79
Finance
Finance
Sponsored
Purdue-Krannert
MBA
I first met Mr. Round in early April of last year. In early March 2011, I was selected as a company-sponsored study-abroad candidate, but at the time I had no idea where to begin. I was introduced to him because many of my company’s former study-abroad participants had used his services. March 2011 was, of course, the period immediately following the Great East Japan Earthquake, when aftershocks were still occurring frequently, but despite those circumstances, I was able to meet Mr. Round in early April at the lounge of the Imperial Hotel.
From my very first impression, I was drawn to his friendly yet sincere personality, and I decided on the spot to ask him to take me on as a client. Even among so-called “purely domestic” applicants, there are many variations, but in my case, I had literally zero experience speaking English with non-Japanese people. I had not even traveled abroad, except for my honeymoon to Cambodia and Vietnam more than ten years earlier. Given that background, I felt considerable anxiety before meeting him, especially since he is a Canadian counselor rather than a Japanese one. However, once we met in person, all of those concerns disappeared. He was clearly accustomed to working with Japanese clients who were not comfortable speaking English, and he explained things in a very clear and accessible way, often using concrete examples.
Even afterward, my inability to speak English continued well into the peak period of essay counseling, but despite that, I felt we were able to communicate sufficiently through Skype and email. In fact, considering that within a year—or even six months—I would inevitably need to communicate in English whether I liked it or not, I now feel that this process itself became very good training.
Preparing for study abroad was extremely mentally demanding. I started out with very weak English skills and low TOEFL scores, and even by the summer I failed to achieve the scores I had hoped to reach by that point. As my anxiety mounted, I found myself vaguely wondering, “Will I really be able to study abroad this year?” To the extent that, despite being a company-sponsored candidate, I seriously considered talking to my supervisor about postponing my study abroad plans (even though I was not even sure whether such a postponement would be possible).
At that point, I laid bare my concerns and worries to Mr. Round. I will spare the details, as they are rather embarrassing, but through the email exchanges I had with him at that time, I was able to regain my composure and refocus on my studies with a calmer mindset. (That said, I struggled until the very end, as my test results continued to be disappointing.)
Because my test preparation lagged behind, I found myself facing a “triple burden” or even a “quadruple burden,” juggling essay counseling, interview training, and test preparation all at once. However, because Mr. Round always clearly laid out schedules and concrete tasks for applications, essays, and other requirements, I consistently felt that I was making steady progress toward the goal, even under those difficult circumstances.
Given my long professional career and the variety of experiences I had accumulated, I did not struggle to come up with essay topics. That said, Mr. Round’s advice on “how to make an essay appealing from the school’s perspective” was particularly effective. I was also continually impressed by his professional work ethic—his punctuality, responsiveness, focus, and sincere attitude toward his work.
Now that I have received my admission offer, I am currently attending summer school in the state of Indiana. My English ability is still limited, and I am largely focused on keeping up myself, but I also feel a desire to support others who are preparing for their applications with Mr. Round’s guidance. I believe this feeling, too, is a testament to his character.
Mr. Round, thank you very much for everything. I look forward to continuing to work with you.
