Why TruthPathMS exists
How this started
I'm an engineering student at an IIT, and I went through the MS-abroad decision myself - starting where most families start, with a consultant. That's where the frustration started.
I'm a "core" branch engineer, not Computer Science, and I wanted to move into a CS/Data Science master's. Not one consultant told me the actual playbook for that switch - that a minor in the right area, or a couple of years in an IT role first, changes what admits and outcomes are realistic. I got the same generic shortlist as everyone else in my batch who asked, regardless of what any of us had actually done.
Around the same time, someone I know left a stable job in India for a master's abroad, chosen on a consultant's recommendation. The degree itself was fine - but the specific country and program came with a much shorter post-study work-visa runway than expected, and they're now finding it hard to convert that degree into a job. No one had flagged that the visa reality of that specific program mattered more than the fact of "going abroad" at all.
That's the gap TruthPathMS is built to close - not more general information, but the specific, sometimes-inconvenient details (branch-switch pathways, per-program visa strength, real payback math) that decide whether an MS abroad pays off for your situation, not the average one. It's also why every match here carries a disclosed "visa pathway strength" rating and a risk flag when it's weak, instead of treating every country and program as an equally good outcome.
The problem
Most Indian students planning an MS abroad get their guidance from consultants who are paid by the universities and agents they place students with. That's not disclosed to most families, and it means the advice a student gets can be shaped by who pays the consultant, not by what's actually the best fit for that student's profile, budget, and goals.
What we do differently
TruthPathMS takes no commission from any university, agent, or consultant. Every cost, salary, and visa-policy figure shown on a scorecard links to where it came from - official university pages, government immigration policy, or published salary surveys - so you can verify it yourself instead of taking our word for it. The matching formula itself is shown on every scorecard, not hidden behind an unverifiable "AI prediction."
What we don't claim
We're not a full replacement for a human counselor, an immigration lawyer, or your own due diligence. Costs, salaries, and visa rules change - always verify against the official program page before making a real decision. We say this directly on every scorecard, not just here.
Who's behind this
TruthPathMS is an independent, early-stage project - built and run by an IIT engineering student who went through this decision firsthand before turning it into something other students could use. There's no call center and no sales team behind hello@truthpathms.com - an actual person who cares about getting this right reads every email.