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I'm 20M from South Asia (not India). Got a near full-tuition scholarship from a T200 public university to study undergrad in the US. Total costs would come out to about $20k USD/year according to the university. (Somewhat common scholarship, and would still need help from family to cover the complete costs)
I have about a year of experience under my belt and recently joined a non-tech-focused startup in Brlin for work under the condition that I'll move there soon. And, I'm really confused on which way to go. I do not have a qualification yet, moving to a place where everyone has a Masters and I don't speak the language feels like it'd be a massive footgun in case I get laid off or if the startup has to liquidate.
The traditional wisdom that I'd read repeatedly until last year was job experience triumphs college and the opportunity cost is not worth it which is why I took the job, but I'm having second thoughts. Does that also apply to Europe?
Would you say this is still the case considering the events of last year? Does the compensation and tax differential across the pond make the investment worth it to join the US labor pool down the line?
I would like to be close to home and Europe would be more amenable to frequent travel, but I've read many European developers lament how they could effectively retire and return after working for just a few years if they could work in the states, how realistic is that?
Objectively which do you think will be the better option? The analysis paralysis is crushing me and any advice would be greatly appreciated.