以下文字整理自 Kim 和我的一次谈话，将以第一人称复述Kim的故事。

核心价值观与教育生涯

“平等”一直是主导着我的重要价值观。当我要求学生们明确他们的“为什么要转学/为什么想要申请某个特定的学校”时，我会首先去理解他们个人价值观。对我来说，平等至关重要。它塑造了我看待世界的方式，并影响了我职业生涯的每一步。

我在美国密歇根州长大，并就读于密歇根大学，主修社区关系辅修社会学。那时候，我计划以后在倡导公平的非营利组织或地方政府工作。然而，大三期间在印度的实习经历让我开始怀疑非营利组织工作中的动机和制度里无法征服的挑战。这对我来说是一个关键的经历。毕业后，我暂时偏离了原本计划的职业和学术路径，搬到韩国教英语 —— 我想看到自己如何在一个既能帮助他人又符合自己的个人价值观的岗位上工作。我选择了海外教学，因为我觉得这对我来说是一个很好的选择，而且我一直对体验新文化充满热情。所以对我来说这是双赢的。

在韩国，我有幸承担了大量主导性的工作，这在很大程度上要归功于我的老板，她是教育部门里唯一的女性领导。她把我视为盟友，也是能够帮助她事业进步的人之一。她让我成为全国五个人之一，负责开发一个新项目，英语城。我从零开始开发这个项目，包括课程设计、组织和物流等。两年后，我的项目被评为最佳，并在全国范围内广泛传播。我的课程被出版为教师和学生版本，我还为大学英语教育教材撰写了各种章节。此外，我还为全国口语英语考试录音（我听说我的录音至今每年仍在韩国学校的课堂中播放两次）。

这段经历坚定了我在教育领域工作的愿望，但我知道我不想成为一名课堂教师。我回到美国，并在科罗拉多大学攻读教育硕士学位。在项目结束时，我开始在当地的高中为青少年孩子们担任大学招生顾问，帮助他们准备GED、ACT、SAT和大学准备。我非常热爱这份工作，因为它符合我的平等价值观，我努力确保这些学生拥有与他们同龄人同等的机会。不幸的是，我的老板在几年后离职，新来的领导非常糟糕。于是我进行了一次pivot……

我加入了丹佛国际研究中心（丹佛公立学校旗下的一所专业高中），指导学生完成大学申请过程，准备ACT考试，并通过社区学院教授英语和大学准备课程。

World Awaits 的成立

2015年，我当时的未婚夫要去智利工作。我决定将我的留学咨询工作转为线上，并成立了我的教育品牌 World Awaits，专注于国际学生。我觉得这个决定很大程度上源于我对教育平等承诺—我知道虽然美国学生在大学招生方面有各种各样的支持，国际学生往往没有。我在南美和格鲁吉亚有一些资源，但我也意识到需要为自己寻找其他客户来源。当时了解到有很多中国学生在美国学习，我就特别想和中国的学生群体建立联系。现在，我大约50%的客户是中国人，其余是美国人和格鲁吉亚人。

这些年来，我指导学生完成申请过程，从常春藤盟校到社区学院。我格外喜欢做转学申请的案例，因为能够给学生们第二次机会让我感觉很好。这些学生通常更加成熟和清楚自己想要什么，这让我与他们的关系更牢固，申请材料也更加出色。

关于我的 Fun facts

MBTI: ENFJ

• 最喜欢的书是阿兰达蒂·罗伊的《微物之神》。我在印度的那段时间读了这本书，那是我生命中一个关键时刻，这本书永远与那段经历紧密相连。我的丈夫甚至在求婚时送我一本签名版的《微物之神》。我经常在与学生进行物体基础的头脑风暴时引用它。

• 烹饪：我喜欢把家人赶出厨房，听爵士乐，喝着红酒做饭。这是一种冥想。

• 我每年都会举办万圣节派对。我已经在计划今年的派对主题，而且今天应有一些来自亚马逊的装饰品会送到。今年的主题是《闪灵》。我先生觉得我为这个太疯狂了。

• 客户经常告诉我，我给了他们信心。我经常看到中国客户缺乏自信 —— 尽管在我看来他们有技能、有兴趣、有独特的视角。我喜欢帮助他们认识到自己的长处并建立信心。我也非常愿意参与他们的生活中。他们不仅仅是我的客户；我真的希望看到他们成功，并会尽我所能帮助他们实现目标。在大学招生过程结束后，得知他们的申请结果、奖学金结果时是最美好的时刻。

*附：Kim的英文原稿

Core Values & Career Life

Equality has been a guiding theme/value throughout my life. When I ask my students to identify their "whys," I emphasize the importance of understanding one's values. For me, equality is paramount. It shapes how I view the world and has influenced every step of my career.

