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Boston

United States · North America

The densest concentration of universities, teaching hospitals and biotech companies on earth. If you want research, this is the deep end.

Who this suits, and who it doesn’t

Suits you if you are aiming at research, medicine or biotech and your family income is low enough that need-based aid genuinely applies. Look elsewhere if you need certainty about staying afterwards. The work visa is decided partly by lottery.

The catch, and the way in

The catch

US tuition is the highest in the world, and the work visa after graduation is decided partly by lottery.

The way in

A handful of universities meet the full demonstrated need of international students, which can make them cheaper than a mid-tier public university. Research programmes and science fairs are the early proving ground.

Living there

What living here is actually like

Compact and walkable by American standards, with a real winter and an unusual student density. A large share of the population is here to study, which shapes the culture and the calendar. Public transport exists and is adequate rather than excellent. Academic and hospital institutions dominate the city's identity and its employment.

How the money works

The published price isn't the price, and understanding that is the single most valuable thing on this page: a small number of universities meet the full demonstrated financial need of international students, which can make them cheaper than a mid-tier public university elsewhere. Rent is high. Health insurance is a mandatory and substantial annual cost that European students routinely forget to budget for.Described in shape rather than figures on purpose: rents and salaries move every year and we cannot keep numbers true, but what is expensive and what quietly eats income stays true for far longer.

The language you actually need

English throughout, with no language requirement beyond the entrance tests. What is required instead is the ability to write and argue in an academic register, which is a specific skill the admissions essays are testing.

The work that clusters here

The kinds of work Boston is a route into, each with what it actually involves, and what the catch is.

Who is named here

Not a ranking and not in order of merit. These are the places a subject is actually studied and taught at in this city, so you have something to search for.

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology

    • Engineering
    • Computer Science
    • Natural Sciences

    Degrees taught in English

  • Harvard University

    • Law
    • Medicine & Health
    • Humanities & Social Sciences
    • Business & Economics

    Degrees taught in English

Language of teaching moves within a cycle, so check it on the university’s own page for your own entry year.