students who applied were accepted.

Location: Cambridge, England

Degree Length: 3 years; 4 or more for some programs, including engineering and some science and language courses

Application Requirements: Apply through the U.K.’s Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), plus Cambridge’s supplemental application; U.S. applicants typically need at least five AP scores of 5 in subjects related to the proposed course of study, plus a high SAT or ACT score and strong high school GPA. Some courses require additional admissions tests and/or other materials.

Application Deadline: Oct. 15, 2026 for most applicants seeking 2027 entry

Application Fee: $82 (£60), plus the UCAS application fee of $47 (£34.50)

Annual Tuition + Fees: International tuition is $39,600–$60,300 (£29,052–£44,214) depending on the program. Non-U.K. students pay a separate annual college fee, ranging from $15,700–$20,400 (£11,500–£14,950) for 2026–27, based on the college. Living fees, which include room and board, are extra.

Notable Alumni: Isaac Newton ; Charles Darwin; John Maynard Keynes; Alan Turing; Arianna Huffington

Teaching at Oxford dates to at least 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world. With roughly 12,500 undergraduates, its distinctive tutorial system pairs students with professors (called tutors) for regular small-group teaching alongside lectures and other coursework across more than 30 residential colleges. The college tutors generally “decide who comes to their college and who they will teach,” according to the school’s website. Students apply directly to a subject; among Oxford’s most sought-after undergraduate programs are economics and management, computer science, biomedical sciences, mathematics and law. Competition is fierce and U.K. applicants are “substantially more likely to receive an offer,” according to the university’s latest annual admissions report. Americans represent one of the largest applicant groups: 2,891 U.S. students applied from 2023 to 2025, with 202 admitted.

Location: Oxford, England

Degree Length: Typically 3 years; 4 or more for some science, language and other programs

Application Requirements: Apply through UCAS; U.S. applicants generally need a minimum of three or four AP scores of 5, plus at least a 1460 SAT score or 31 ACT; some courses also require admissions tests, written work and/or interviews

Application Deadline: Oct. 15, 2026

Application Fee: UCAS application fee of $47 (£34.50)

Annual Tuition + Fees: $51,000–$85,600 (£37,380–£62,820) for overseas students in 2026–27, depending on the program; clinical medicine costs more. Room and board are extra.

Notable Alumni: Stephen Hawking ; Margaret Thatcher; J.R.R. Tolkien; venture capital billionaire Michael Moritz ; billionaire investor Alex Beard , a former oil and commodities trader

University of St. Andrews

Founded in 1413, St Andrews is Scotland’s oldest university and the third-oldest in the English-speaking world. Just over 8,000 undergraduates—42% from outside the U.K.—study in what alum Prince William has called “far and away the best University in the world.” University buildings, medieval ruins, beaches and golf courses share the landscape of the small coastal town. Its flexible four-year programs let students explore subjects beyond their intended major. Among the university’s top offerings are math, art history, chemistry, English and environmental sciences.

Location: St Andrews, Scotland

Application Requirements: Direct application, Common App or UCAS; course-specific combinations of AP examinations, SAT/ACT scores

Application Deadline: Medicine Oct. 15, 2026; other undergraduate programs Jan. 13, 2027

Application Fee: $75 through the Common App; $70 (£50) for a direct application; UCAS application fee

Annual Tuition + Fees: $45,000 (£33,250) for 2026-27 Arts, Divinity and Science programs

Notable Alumni: William, Prince of Wales; Catherine, Princess of Wales ; B.C. Forbes, founder of Forbes magazine, who attended night classes at an affiliated college

While the 15 schools above vary widely in their course offerings, competitiveness and costs, choosing among these schools is only part of the calculation. Earning an entire degree abroad is fundamentally different from spending a semester overseas. Admissions and academic structure can work differently, financial aid doesn’t always travel, and some degrees can complicate a return to the U.S. job market. Students also need to be prepared for the independence that comes with building an academic, social and professional life thousands of miles from home.

Foreign Colleges as the New Safety Schools

For some families, the cost of college in the U.S. means rethinking the very idea of a “safety” school. Lindsay Tanne Howe, cofounder and CEO of college-advising firm LogicPrep, says she hears students say, “‘I’m going to apply to the most aspirational schools in the U.S. And if that doesn’t work, maybe I want to have an amazing European adventure.’” But while overseas universities may provide an appealing alternative, they’re not an effortless back door into an elite institution.