I grew up in Michigan and attended the University of Michigan, majoring in community relations and minoring in sociology. At that time, I planned to work in an equity-focused non-profit or local government. However, an internship in India during my junior year made me question the underlying motives and inherent challenges within non-profit work. It was a pivotal experience for me. After graduating, I took a little detour from what I planned would be my next career/academic step and moved to South Korea to teach English—I needed to figure out how I saw myself working in a role that would allow me to help and work with others, as well as tied into my personal value(s). I settled on teaching abroad because I felt it could be a great option for me, and I’ve always been very driven to experiencing new cultures. So it was win-win for me. 

In S. Korea, I was fortunate to be given substantial responsibility, largely due to my boss, the only woman in the Department of Education who, I believe, saw me as an ally as well as someone who could help her advance her own career. She made me one of only five people nationwide tasked with developing a new program, English Town. I developed the program from the ground up, including curriculum, design, logistics, etc. Two years later, my program was rated the best, and it was replicated across the country. My curriculum was published in teacher and student versions, and I wrote various chapters for college-level English education textbooks. Also, oddly, I also became the female voice for the national oral English exams (last I heard, my recordings are still being played twice per year in all classrooms).

This experience solidified my desire to work in education, but I knew that I didn't want to be a classroom teacher. I returned to the U.S. and pursued a Master's in Education at the University of Colorado. Towards the end of my program, I began working as a college/high school counselor for juvenile inmates, helping them prepare for the GED, ACT, SAT, and college readiness. I love-loved this job; it aligned with my value of equality, as I worked to ensure these students had the same opportunities as their peers. Unfortunately, my boss left after a couple years, and the new guy was an absolute asshole. So I pivot…

To Denver Center for International Studies (a specialized HS through Denver Public Schools), where I guided students through the college application process, prepped ACT, and taught English and a college preparedness course through the community college.

World Awaits

In 2015, my then-fiancé was asked to move to Chile for work. I decided to take my college consulting work online, with a focus on international students. I feel this decision largely stemmed from my commitment to equality as well—I knew that while U.S. students had (varied) support in college admissions, international students often did not. I had a bit of a base in this area through connections (S. America and Georgia), but I also recognized the need to give myself other  avenues for clients. Knowing how many students from China study in the US, I decided to target it. Now, about 50% of my clients are Chinese, and the rest are American, Georgian.

Over the years, I've guided students through applications to a wide range of schools, from Ivy League universities to community colleges. I particularly enjoy working on transfer applications because it’s nice to give students a second chance. Plus those students tend to be more mature and focused on what they want, which makes for stronger relationships with them and stronger apps.

Fun Facts

MBTI: I am an ENTJ.

Books: My favorite book is The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. I read it during my time in India, a pivotal moment in my life, and it’s forever tied to that experience. My husband even gave me a signed copy as part of his marriage proposal. Perhaps interestingly (?) I often reference it during object-based brainstorming sessions with my students.

Cooking: I like to kick my family out of the kitchen, listen to jazz music, and drink red wine while I cook. It’s meditative.

Halloween: I host a Halloween party every year. I am already planning this year's, and, in fact, should have some decorations coming today from Amazon. This year’s theme is The Shining. My husband thinks I’m crazy for this.

Feedback: Clients often tell me that I give them confidence. Something I frequently see from my Chinese clients is a lack of self-assurance—despite their skills, interests, unique perspectives. I enjoy helping them recognize their strengths and build their confidence. I’m also very available and genuinely invested in their lives. They’re not just clients to me; I truly want to see them succeed and will do whatever I can to help them get there. Learning about their results, scholarships, opportunities, etc. after the college admissions process is through is the best.