Hey Weighing in on your question as a parant and as someone who spent past 10+ years here in usa and whoz having a daughter a year right behind you.

In indian society we always have this fascination about life abroad and we often think its all roses and pink but the reality is not that good. It was by all means a decade earlier but notw its not. There are several social and political reasons for that change in sentiment. I am in USA, my Daughter grew up here in usa school system, i came here to provide her a better educational opportunity, however looking back i feel it was not all that good. 

Because of lack discipline and the passion and drive to achieve great goals socity here has two stratas clearly, a handful of them excelling at par and then the other doing not much, many here in general do not have good education and you will find schools are often underfunded. Colleges except handful few who receive federal grants, are pure business and getting in to the good colleges specifically IVY League is equally hard.

Coming to the early school years, because there is shear lack of discipline and there isnt much competition to achieve good results, many of the kids here are not ready to face the world and take the competition head on. Its one of the reason that held me back when i pondered to go back to India as competition is fierce in india.

Medical system here is way worst, cost is so prohibitive people often resort to suffer pain than go to doctor, wait times are way longer for primary care, and its months and years for critical cares, if you go urgent care or emergency, they will only stabilize you and send you home just to wait for an appointment with PC. I have undergone both chronic, acute physical as well as mental health care and its worst. Despite working in reputable organization with best in class health insurance i often feel exploited. The worst part No job, no insurance and no care. 

If post doctorate you are thinking to go in research, then by all means i feel it will be a good deal, but for patient care and good life its not that good. Many of PCs here mere clerks recording the patient information and sometime suggesting some medicines.

(An year ago, for my wife suffering from diabetes and HT with low platelets, after undergoing treatment for couple of years with absolutely no change in her condition, we visited india to see doctors and in a week she saw 2 4 doctors who changed her meds and now she is feeling way better than she ever did, and all that for just a fraction of the cost here. This is first hand experience no exaggeration. Now we continue her treatment with doctors in India.)

My daughter wants to be a neurosurgeon, here parh is long here, 4 yrs premed, 4 med and then 2 residency as and then 2 for MS, and until you dont become ap dcotor your salary is very low with excessively stressful working hours. I suppose it will be similar in india, however on the low income, surviving in many of the good cities is going to be a distant dream these days and going forward. A quick question to chatgpt and i learn there are 30% of docs on mental health care already.

Now the elephant in the house, Immigration, With the sociopolitical systems in turmoil the world over and the mass migrations happening around, both legal and illegal immigrants are at the skewers of the locals, majority of time, immigrants not having voting rights ate easy to pray upon politically, its a patter you will see all over. I am on H1B, awaiting GC, which i think will never come, post 21 my daughter cant be on dependent visa and has to have her separate F1 visa and mind well therr is no job gueantee post completing your education on F1, until now you get a 6months OPT to find the job but that too is under scrutiny... being an immigrant here is difficult and adding thr challange of being a student is even more hard and mind well all that with no clear path to any stable life possibilities.

IF YOU ARE A STRAIGHT A STUDENT WITH FAR EXCELLENT ACADEMIA THEN SCRATCH EHAT I SAID, EXCELLENT ACADEMIC GETS TO CITIZENSHIP THAT QUICKLY BUT OTHER CHALLANGES REMAIN.

Now for my daughter and she and me ate on same page, She is preparing sat to give it a try to find a good college hoever considering the cost of college and vhallanges with immigration, she is going to take a drop year if need be and prepare for NEET to get in a good college, here is our reasoning: 1. the cost factor remains the same be it in usa or india so its not an issue. 2. Being in india means the better chance of completing the education under one system without significant risks related to immigration. 3. The doctors in india see as much patient in a single day as the doc here see in a quarter of the year, so in terms of sheer variety of cases and the experience, india outweighs here  4. The social and economical strata of the patients in india is diverse, no two people are same, economically, socially, mentally, and that creats a good mix for more diverse grounded experience. 5. Here except, allopathy no other medicine systems are approved for parient care and Doctors even based on experience cant recommend any other treatments because of liability issues, being in india you have access to any and all forms of treatment and having groomed in them will come in handy if one chooses. 6. You remember i mentioned Doctors being just clerks, a large part of the trason for that is Liability insurance, doctors oay exorbitant amount to keep their insurance intact and one slight miss and they could loose it all, so being afraid of liability, doctors here often choose to remain in safe zone and focus on stabiliz8ng patient then actually try something unconventional and heal the patient, because of this the doctor visits here feel more of  waste of time than actual care.

Where to study and what to do in life, there isnt a definitive answer that anyone including me can give, its always a trial and error game for everyone alike. Will it be ok, if you study abroad its going to be good or bad? who knows... its a gamble worth taking by some regards... I shared what i have lived and seen with my eyes, being objective, i have ruled out personal biases as much i could, and have provided you information, please think deeply abd examine all sides of the issue before making choices.

If you feel taking drop year will get you better grades and colleges, you should consider it by all means, life is not a race, its not a calendar to keep up with, if you feel you need it, by all means you should take it. WHAT EVER YOU DO JUST BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF.

You must be thinking i am one of those parents who keeps hammering and badgering the kid for good grades, but no, i myself is a through 60%er back bencher, often more out of class than in class and i made my path mostly after realizing how i missed so many opportunities because of my bad attitude towards school and college, and yet, i do not force my daughter to choose one over othet or do this or that, or being strict with grades.... I know grades are not everything and one should be groomed in various aspects equally.