3 ms·

My kid moved from the US to Vienna for work. Loves it, says there is no reason to come back...I know a few more folks whose kids left after Uni to work in the E

My kid moved from the US to Vienna for work. Loves it, says there is no reason to come back...I know a few more folks whose kids left after Uni to work in the EU and have no plans on returning. For a young person who values working to live more than living to work, the EU is very attractive.

ramesh31 5mo ago
It's an infinitely higher quality of life if you're not in the 90th income percentile in the US already. You'll never make that much, but you'll never have half the worries we do here for lower income people.
- rbanffy 5mo ago
  I'd say even if you are on the 99th percentile, the quality of life will be much better. You'll make less money, but you also won't have to spend on things like health insurance, good schools, and so on. Your house might be smaller though, unless you opt to live further from urban centers, which will demand a car, but it'll be a safer and more efficient one.
  - sleepyguy 5mo ago
    Don't know why you were junked, you're not wrong. My child’s situation is somewhat different from many others in the U.S. He never has to worry about money because he benefits from the security of multi-generational wealth. He simply finds Europe and its values to be culturally superior to the United States.
agentcoops 5mo ago
In my niece's (relatively rural) US high school class several students decided to attend university in Europe with no family ties to the countries in question. It was pretty common in my generation to see, as you note, kids moving to Berlin etc after their studies, but this strikes me as relatively new. Anecdata that seems supported in some of the public numbers [0]. [0] https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2025/07/21/record-numbers-of-us-students-are-applying-to-colleges-in-the-uk/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2025/07/21/reco...
- rembal 5mo ago
  Many countries in Europe have free universities: avoiding a few hundred thousands in debt maybe be worth moving in the long run.
  - agentcoops 5mo ago
    Yeah, it's been a relatively rational decision for a while now, but one I personally hadn't really seen taken until recently. Again, all anecdata, but I am curious to track how much of a trend it really is.

ramesh31 5mo ago

It's an infinitely higher quality of life if you're not in the 90th income percentile in the US already. You'll never make that much, but you'll never have half the worries we do here for lower income people.

rbanffy 5mo ago
I'd say even if you are on the 99th percentile, the quality of life will be much better. You'll make less money, but you also won't have to spend on things like health insurance, good schools, and so on. Your house might be smaller though, unless you opt to live further from urban centers, which will demand a car, but it'll be a safer and more efficient one.
- sleepyguy 5mo ago
  Don't know why you were junked, you're not wrong. My child’s situation is somewhat different from many others in the U.S. He never has to worry about money because he benefits from the security of multi-generational wealth. He simply finds Europe and its values to be culturally superior to the United States.

agentcoops 5mo ago

In my niece's (relatively rural) US high school class several students decided to attend university in Europe with no family ties to the countries in question. It was pretty common in my generation to see, as you note, kids moving to Berlin etc after their studies, but this strikes me as relatively new. Anecdata that seems supported in some of the public numbers [0]. [0] https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2025/07/21/record-numbers-of-us-students-are-applying-to-colleges-in-the-uk/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2025/07/21/reco...

rembal 5mo ago
Many countries in Europe have free universities: avoiding a few hundred thousands in debt maybe be worth moving in the long run.
- agentcoops 5mo ago
  Yeah, it's been a relatively rational decision for a while now, but one I personally hadn't really seen taken until recently. Again, all anecdata, but I am curious to track how much of a trend it really is.