Americans finding jobs in China

美国人来中国就业

面对美国近两位数的失业率，近来有不少美国大学毕业生纷纷选择到中国上海和北京寻找就业机会。就连那些对汉语知之甚少，甚至一点不懂的人也在跃跃欲试。除了中国蓬勃发展的经济和较低的生活成本，还有一项因素吸引着他们：在美国，大学生毕业后的首次就业需要缴纳若干税费，而在中国，他们可以省却这笔开支。

Shanghai and Beijing are becoming new lands of opportunity for recent American college graduates who face unemployment nearing double digits at home. Even those with limited or no knowledge of Chinese are heeding the call. They are lured by China's surging economy, the lower cost of living and a chance to bypass some of the dues-paying that is common to first jobs in the United States.

“最近几年，我看到越来越多的年轻人来中国就业”， 中国最大的汽车零件商之一亚新科工业公司的创立者杰克·考夫斯基说。“1994年我刚来中国的时候，正赶上第一波美国人来华热潮。如今，这些年轻人掀起了第二波大潮。”

"I've seen a surge of young people coming to work in China over the last few years," said Jack Perkowski, founder of Asimco Technologies, one of the largest automotive parts companies in China. "When I came over to China in 1994, that was the first wave of Americans coming to China," he said. "These young people are part of this big second wave."

Joshua Arjuna Stephens就是其中一员。2007年他从美国卫斯里安大学毕业，并获得了美国研究专业学士学位。两年前，他便决定到上海的一家教育旅游公司China Prep打暑期零工。

One of those in the latest wave is Joshua Arjuna Stephens, who graduated from Wesleyan University in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in American studies. Two years ago, he decided to take a temporary summer position in Shanghai with China Prep, an educational travel company.

“我当时对中国一无所知。”从事市场调研和项目策划的Stephens说：“人们都以为我疯了，不会说普通话还到中国来。但我就是想突破套路。”

"I didn't know anything about China," said Mr. Stephens, who worked on market research and program development. "People thought I was nuts to go not speaking the language, but I wanted to do something off the beaten track."

两年后，经过在非盈利机构和一家总部位于北京的公关公司的历练，他已经能够说一口流利的普通话，眼下在一家从事网络游戏的媒体公司--XPD Media任经理，这家公司总部同样设在北京。

Two years later, after stints in the nonprofit sector and at a large public relations firm in Beijing, he is highly proficient in Mandarin and works as a manager for XPD Media, a social media company based in Beijing that makes online games.

耶鲁大学北京同学会主席、2007届毕业生Grace Hsieh告诉记者，自从她两年前来到中国，她见证了越来越多的耶鲁毕业生到北京工作。现在，她在北京一家叫做Hill & Knowlton的公关公司做客户经理。

 Grace Hsieh, president of the Yale Club in Beijing and a 2007 graduate, says she has seen a rise in the number of Yale graduates who have come to work in Beijing since she arrived in China two years ago. She is working as an account executive in Beijing for Hill & Knowlton, the public relations company.

还有Sarabeth Berman，她于 2006年自美国巴纳德学院城市研究专业毕业，23岁时初到北京，就担任了一个同龄人在美国难以企及的职位--北京雷动天下现代舞团项目总监。“雷动天下”是中国第一家非政府资助的独立现代舞团。

Sarabeth Berman, a 2006 graduate of Barnard College with a major in urban studies, initially arrived in Beijing at the age of 23 to take a job that would have been difficult for a person her age to land in the United States: program director at BeijingDance/LDTX, the first modern dance company in China to be founded independently of the government.

Berman说她之所以被录用，不是因为对中国非常了解，而是因为她对西方现代舞的熟知。“尽管我的汉语很差，而且事实上我没有任何在中国工作的经历，但他们还是给我机会去筹划巡回演出，进行国际交流，在北京舞蹈节上编排导演节目等。”

Ms. Berman said she was hired for her familiarity with Western modern dance rather than a knowledge of China. "Despite my lack of language skills and the fact that I had no experience working in China, I was given the opportunity to manage the touring, international projects, and produce and program our annual Beijing Dance Festival."

在中国工作和生活了两年后，Berman的普通话已经非常熟练了。她陪同舞蹈团游遍了中国、欧洲和美国。

After two years of living and working in China, Ms. Berman is proficient in Mandarin. She travels throughout China, Europe and the United States with the dance company.

雷动天下现代舞团的艺术总监曹威立说，他雇用Berman一方面是因为她能够建立海外的人脉。“我们需要懂得与西方国家交流的人。”另一方面，曹先生讲，西方人具有某些中国人普遍欠缺的能力，这也推动了此次招聘进程。

Willy Tsao, the artistic director of BeijingDance/LDTX, said he had hired Ms. Berman because of her ability to make connections beyond China. "I needed someone who was capable of communicating with the Western world." Another dynamic in the hiring process, Mr. Tsao says, is that Westerners can often bring skills that are harder to find among the Chinese.

“Sarabeth总是能主动创新，思考我们能做些什么”，他说，“而中国人则更倾向于服从命令。”他认为这种差异源于双方不同的教育体系。“中国学校提倡学生要安静，不能想到就说。这促成了中国人习惯被动听取意见，鲜少主动创新的文化。”

"Sarabeth is always taking initiative and thinking what we can do," he said, "while I think the more standard Chinese approach is to take orders." He says the difference is rooted in the educational system. "In Chinese schools students are encouraged to be quiet and less outspoken; it fosters a culture of listening more than initiating."

许多年轻人称，到中国工作的一大诱人之处就是他们认为这样可以跳一到两级，直接获得更高的职务。

A big draw of working in China, many young people say, is that they feel it allows them to skip a rung or two on the career ladder.

Berman说：“毫无疑问，中国是职业发展的风水宝地。若回到美国，我可能只是某家公司实习生的3号人选，或只能在林肯艺术中心售票。”

Ms. Berman said: "There is no doubt that China is an awesome place to jump-start your career. Back in the U.S., I would be intern No. 3 at some company or selling tickets at Lincoln Center."

对于23岁的Jason Misium而言，中国帮他解决了创业的现金流问题。2008年从哈佛大学获得生物学学位后，Misium来到中国学习中文。后来，他和朋友Matthew Young一起创办了Sophos学术集团，帮助那些准备去美国留学的中国人做咨询。

For others, like Jason Misium, 23, China has solved the cash flow problem of starting a business. After graduating with a degree in biology from Harvard in 2008, Mr. Misium came to China to study the language. Then, with a friend, Matthew Young, he started Sophos Academic Group, an academic consulting firm that works with Chinese students who want to study in the United States.

“要不是在中国，我早就走了。这里创业成本真低。”他说，在这里创业花了他相当于1.2万美元的积蓄。

"It's China's fault that I'm still here," he said. "It's just so cheap to start a business." It cost him the equivalent of $12,000, which he had in savings, he said.