Let’s talk about the universities that have some of the best computer science programs for international students. This is purely based on my experience working with hundreds of students and of course, this is my opinion. It is unbiased and not influenced by any ranking websites, including QS or U.S. News ratings. So don’t be surprised if you don’t find CMU on my website. Here is an explanation of the best universities for Master’s degree in the USA in computer science in 2026.

This is purely based on four factors which I feel are very crucial for international students number. The factors are

1. Cost
2. Placement
3. Location
4. Acceptance Rate

CMU is a private university and besides expensive at the same time. It is very selective the acceptance rate is extremely low and hence the CMU is not on my list. The second factor is the placement go the salary package. Students get straight out of the college’s highest package, lowest package, the average package. The percent of students who get the job within the first 6 months of graduation etc. And the third factor is the location. Certain Geographic locations are so-called heaven for CS students to find local jobs, to find internships. So forth and lastly the factor is the acceptance rate. The university going to have a high acceptance rate or a favorable acceptance rate for international students.

If it doesn’t, I won’t include it, so don’t be surprised if you don’t see MIT on my list. Both MIT and CMU are highly selective colleges, making it difficult to gain admission to either institution. So these two universities although they have one of the best MS programs are not on my list. My list includes universities with decent acceptance rates and high ROI, allowing an average student to gain admission easily or with some effort. And you know if they work on their profile they can easily get into those universities so without wasting any more time let’s get started.

1.University of California, Berkeley

The first one on my list is UC Berkeley the number one in the California University system, the number one Public University in the US public hence it is Affordable. The tuition fee is only $33,000 per year. It is one of the best universities for master’s degree in the USA. The biggest advantage of UC Berkeley is it places you in very close proximity to the Bay Area just 45 minutes away from it. The students who graduate with MSCS from this University easily get an average salary of $129,000 one of the highest in the US. And get into the companies like Cisco, Adobe, Meta, Amazon, Airbnb, eBay, and many more.

The best part is that this University does not require the GRE. All you need is a TOEFL score. My favorite university is UC Berkeley, followed closely by the University of Illinois (UIU), which I also really like.

2. University of Illionis

I cannot stress enough that the tuition fee is just over 38,000 per year. It is one of the most affordable and value-for-the-buck schools. It boasts one of the nation’s strongest CS programs, producing notable engineers and entrepreneurs. Two of the YouTube co-founders were from the same University from the same program. Graduates from UIU’s MSCS program earn an average starting salary of $131,000 and a $223,000 bonus right after graduation. They routinely join companies like Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, Meta, and Intel.

3.Georgia Institute of Technology

I must mention Georgia Tech, the third university on my best ROI list, located in Atlanta, Georgia. A tech job hub for it and software company companies they have one of the best MSCS programs. They offer 11 specializations from human-computer interaction to social Computing to machine learning, high-performance Computing, and many others. And the beauty is they offer both thesis and non thesis options to MS students. If you sign up for a thesis, you’ll work with faculty at the university and likely collaborate with the UN. This university is also good for master’s degree in the USA.

The Faculty is going to pick up you know your tuition fees either fully or partially so there is a high chance that if you sign up for MSB thesis you will study free of cost. There more on this will be coming in future articles if you look at the employment statistics of Georgia Tech. They are very strong fresh University students who can expect to make a median salary of about 125k USD with an additional bonus of 20K. This is one of the very high returns on your investment considering the tuition fees for Georgia Tech is only 177,000 per semester. The next one will blow your mind in terms of ROI in terms of cost of attendance and that is per University with only 15,000 semester fees.

4.Perdue University

Perdue University Stands Tall in the list of best CS universities. It is one of the most affordable Universities in the US with one of the best CS curricula the students who graduate from the University with an MSCS program can expect to make a starting salary while this depends from region to region but let’s take a look at this this is an employment report from Perdue university. They have divided area-wise the highest lowest packages you can see the average package in the West Was about 134k and the highest was 240k and the lowest was 81k the situation is saying the names in the Northeast, Midwest, West, or across the US.

Students get placed well because the University offers a very high return on investment, especially considering its low costs and economic benefits. These get placed in apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Meta and if you want to make it to this University I have one tip for you keep your GPA High. Most of the successful applicants have a major and cumulative GPA above 3.5 out of 4 or 8.5 out of 10 or 85%. So keep your GP high if you want to get into this University.

5.University of Texas at Austin

The only university that rivals this amazing institution in tuition fees is UT Austin, with its MSCS program for international students costing just over $18,000 for two semesters. This is unarguably one of the best universities in terms of ROI. It is one of the best universities in the Texas University system and another good university for the master’s degree in the USA. it also comes in the top 10 best public schools in the nation for graduate programs and the cherry on top is they do not require GR for many programs. Its location provides another strategic advantage to this University.

It’s located in the Austin area, known for its growing tech jobs and increasing Indian population year after year. I’ve sent many students to this University, and all have given me very strong feedback about the MSCS program. Texas in general is a very very economical State and students love this state and love this University on top of that Texas also does not have any state tax. So if you as a student work in Texas you don’t have to pay the state tax which makes this University even more economical and that’s why students love this University I cannot stress enough how much positive feedback I got from students.

Conclusion

Beyond other universities is my favorite. One of them is the University of California, Los Angeles. Amazing University, with an amazing campus, an amazing location, and an amazing placement record. These were the best universities for master’s degrees in the USA. There are other Universities like Caltech University. There is 100% scholarship chances. The next one that I like the most is the University of Michigan. These were my top universities for MS CS programs for international students in terms of ROI. Feel free to research! If this article helps you, please subscribe to my newsletter for support in studying abroad.