When a Nepali student graduates with a Bachelor’s (undergraduate) degree, and wants to pursue a Master’s or a PhD (graduate degrees) there are a handful of accredited universities to choose from at home. Naturally neighboring countries, China, India and Bangladesh are hot favorites to study medicine, engineering and accounts. But there are others like me, young dreamers infatuated by the American dream, the United States (US) is the top choice. The reason being that the US is home to many prestigious universities and hosts more number of international students (1.1 million) than any other country.

Every year thousands of Nepali students travel to the United States of America in pursuit of higher education. In the summer of 2011, I too boarded a flight to Lubbock, a beautiful city in Texas from the Tribhuvan International Airport. I was so overwhelmed that day, as it was my first time travelling abroad and I was going to be living on my own, away from family.