Study in the US

Find out more about some of the US's major student cities...

NEW YORK

As well as the Big Apple and the City That Never Sleeps, New York is sometimes called the ‘Capital of the World’.

Few other cities conjure up as many instant associations, be it the skyscrapers that serve as towering monuments to the city’s financial power, the legendary music and fashion scenes, the bright lights and glitz of Broadway or something else altogether; everyone has their own sense of the city, be it from experience or otherwise.

There is no shortage of quality universities either, the best known of which are Columbia (ranked 10 in the QS World University Rankings) and New York University (44).

BOSTON

Boston is famous for its universities, which include (we’re cheating a bit and counting Cambridge, MA as part of Boston) Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – ranked second and third in the world in 2011.

If you enjoy being surrounded by the best and the brightest, then you can’t really do much better. Fittingly, it can also offer plenty by way of arts and culture too, particular when it comes to contemporary classical music. It’s not all serious academia and highbrow culture though: Boston is renowned for its pubs and bars, and its fondness for sports.

CHICAGO

In terms of wealth, population, and cultural impact, Chicago only lags behind the behemoths that are New York and Los Angeles. From a distance, it appears to be a sterile mass of imposing skyscrapers, but underneath all that glass, metal and concrete is a living breathing city, known for its lively mixture of cultures, its vibrant live music scene and nightlife, and its thriving intellectual life.

The University of Chicago finished 8th in the 2011 QS World University Rankings, with Northwestern (just outside the city) at 24th, not a long way behind – and there are plenty more quality institutions too…

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

In UC Berkeley and Stanford (ranked 21st and 11th respectively) , the San Francisco Bay Area is home to two of the world’s most prestigious and best known universities. The intellectual might of this pair has massively contributed to this area’s wealth, which is largely founded on the technology hub that is Silicon Valley.

San Francisco itself, and the branch of the University of California which shares its name, is also known for its groundbreaking biomedical research. Add mild weather, a liberal outlook to life and a solid party culture, and you can see the appeal for yourself…

LOS ANGELES

Los Angeles will forever be primarily defined by the creative industries on which its wealth is founded: music, television, and – most of all – film. Other things that might leap to mind when you think of the city are the bright Californian sun, beaches, and the perpetual pursuit of the body beautiful – after all, this is the home of ‘Muscle Beach’.

But if you’d rather be exercising your mind than your body, there are plenty of prestigious universities, including UCLA – 34th in the 2011 QS World University Rankings. Worth a look if you’re into star-spotting too!