NIKOLA Stamboliyski, (19), plans to study business at the American University in Bulgaria, where he is a freshman.

A native of Shumen, he says he'll probably go abroad for graduate school or for the first years of his career in order to build up his resume, but he foresees returning and settling down in Bulgaria.

I want to live abroad, but not forever, he said. 

"I'm really positive about the future of this country. I think it can't go worse. The only way is up."

As a fluent English speaker and the son of two engineers,  Stamboliyski seems to be well-poised to became a future leader of Bulgaria.

But he's not eager to put so much pressure on himself.

"A future leader? I don't like the word `leader'," he said.

"It's too authoritarian for me. I'm not the kind of person to tell other people what to do. I prefer to know what I need to do and do it.

But if I need other people to help me, it could help to be an AUBG student."

MARIYA Kaneva, (19), thinks young people have been instrumental in Bulgaria's progress in recent years.

"Since the 1990s it's been improving because young people participate," said the first-year American University in Bulgaria student.

"Young people wanted Bulgaria to join NATO and the EU."

Hailing from Stara Zagora, Kaneva hopes to study business and European studies coursework that she says will allow her to land a good job when she graduates.

The EU, she said, will help her country develop the infrastructure it needs to support commerce.

"We will join the EU and the law system will improve," she said.

Because she's European and plans to settle in Bulgaria after finishing her education, however, Kaneva feels she would benefit by attending an American graduate school, where she will gain a different perspective on the world.

 "People should be open-minded and study in a lot of different spheres," she said.

 "They should be well-rounded."