Advice from alumni: Yoonji Roh
Yoonji Roh, from South Korea graduated with A-Level qualifications from EF Academy Torbay in 2008. She went on to study International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science. After her graduation in 2011, she decided to go back to Seoul and discovered her passion for online marketing. Yoonji later moved to Hong Kong to work for Hult International Business School in their marketing department and joined a Hong Kong based fashion start-up called Grana as their Growth Hacker in 2015. Read more about our featured alumnus below:
How did you hear about EF Academy and why did you choose to attend?
I had lived in Cardiff for three years with my family before we went back to South Korea, but I always wanted to study abroad. The main reason was that I didn’t like the Korean education system since it focuses on very many different subjects and the teachers want you to learn everything but you don’t study anything in-depth enough to be prepared for higher education.
I found EF Academy through a bit of a coincidence. I was enrolled in a program in Seoul that prepares students for studying abroad and my mother’s friend sent her daughter to a high school year abroad with EF. That is how we found out about EF Academy and we thought that it was a better fit for me than going on a pure high school exchange. I ended up being the only Korean at EF Academy Torbay as part of the second intake in the school’s history.
Looking back, it was a really good experience. It not only helped me take the step to study at a UK university (the London School of Economics and Political Science), but I also had an amazing host family that introduced me to the British culture.
What university did you go to afterwards? What did you study and why?
I graduated from EF Academy Torbay and went on to study International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). I wanted to become a diplomat because I wanted to fight against poverty and I thought it would take me to different places. LSE had the best international relations department – both because it was a separate department (most universities have a combined History/Politics department) and because of its prestigious ranking. I also went to the Open Day to look at everything from the dorm to the school facilities and I really liked it. Unlike many universities in the UK, LSE is a very international school (about 50% of the student body is international). Moreover, I just loved London as a place to live since I like big cities with a hustle and bustle.
It’s worth mentioning that my course in International Relations was slightly different from what I expected. I thought it would be more about current affairs but it proved to be more theoretical.
It was more a political view of history rather than a review of current events.
What did you do afterwards?
I graduated from LSE not too long after the financial crisis of 2008, in 2011, when the job market was at its worst. At the time, it was hard to get a visa sponsorship to stay in the UK. Many of my classmates went on to earn post-graduate degrees but I felt that I wanted to explore more options. Thus, I went back to Seoul for two years and there were always vacancies for marketing internships. As I had been using Facebook for a bit longer than most people, I decided to leverage those social media skills in a market where social media marketing had just started being talked about. I also did a lot of freelance interpreting for art fairs, gaming conventions and music festivals. This enabled me to explore different companies and industries, which helped me realize that I had an interest in a career in online marketing
In October 2014, I joined the marketing team of Hult International Business School. They needed a marketing person based in Korea that could work with the central team in Hong Kong. After four months, we realized that it did not make sense for me to be so far away from the rest of the team and so they asked me to move to Hong Kong which I gladly did. I worked there with online marketing for the Asia Pacific region for about two years.
In June 2015, I was headhunted to join a fashion start-up based in Hong Kong called Grana (www.grana.com). Grana is an online fashion brand that sources the best fabrics from all over the world, we design our own clothes and work closely with various factories for the production. Compared to traditional retailers, our markups are only 2 to 2.5 times compared to 10 times thanks to our disruptive business model. My official title “Growth Hacker,” which, according to Wikipedia, is a start-up term for someone that is trying to tap into a market despite low brand awareness and low budget. An example of successful growth hacking is Airbnb, which took off by hacking Craigslist and giving their users the option to post on Airbnb and vice versa. For me, it has been a great experience to join a start-up. Since I started, we have gone from 12-15 people to 50 people with completely different backgrounds and everyone is so passionate. I also like the fact that there are always interesting new things happening and my colleagues are so open to new ideas. This helps challenge me and I really notice how I grow and learn from people around me every day
Tips for current students that want to study what you study?
Don’t let your university major restrict you in terms of career, because it teaches you critical, analytical thinking and life skills. Study what you want to study, but don’t be afraid to think outside of the box. I have many friends who were working in banking but they are now starting their own app companies, going back to studying, or changing their careers to a completely different industry.
Do you keep in touch with your EF Academy classmates?
Definitely! My two best friends at EF Academy were Gifty from Thailand and Heness Wong from Hong Kong. We were the only people from our countries so we stuck together. Henness went on to study Psychology in York and is now studying in Australia, while Gifty went back to Thailand because she wanted to become a dentist and now she is almost done with her six years of study. Having Henness in Hong Kong for the first two years of moving here has been an immense support. Although Gifty is based in Thailand, we try to see each other often. I went to visit Gifty in Thailand and she has visited me in Hong Kong. Since I moved to London right after graduation, I am not in regular contact with many more former classmates but I find it is always easy to message people.
What’s your favorite memory from EF Academy?
My host family always had a great Christmas dinner and it was really nice. They treated me like family and we just ate for two or three days in a row. Also, my friend Gifty and I went to London for an Easter break and we celebrated my 18th birthday there. It was my first time outside of Torquay and we had so much fun.
What is one thing that you learned from EF Academy that you found valuable for university? For work life? For your personal life?
For me it was mainly:
Learning how to be independent and manage my own time better. The fact that we were away from our families in a foreign country helped me to become more mature.
Being open towards different cultures and experiences and learning to love people from all over the world. It was fun to see that people from the same country have different perspectives despite their similarities.
What final tips would you give to current students?
Get the most out of your experience and make friends with everyone. It is comfortable to stick with the people who you are familiar with, but force yourself to speak to as many people as possible. Also, learn how to manage your time (study for as long as you need, but also make the most of your free time).
Who are the most successful alumni that you know of?
All of them where quite inspirational. In fact, although we didn’t realize our own potential and qualities when we were all at EF Academy Torbay, a lot of people have gone on to do really cool things.
Any advice to fellow alumni at university or who are starting their careers?
Call your parents as often as possible: They have sent their children abroad to explore a whole new world, and we should always appreciate the opportunity they gave us.
Short questions:
Name: Yoonji Roh
Age: 27
Nationality: Korean
What languages do you speak? Korean and English
EF Academy campus: Torbay
Graduation year: 2008
Program: A-Level
Residence or host family: Host family
Favorite subject: Law – something that I never had a chance to study in Korea and it was a new subject for me. Even to this day, I sometimes think about becoming a lawyer.
Favorite teacher:
Hazel Linacre: My homeroom teacher, the sweetest person in the world and a very passionate educator
Helen Beardsley: My law teacher who was very cool
Andy Scott: My economics teachers who was really funny and had a really interactive teaching style
Favorite club: There were no formal clubs since we were only the second intake. However, I used to take a lot of photos at the different events. This was the time before Facebook (imagine that!) and there was nowhere to post those pictures.
Shouts outs to:
Louise Sellick (Nelson-Smith): Our activities coordinator at that time who organized all these parties and activities. I really got on with her really well.
Frank: Worked in the canteen but passed away from cancer a couple years ago. He was the nicest person ever.
Fleur Rogers