What are Job Prospects for a MS degree for International Students?

Many international students coming to study in the U.S. choose to pursue a Masters of Science degree. This can be a good choice, partly because the chances of international student employment after graduation are high.

One reason for this is that there is a shortage of STEM majors in the U.S.

• As technology and the sciences continue to grow, the jobs that correspond with those industries are also growing.

According to the 2016 U.S. News/ Raytheon STEM Index since 2000:

• There was a 6 percent increase in STEM graduate degrees granted and a 5 percent increase in all STEM degrees granted.
• STEM jobs have increased much faster than overall employment: 28 percent since 2000 compared to 6 percent for all jobs.
• Computer jobs hold the top seven positions for the highest number of employees.
• 3 out of 5 of the highest paying STEM salaries are in IT-related fields. Information Systems Managers have a yearly salary of $141,000; Computer Research Scientists are paid $115,580; and Computer Hardware Engineers make $114,970.

Is there still a shortage?

Furthermore, this shortage is not going away. As of 2014-2015, there were an additional 230,246 STEM jobs and yet only 30,835 additional STEM graduates. STEM graduates are in hot demand.

A Masters of Science degree is just one of the many STEM graduate degrees out there. Let’s get a snapshot by looking at a few popular MS degrees salary ranges, provided by Payscale:

• Software Engineer:                         $66,032 – $122,477
• Mechanical Engineer:                    $59,358 – $99,107
• Senior Software Engineer:            $88,177 – $146,147
• Electrical Engineer:                        $60,634 – $104,779
• Data Analyst:                                   $47,622 – $84,579
• Software Developer:                       $55,827 – $112,164
• Project Engineer:                            $56,423 – $99,916

What should I do with this information?

As we have examined in our previous blog on Salary Expectations for MS degrees, it is apparent that certain fields have a wide range of salary. We advise that you research:

• the university,
• geographical location,
• and job pipeline of that university when determining your future studies in the U.S.

Often the best way to research is to contact the university directly as they will have wealth of information for you to help determine your fit.

Are you interested in a program or field that we did not cover? Let us know in the comments below!

As always, please visit us at www.nomadcredit.com to search for your financial product options, including education loans and student health insurance. Please don’t hesitate to email us at help@nomadcredit.com.