For example, Oxford and Cambridge remain what in the U.S. college application game are called “reach” universities—meaning even top students aren’t assured admittance. “The Ivies of Europe” is how Krista Wright, a LogicPrep global advisor, describes them. Their roughly 15% overall acceptance rates might sound high compared to the around 5% admitted by Ivy League schools, but that’s because the pool of applicants to elite British schools is narrowed more by self-selection: Students generally apply only if they meet demanding academic requirements, whereas in the U.S., many students figure they’ll roll the admission dice. “That said, it doesn’t feel out of the realm of possibility for a high-achieving U.S. student to get in” to Oxford or Cambridge, says Howe. And it is an either-or proposition: Students can’t apply to both schools in the same admissions cycle.

According to various polls, interest among younger Americans in moving abroad is growing. The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), the centralized U.K.-wide admissions service, reports that through June 30, 8,270 applicants from the U.S. had applied to colleges in the U.K., up 12% from the same point in 2025. (By contrast, in the 2025–2026 admissions cycle, applications of foreign students to U.S. universities through the Common App were down 10%.) To hear U.S. students applying in the U.K. tell it, money is only part of the growing appeal. In a 2026 UCAS survey of 151 U.S. respondents, 72% cited experiencing another culture and 66% cited personal development as reasons to study overseas. Still, when the published cost of attendance at some private American colleges is approaching—or has crossed—$100,000 a year, the lower tuition and sometimes shorter length of many international bachelor’s degrees are clearly a draw.

Prepare Early and Choose a Major

European admissions are strongly based on academic record. Bocconi University in Milan and IE University in Spain, for example, offer career-oriented programs and admissions processes that lean heavily on grades and test results, without demanding the shining extracurricular resume or compelling personal essay some top U.S. schools expect.

Because of that, Wright says, knowing what you want to study is key to gaining entry and succeeding at a foreign college. She tells students to “make sure that you look at the entry requirements early on because they are transparent [and have] very clear goals that you’re trying to hit.” Requirements vary by university and program and can include specific AP scores, an International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma, or SAT or ACT scores. Some European three-year programs may also require American applicants who don’t meet their direct-entry requirements to complete a foundation year first, in person or online.

Jack Shull, a senior counselor at Global University Advisors, says families need to understand a fundamental difference between U.S. and foreign admissions: “When you apply to Europe, you’re applying to a program .” British applicants choose a major first and write about their academic preparation for it. Wright says students often have “a much clearer picture of their likelihood of an offer because academics are such a big factor.”

A tradeoff, however, is that there may be less flexibility to figure out your interests. In many three-year programs, for example, students begin specialized work immediately, with fewer general-education requirements or opportunities to sample other fields. Ramanathan has found that to be the case at IE. “There are one or two electives every year that you can pick, but everything else is already pre-assigned to you,” she says. Also, switching majors can mean reapplying or starting over. Ramanathan likes her communications and digital media program but offers a warning: “If you really are not sure about your degree, IE would not be the school for you because there is not a ton of wiggle room.”

In addition, coursework abroad may be even more narrowly structured. “The most interesting thing about IE was the strangest to me going in,” says Ramanathan. “You never change who you’re taking classes with. You’re with those people for every single class, every single day all year, except for your electives.”

Run the Whole Cost, Not Just Tuition

Is college abroad truly cheaper than in the U.S.? Sometimes, yes, and dramatically so. A three-year European bachelor’s can eliminate a year of tuition and living expenses, and public universities, such as University College Freiburg in Germany, may charge little tuition. But families also have to calculate housing, food, health insurance, visa fees, currency swings and flights home. U.S. federal direct student loans (but not Pell Grants for lower income students) can be used at about half of the international universities on our list. (Check whether foreign schools are eligible on the latest Federal School Code List , then double-check with the school itself.)

“I hear this a lot: ‘Oh, let’s go to Europe; it’ll be cheaper.’ And there’s a big asterisk [because] it depends on the situation,” says Wright. An in-state public university (or one of the wealthy, elite private U.S. schools that grant free tuition to families earning up to $200,000 or even more) may still be the better bargain. Families should price the degree through graduation, not compare tuition alone.

