Interestingly upward mobility in Russia (I moved out in 2008 but visited almost every year since, I guess not anymore) may be easier in a certain way, because e

Interestingly upward mobility in Russia (I moved out in 2008 but visited almost every year since, I guess not anymore) may be easier in a certain way, because education is free if you can pass exams, or otherwise cheap. Now on one hand, that means that most people don't value it, so most of my CS-major fellow students had no notion of CS, coding, or really much of anything IT-related by the end of their education... and many people I know have degrees in some random X that they got "because everyone does it" but they don't do X and never intend to (X can be marketing, or it can be biology, or whatever). On the other hand almost anyone who actually wants it can get decent education for ~free. Then you get a job (in IT, often while still in college) and here's upward mobility :) There are obviously less jobs on every level of "upwards" compared to the USA, but there are still plenty. Many people also (used to?) freelance for Western customers. Until recently, if you don't engage in politics life was pretty good. One aspect of being upper middle class in Russia is that you are surrounded by cheap labor, so everything - healthcare, home improvement, nannies, etc. - is dirt cheap. E.g. you could have a reliable full-time live-in caretaker for an elderly person for like $500-600/month (before the recent ruble collapse) in Moscow; even cheaper in other cities I suspect. Another peculiar aspect with Russia is that it's very centralized, so it really helps to move (imagine Silicon Valley -> Seattle/Austin/... -> the rest - type centralization, but with an even steeper salary gradient and for nearly ALL jobs, not just IT). Ideally you want to be in Moscow; some other major cities (Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk) are also not so bad but people still move to Moscow if they can.