Bian Saiyuan dreams of playing basketball in the NBA. Provided to China Daily

"Every time I think of him, still hanging in there, I feel encouraged," Liu says.

Chen Mu, one of the students in Liu's documentary, graduated from the University of Virginia in 2010 and has been working as an investment analyst at the Bank of Tokyo in New York.

On his first day at work, Chen drew the unwanted attention of his boss for wearing a rumpled shirt. Embarrassed, he bolted to a nearby store and bought a new shirt. Chen quickly drew his new boss' approval and at the year's end got a bonus.

He points to his receding hairline as evidence of his hard work but still finds time for online lectures about China to help prepare him for a possible business startup in his native country.

Many Chinese graduates share that kind of drive but face a crossroads when they consider whether they should stay in the US or return home.

Whether they stay or go, Liu believes China as a country benefits.

"If people do not go abroad, who can bring advanced technology and progressive thinking back to China?"

Contact the writers at josephboris@chinadailyusa.com and wang.bw.irene@gmail.com.