
While the number of international students worldwide continues to grow, the cost of studying abroad does not seem to be going down. The most popular study destinations for students are often the most expensive. According to an HSBC survey, while almost nearly 74% of parents would like their children to study abroad, more than 50% of them wish they had started saving earlier. Spotlight on the cost of international university studies.
Costs of international studies in 15 countries
Australia is the most expensive destination to study abroad. That's according to a survey by HSBC Bank on the cost of studying abroad. The 15 countries included in the ranking are also studied in the Value of Education - Springboard for success HSBC report, which analyses the behaviour of over 4,500 parents towards their children’s education.
The ranking of the most expensive countries to study internationally is not only based on a comparison of the average tuition fees at the top 10 universities in each country. It also takes into account the average cost of living in the cities where the top universities of each country are located. Thus, even if US higher education tuitions fees are record-breaking, the cost of living in Australia is so high that the country ends up being a more expensive place to study than the USA.
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Rank |
Country |
Annual university costs (USD) |
Annual cost of living (USD) |
Annual total cost (USD) |
1 |
Australia |
24,081 |
18,012 |
42,093 |
2 |
Singapore |
18,937 |
20,292 |
39,229 |
3 |
United States |
24,914 |
11,651 |
36,564 |
4 |
United Kingdom |
21,365 |
13,680 |
35,045 |
5 |
Hong Kong |
13,444 |
18,696 |
32,140 |
6 |
Canada |
16,746 |
13,201 |
29,947 |
7 |
France |
247 |
16,530 |
16,777 |
8 |
Malaysia |
2,453 |
10,488 |
12,941 |
9 |
Indonesia |
4,378 |
8,527 |
12,905 |
10 |
Brazil |
59 |
12,569 |
12,627 |
11 |
Taiwan |
3,338 |
8,573 |
11,911 |
12 |
Turkey |
1,276 |
10,089 |
11,365 |
13 |
China |
3,844 |
6,886 |
10,729 |
14 |
Mexico |
750 |
8,710 |
9,460 |
15 |
India |
581 |
5,062 |
5,624 |
Are the high costs of studying abroad a guarantee of quality?
The Value of Education study showed that more than half of the parents surveyed consider the United States to be one of the three countries with the best quality of education. The ranking of countries according to the quality of university education seems to show that the better a country’s educational system is, the more expensive it tends to be to study. In fact, the highest-rated countries are in the top 5 of the most expensive destinations for foreign students...
- USA
- United Kingdom
- Australia
- Canada
- China
- France, Singapore
- Hong Kong
- India
- Malaysia
- Taiwan
- Brasil, Indonesia, Turkey, Mexico
For more information on the cost of international studies:
Take a look at the Value of education – Springboard for Success report.
Learn about the cost of living in a large number of cities worldwide on Expatistan.