Chapter 5 - Which Country Should I go?

A major decision that would affect your present and future would be the country of choice to pursue your PhD. Most people prefer going to the US or Western Europe and Australia for their PhD, while Asian students are increasingly considering many other countries such as Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and Israel. Though uncommon, students from the US and Europe also consider doing their PhD in the Asian and African continents, more so for their field trips, especially in the fields of arts, humanities, and social sciences. It is heart-warning to see this vast cultural exchange and globalization. Depending on the field of research and resource availability, each country has its own unique offerings. Leaving aside the academic part of it, there are other practical things to consider, which I go on to talk about in this chapter.

There are a number of factors that you should consider before choosing where to do your PhD:

1.    Financial Aspects including taxation

2.    Family values in the context of culture

3.    Future long-term plans

Financial Aspects including taxation

In the last article, I talked about the financial aspects to consider before deciding to do a PhD. If and once you have decided to pursue it, the other financial aspects during and after your PhD should be considered into your application process.

The first and foremost will be the stipend (or salary) that you would get as a PhD student. The amount varies drastically between countries. Keeping in mind your family commitments and your standard of living, you should evaluate if you could live comfortably with the amount of stipend or salary that you receive. Some wonder why it is ‘stipend’ OR ‘salary’! I will address it in the next paragraph! Now, as of 2021, as I write this article, the average stipend or salary that a PhD student gets in the US is 20k to 30k USD per annum, 25k to 30k CAD per annum in Canada, 25k to 30k GBP per annum in the UK, 3k to 4k EUR per month in Germany, 2k to 3k SGD per month in Singapore and 50k to 150k JPY per month in Japan. These are just average values and a simple google search will give you exhaustive information on the subject. Consider the amount and compare it with your current or calculated monthly / yearly expenses to decide whether the amount you get would be comfortable to manage yourself and other family commitments.

Second, I kept mentioning ‘stipend’ or ‘salary’ because different modes of PhD funding in the same country and different countries consider the amount paid to a PhD student either as a stipend or salary or both! For example, in the US, if the source of PhD funding is a scholarship award, it is tax-free while the teaching assistantships are taxable. In Germany, the PhD funding is considered a salary and is taxable. This is a very important consideration because taxes differ from country to country and it may be as high as 20 or 30%. Do clarify whether you receive a stipend or a salary! When you consider your expenses and savings, consider your income after tax! To many who consider doing a PhD, this might be an easy filter to decide whether it is financially sustainable to pursue a PhD in a particular country.

Thirdly, consider the post-PhD opportunities and salaries in the countries of your choice. What are the opportunities and salary ranges in the country of study, if you are planning to settle for a long-term? You might be single when you start your PhD and might have a family during or after your study. Explore if the opportunities and salary are good enough to manage a family?

Family values in the context of culture

While financial aspects are important, they are not all! There are much more to consider in life than just money! The first consideration would be to know if the country where you think you can do your PhD allows your family to be with you during your PhD, if you have a family. We have seen this point in the last article. What many miss considering is the family values in the context of culture. While it is easy for a bachelor or spinster to adapt to the new culture, the scenario is totally different when it comes to raising the kids in a foreign country. If you are not planning to be a chronic bachelor and foresee wedding your love of life, consider the environment in which you want to bring up your kids in.

I can talk about a lot of specific examples but I will give a generic example here. I come from a traditional South Indian family background. Many of my friends from similar family background and values live abroad. I interact with them and give counseling to most of them :). One theme that keeps repeating is the ‘identification crisis’ that the next generation goes through in a foreign land. I will explain. Mr X goes to the US to pursue his graduate studies, does very well and was placed in a very good position. His long-term plan is to settle in the US. He is more than comfortable living abroad and had adapted to the new environment. He still holds to his family traditions and values, be it the type of food he eats, alcohol consumption, or other rituals if any. He has a choice and he sticks to it (nothing right or wrong!). Luckily, he (or his parents mostly) finds the love of his life Ms Y, having similar family values and outlook of life. They were happily married! Life goes on and brings in a joy, baby Z, the little bundle of love was born. Baby Z grows up, and it is time for schooling now. As Z grows up, he or she will face an ‘identity crisis’ in their teenage. The family (parents and grand-parents) teaches and practices a set of cultural values. While at School, they have to deal with a completely different set of cultural values. And tragically, most of the time, they are contrary and conflicting to each other! I will give a specific example which I heard in a talk show. A 25-year-old girl of Indian origin took her life away as she was not allowed to have a boyfriend! Why? Her parents are from traditional south Indian background and they think having a boyfriend is a taboo. The girl goes through a lot of stress in her high school and college/university where not having a boyfriend is being mocked at. She couldn’t manage the conflicting themes and was torn between the two spheres, went on to take an extremely stupid decision to take her life away! What a tragedy Mr X and Ms Y has to face! They have everything but they lost their only child!

My intention is not to scare you but prepare you. There are so many who are doing well abroad, blending in to the different culture. I personally know many Indians from similar backgrounds who are happily married to foreigners, bringing up their children in the family values of both the side of the parents, giving them different cultural contexts and perspectives. The point is, have you thought about it and are you prepared for it? This is not something unique to south India, I have personally seen this cultural identity crisis in other nationalities too! Chinese, Singaporeans, Malaysians, Europeans and Americans! While some are matured enough to handle these, some are not. Better safe than sorry!

While it may not be such a big consideration to some people, this might be so important to others! I leave it to the discretion of the readers as to how important this aspect is, depending on their background, family and cultural settings.

Future long-term Plans

We talked so much about the family scenarios, which brings in the next factor of your future long-term plans. Are you planning to settle in that country in the long-run? Have you considered all the financial aspects and family values? What are your financial goals and personal goals? Will the country that you choose to invest your time and energy for your PhD be suitable and supportive of your goals?

Like I always say, life is full of surprises. It is not humanely possible to draft a complete and perfect future plan. There will be deviations, there will be twists and turns but it would be foolish not to plan the future at all. Give some thoughts to your future plans, consider multiple options, think of plan B’s, and worst-case scenarios. I am sure it will prepare you mentally for things that come your way in the future!