In just 11 years, the number of Chinese undergraduates studying in the U.S. has risen more than tenfold, from 7,500 to 80,000, according to the Institute of International Education. Some families sell their homes and drain their savings to send their only child abroad to study, hoping a speedy success will come along after four years. Their American peers also eye with envy their future prospects once these students return to China. But what is the reality? Through personal interviews with a CEO of a Shanghai-based company and with several Chinese undergraduates, I present a more comprehensive picture of the future for this group of students. I will show the benefits and hardships of both staying in the United States and returning to China and shed light on the skills commonly required by both choices.
