CELOP Alumni: Where Are They Now? Haebareun Kim, South Korea

in Highlight
May 29th, 2018

1. What is your name?

Haebareun Kim

2. Where are you from?

Republic of Korea

3. Where do you live now?

Seoul, Korea

4. When and for how long did you study at CELOP?

September 2007 ~ December 2007

5. Why did you choose CELOP?

I attended a language school for nine months before CELOP. For the remaining three months, I wanted to get a more systematic education and experience what American universities are like indirectly.

6. What were some of the things you liked most about CELOP? Do you have a favorite memory?

The Core class was great, but the Elective class was more memorable.
I chose the Semester book class with Doreen and my English improved significantly. Various articles, hard writing, and correction motivated me to engage even harder. 11 years later now, I sometimes look back in the past, looking at the Semester book.

7. In what ways did CELOP help you prepare for what you are doing now?

It is essential for Korean people to have a good score on a standardized English test like the TOEIC to get a job; however, many people struggle on the speaking section. Experience in interacting with English-speaking natives and the help from CELOP that I had definitely helped me get good grades on all sections of the TOEIC.

8. Where did you attend college for your undergraduate degree? What was your major and when did you graduate?

I majored in business administration at Chung-ang university in Korea. I minored in folk studies to study Korean I graduated in February 2013.

9. Where are you working/studying now?

I am running an in-house venture and an app business at KT, Korea Telecom.

10. Tell us about what you want to do in the future. What is your dream job?

As I currently run an in-house venture, my interest in organization management has increased, therefore I want to study management efficiency of various organizational structures and apply it to the government or companies based on the results.

11. What was your favorite thing to do in Boston?

Everything in Boston was great and memorable, for example, the sea, museum, shopping, Charles River, and the old subway.
Among them, the most memorable one is the museum. I made a one-year membership in the museum, so I used to visit it whenever I had time. My favorite picture from then is still my smartphone background screen image.

12. What was your favorite restaurant in Boston?

I often visited a Japanese restaurant called Takemura on the Cambridge side. I loved sushi in Korea and I went there more than twice a week because It was near my house. I ate all the varieties of salmon sushi on the menu. Since the chef was Korean, he often served special dishes, so I remember how much I enjoyed it. When I go to Boston, I plan to visit there again.

13. What would you tell someone who is thinking about studying at CELOP but is unsure?

At CELOP, there is an opportunity to broaden your experience of American culture as well as English in various ways. I mentioned the elective class which improved my English with various subjects. It was also a good opportunity to share various opinions with Boston University students in 1:1 tutoring.