Same fields, no narrative padding. Share the URL. It already holds the selection. Visa prior is a planning range, not a score. Indices, future proof, job security, all-in sketch, holds, costs you, and full freight are defined in the word list under a finished comparison.
Three is the maximum. Remove one to swap.
Austin, Texas
UT Austin MSIS
2 years · 36 credit hours
About $90,000–$110,000 over two years
Nonresident tuition, Information, 9 hoursofficial
$9,893 per long semester
UT Austin tuition tables, Graduate, Fall 2026–Spring 2027, Information college, nonresident, 9-hour column.
Four long semestersestimate
$39,572 tuition
4 × $9,893 if the rate holds and you do not add summer enrollment. 36 hours at nine per semester is the normal full-time plan.
Graduate living budget, one academic yearofficial
Housing and food $17,052–$17,423, plus transport $1,840, books $776, personal $4,900
Texas One Stop, 2026–27 estimated cost of attendance, full-time graduate, nonresident, based on 9-hour enrollment. Academic-year figure. Summers in Austin cost extra if you stay.
Every new MSIS applicant is considered automatically for iSchool scholarships of $1,000–$4,000 a year. Academic Assistant roles exist. Teaching assistantships prioritize PhD students. Graduate research assistantships for master’s students happen and are not the plan.
MHCI+D apply page: 46-credit minimum at $1,383. Same price for all students. Confirm it has not been revised for your entry year. The page has carried this figure across cycles.
UW graduate housing and food, 2026–27official
$23,199 academic year, on or off campus
UW financial-aid cost of attendance for a standard Seattle graduate student, not an MHCI+D invoice. It is a nine-month-style budget.
12-month Seattle livingestimate
$30,000–$40,000
Planning band above the nine-month figure because the program runs about a full year in a high-rent market. Roommates are assumed.
Fee-based and self-sustaining. The program states it does not qualify for the full set of state-funded fellowships and that students are not eligible for tuition-exemption programs such as Husky Promise. Loans, savings, a competitive GSEE supplemental award, and employer support are the listed paths.
Georgia Tech Bursar, Fall 2026 tuition table, MS-HCI (College of Computing line). Also listed at $1,675 per credit hour. In-state full-time is $8,315. Fees are separate.
Four full-time termsestimate
About $80,400 tuition
4 × $20,096, only if later terms match Fall 2026 and you stay at 12+ credits. The Board resets rates. A lighter final term changes the math.
Living, 18 months in Atlantaestimate
$30,000–$40,000
Planning band for shared housing, food, transit, and personal costs. Not a Georgia Tech bursar figure. Heat and car-dependence vary by neighborhood.
The program does not award scholarships. It tries to help students find Graduate Research or Teaching Assistantships. Those are competitive, often arrive after you are already enrolled, and are not a funding plan you can take to a bank.
City names are places, not scores. Updated 11 October 2026. Visa ranges are editorial planning priors, not school statistics. No program on this list publishes an OPT-to-sponsorship rate. The range assumes a STEM-eligible I-20, a portfolio aimed at companies that have sponsored before, and a 2026 hiring market in which design studios sponsor less often than large tech and some product orgs. H-1B remains a lottery. Update your plan when policy or the market moves.
Word list
Decision framework
The rules for reading the order on the homepage. It is a weighting for one applicant, not a quality ladder of the six schools.
Indices
Five scores from 1 to 10: livability, job security, future proof, selectivity, and ROI. Each score compares these six programs only.
Visa prior
A planning range for OPT and for whether employers in that market sponsor. It is not an admission rate and not a promise.
Future proof
How directly the curriculum treats human-AI work, systems, and the mix of research, craft, and technical skill after 2026.
Job security
How usable the path is into product design, UX research, or product management: brand, network, internship, and where alumni land.
All-in sketch
Tuition plus a living estimate for the length of the degree. Not an invoice. Fees, flights, and aid sit outside it unless a line says so.
Holds
Where the program is strong for this decision.
Costs you
What you give up, or the risk you take, if you pick it.
Full freight
You pay the published tuition. Do not assume a scholarship or an assistantship will cut it.