Visiting my sister in New York in 2007 led me to a new, bigger world. During New York trip, I realized the importance of learning English and gaining different prospective in life. I was never interested in studying nor did know much about English.
When I went to New York, I found about the Uniprep. Not like counselors at the Uniprep, most of counselors in Korea do not have specific counseling experiences or skills. Rather, they depend fully on the information that they were given to work with. However, I thought the Uniprep would be different since it is in the states, and I was right about the Uniprep.
I met Elly at The Uniprep who helped and prepared me step by step throughout the application process.
At first, I took English classes at an English language school to get used to culture and English. I spent a lot of time with non-native students from all over the world there, and I started feeling more comfortable with speaking English.
However, as time goes, I became exhausted and was really homesick. All I wanted was going back to Korea. Elly, then, truly was there for me. She listened to my needs and understood me. She was more than just a consultant, but rather my friend and family. She also introduced me to a girl who was also in the same situation and I can share my feeling to comfort myself. We became good friends and we cheered up each other.
Afterwards, I was back on the track. I achieved excellent grades in all of my classes, and my name was on Dean’s list for several times. My parents were very proud of me as well as myself.
Not only I got accepted to Rutgers University and Stony Brook University, but I also graduated as an honor student from Rutgers University. Now I am back in Korea working in finance, yet I still keep in touch with Elly.
I was very fortunate and blessed to have met Elly and everyone at the Uniprep who helped me to accomplish all.