Hollywood - best country marketing ever.

As with many things in the US, the top end is truly elite, for the small minority that can be accepted/afford it. But the average is mediocre at best.

>But the average is mediocre at best.

This just isn't true at all.

Average state schools that are affordable to the vast majority of students through income based student loan repayments are far better than mediocre.

The US has 1/3 of the top 500 ranked colleges in the world, and nearly 1/4 of the top 5000.

http://www.webometrics.info/en/node/54

There's a reason that international students flock to even low ranked state schools in the US.

This is my entire point - our schools are filling up with non-American students.

In 2015 they made up 4.8% of all undergraduate students.

I wouldn't say that is filling up.

http://graphics.wsj.com/international-students/

I can't research this at the moment but a couple obvious explanations:

- The USA is massive compared to every first-world nation (in the West) in terms of size / population / schools. I'd be shocked if a place like Sweden were somehow the top, statistically.

- I know a few people who came from India to study here because it put them on a fast track for a visa (or whatever they're using to work here after graduating). So they based it on post-grad opportunities, not the education itself.

Just looking at CS, there are a few schools in India that are as good as any but the very best US school.

But assuming you can't get into those schools, any middle ranked US state school is a better bet.