U.S. citizen Hunter Levan, 29, came to China in 2009.  Initially it was to learn Chinese:  “I realized if I ever wanted to learn Chinese, I would have to move here and ‘do as the Romans do’.”

But after learning the language, Levan realized it was a good place to find a job: “I sent out e-mails and resumes in Chinese, and got feedback in less than five days.” He now works as a consultant for Spring Airlines in Shanghai.

Alison Watts, 28, knew little about China: “But all my friends who have been here said it was incredibly fantastic, so I decided to take the big step forward.”

Watts’ experiences with journalism got her a job hosting an English-language TV show in Shanghai.  She says “…amazing opportunities keep popping up.”

Ted Hornbein, a U.S. businessman, has worked in China since the early 1990s. Now he’s a board member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.  He says a lot has changed since the 1990s:  “Today you have local and Western restaurants and your whole family here with you…I have seen a 180-degree shift from my first July 4 party in China.”

In January 2011, CNN asked the U.S. Department of State how many U.S. citizens were leaving for jobs in China.  The official response was that it was difficult to know because U.S. citizens are not required to tell the state department about living and working in China.

However, international employment agencies say they’ve seen a big jump in U.S. workers going to China for jobs, ever since 2007.

The Research Center for Chinese Politics and Business at Indiana University, says Shanghai and Beijing are the big hot spots for U.S. workers, but in the past couple of years other regions of China are opening up.

Seems like China is doing more to find jobs for U.S. citizens, than the U.S. government is doing here in the United States!