Lily Kelland, whose family lives in Houston, spent a year at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi before deciding she wanted to study and live abroad. “I wasn’t feeling fulfilled,” she says. “I wanted to travel.” Her family hired Jack Shull’s company, Global University Advisors, to help navigate the process, paying about $2,500. “It was expensive, but it was money well spent,” says her father, Colin Kelland, a native of Scotland who got his own degrees from English universities. Lily was accepted into her top choice, the nursing program at the University of Glasgow. Whereas A&M costs around $29,000 a year, including tuition, room and board, the Kellands figure Glasgow will run them about $40,000, even after a $13,000 scholarship the university awarded Lily. “It’s more, but it’s not crazy. College is expensive,” says her mother, Robin Kelland. To help pay for Glasgow, the family is using a payment plan offered by the school. In addition, Robin went back to work as a teacher’s aide, and Colin, an IT consultant, took on more work.

Comparable Education, Different Experience

Academically, the question is not whether foreign universities are “as good” as American ones. It is whether a very different system suits a particular student and their intended career. Some programs rely on large lectures, independent study and a small number of heavily weighted exams. Advising, residential life and campus traditions may be much thinner than at a U.S. college.

But there are arguably benefits in terms of independence and confidence. At John Cabot University, a U.S.-accredited institution in Rome where roughly one-third of full-degree students are American, enrollment director Arianna Catti De Gasperi says graduates are “way more confident. Even just being immersed in such an international community every single day and at every single hour enlarges your mind.”

Families should also consider how American graduate schools, licensing boards and credential evaluators will treat the degree and demand concrete evidence about internships, career advising and graduate-school placement.

Comparing costs is relatively straightforward; determining the return on that investment is harder. There isn’t a standardized way for families to compare graduates’ earnings across universities. The career return will depend on the school, the field, internships, language skills, alumni connections and where the student wants to work.

So far, Ramanathan has found the foreign school on her resume to be an asset when applying for a job or internship in the U.S. “In my experience,” she says, “I’ve only ever been met with, ‘Wow, that’s so cool’ when I tell people that I go to school abroad. I actually think it’s helped me a lot.” Tanne Howe says LogicPrep has not seen graduates of well-regarded foreign university programs disadvantaged when returning stateside. But she adds that they may need to be more deliberate about acquiring U.S. internships, recruiting contacts and professional networks while overseas.

For students hoping to remain abroad after graduation, the visa matters. The U.K. currently gives eligible graduates at least 18 months to stay after graduation, and other countries on Forbes ’ list offer their own post-study pathways. But the rules can change, the process can be bureaucratic and permission to look for a job is not the same as getting one.

Professional degrees add another complication: Nursing, engineering, psychology and other regulated fields may require additional coursework, exams or credential review before graduates can practice in America. “If I get my nursing degree in the U.K., I will not be able to come back and be a nurse in the U.S.,” says Kelland—at least, not without additional testing and meeting state licensing requirements.

But she hopes to remain in Europe after completing Glasgow’s four-year nursing program. Kelland has the advantage of already holding a U.K. passport through her father so she can remain after graduating without a visa. (She is still considered an international student for the purposes of tuition, because she hadn’t been living in Scotland before enrolling.) “I’m most excited about the sense of independence that I’m going to have in a new country,” she says. “I’m a very lone wolf type of person, and I just want to explore.”

Test the Adventure Before Buying It

Tanne Howe’s advice is practical: Before college, “Do a summer program abroad. You’ve got to go there. You’ve got to live it.” Families should visit if they can, talk privately with current American students and parents, ask how emergencies and mental-health needs are handled, and calculate how often the student expects to come home.

Kelland had not visited Glasgow before applying, and her parents are nervous, too. “I’m worried about her safety,” says Robin. “In Corpus, it’s four hours away. That’s a drive, versus realistically probably 12 hours if I hopped on the first flight.” But they’ve reached out to family and friends in Scotland to create a support network for their daughter, and they know this is what she wants. “She’s really nervous. She’s excited. She wants to live abroad for a while, she’s quite sure of it,” says Colin.

Ramanathan wasn’t planning to do college abroad when she began her college search. Nearly four years later, she’s preparing to graduate from IE next summer and return to the United States. “I think for me, four years was the perfect amount of time to experience stuff and travel, and I’m going to keep traveling,” she says. “I never want to stop.”