Helen Kim is a student at CUNY’s LaGuardia Community College, studying for her associate degree in paralegal studies. Previously she attended college at the University of Toronto, where she studied English and geography, before transferring during her junior year to LaGuardia. This summer, she is interning with CCRC’s communications team as part of CUNY’s Career Launch program. In this Q&A, Kim shares the challenges she had to face with the U.S. higher education system, and how she’s thinking about her next steps in higher education.
This Q&A has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Melissa Cruz Duque: Now tell me, who’s Helen Kim?
Helen Kim: My mom is Chinese and my dad is Korean. I grew up in China for the first eight years of my life, then moved to Canada, where I finished up to 12th grade. I then attended the University of Toronto until my junior year, before I decided to move to New York, which has been the city of my dreams. I came here back in 2023. I currently attend LaGuardia Community College and will soon complete my paralegal program.
Cruz Duque: What has been your greatest challenge as an international student navigating the U.S. higher education system?
Kim: Financial burden was one of my biggest concerns after moving to New York. Education is affordable in Canada; I was shocked when I came to the U.S. and my dad’s side of the family told me how expensive it would be. It made me think, “How is anybody getting an education?” I think everybody does deserve a chance at education, but seeing all the roadblocks there are and what plays out beyond enrolling and being accepted to a school—like finding other ways to get funding and attend classes, especially when federal aid isn’t an option and you have to look into scholarships—it’s like, “How will you make it happen?”
Cruz Duque: Will you pursue another degree after completing your associate degree?
Kim: I’m currently thinking about continuing with a bachelor’s, but I’m not quite sure. While I haven’t decided on what major to pursue, I have a feeling this internship will give me an insight into what I would enjoy doing in a workplace setting and help me make a decision on what to major in if I continue with fall ‘25 enrollment. I might also consider finishing my bachelor’s degree abroad. Since I grew up in China, I want to return one day, and I might do a bachelor’s degree in Chinese since one of my interests is language learning. Business and marketing are appealing routes for me as well. I would like a degree that could be used in corporate settings, where I could travel between offices in China and the States.
Cruz Duque: Have your personal or career interests influenced the type of work you want to do at CCRC this summer?
Kim: Right now, I have two interests: One is to learn more hard skills like Photoshop and Premiere Pro. Obviously I can’t learn everything perfectly in this time, but I do want to pick up software skills. I also want to explore the connection between research and the decisions that legislators and other policymakers make, and how that affects our society. I feel I’ll enjoy my time here as an intern, doing research and writing blogs tailored to a general audience, which is where my interests are at the moment.
Cruz Duque: That’s amazing to hear! Do you think any past experiences of yours have influenced your current career goals?
Kim: Definitely! When I first majored in English, obviously it was very writing heavy. Then when I went into paralegal studies, it was a lot of case analysis and research—understanding the past rulings and then writing your analysis on how you expect this to affect future outcomes. I feel like those skills have really attracted me to be here at CCRC as an intern.
Cruz Duque: As we wrap it up, what do you expect to get out of the internship at CCRC?
Kim: So far, I see myself more in a support position for the research center and for the researchers themselves. I think that interests me a lot more than actually going out and doing the qualitative and quantitative data collection. But at the end of the day, that’s how we learn about the world, by doing research and asking those questions. I appreciate being able to see what type of roles operate within a research center, shadowing people in this environment, and seeing what everybody does on a day-to-day basis.
