Vol. 7 [UT Member Interview]🎤Soojin Park (GOV '21) Part 1 of 2

• This is Part 1 of 2 of our interview with Soojin Park (GOV ’21), Vice Chair of UTAKA’s Membership Development Committee and the new lead of the association’s PR organization.
  This installment focuses more on her life and perspective as an individual.

🎤 How do your days usually begin these days?
Like many office workers in Korea, my days begin pretty routinely. I wake up, head to work, and once I arrive at the office, I start by planning out the day ahead and organizing my schedule.

🎤 Is there a habit from your university days that has stayed with you until now?
Keeping a planner. Every Monday, I organize the projects and tasks I have for the week and sort out my priorities. I also map out my personal schedule by time blocks.

🎤 Is there a place on campus that still comes to mind from time to time?
Probably the PCL. It was where I spent most of my time as a student, and I have a lot of fun memories there with friends.

🎤 How similar is your current life or work to what you imagined as a student?
Completely different. As a student, I often felt lost when thinking about the future and spent more time feeling anxious than anything else. Compared to that period, I feel much more grounded now, and I’m proud of myself for working hard and finding my place as a member of society.

🎤 Was there a moment when work changed the way you see people or the world?
I can’t point to one specific moment. Honestly, I think it changes little by little every day. As a student, I spent most of my time around people who shared similar perspectives and values. But once I started working and meeting a wider range of people, I began stepping outside the world I had built for myself and seeing both people and the world differently.

🎤 By your standards these days, what makes for a “good day”?
Lately, work has been so busy that even small moments have become meaningful. Taking a short walk during lunch to look at the cherry blossoms, or coming home after work and having a bit of personal time—those kinds of days have become more than just good days to me. They feel genuinely precious.

🎤 If you had a completely free day with nothing scheduled, what would you want to do?
Honestly, I’m a huge homebody. I’d probably spend the day lying around at home with my cat, catching up on chores, and finally watching the dramas or movies I’ve been wanting to see but never had time for.

🎤 What kind of work tends to give you the most energy or sense of fulfillment?
I always feel fulfilled when something turns out the way I hoped it would. For example, when we launched the new UTAKA website, I organized the events section and created the banners for it. It was my first time designing banners, so it took a lot of time and I felt inexperienced, but seeing the final result come together close to what I had envisioned was really rewarding.

🎤 What first led you to become involved with the alumni association?
I first learned about the alumni association completely by chance. I happened to read an email from the university promoting a Seoul alumni event hosted by the Korean alumni association. At the time, I had only recently moved back to Korea from the U.S., and I wanted to stay connected to Texas in some way. So I joined right away, and when the association was rebuilt last year, I became part of the founding leadership team and have stayed involved ever since.

🎤 What do you value most about being connected with fellow alumni in Korea?
I think it’s the shared memories. Even something as simple as the Texas heat is something we can immediately relate to together. Those shared experiences create a sense of belonging. I also love that you can still feel UT’s distinctive passion and positive energy within this community.

🎤 Is there something about your city or daily life these days that you quietly appreciate?
There’s a small garden in front of my office with four cherry blossom trees. During lunch, I sometimes walk there to look at the blossoms, and seeing other people enjoying them somehow lifts my mood too.

🎤 Is there a side of you that fellow alumni may not know yet, but would probably enjoy discovering?
I’m actually very good at talking to people I’ve just met. Even if it’s our first conversation, I think you’ll feel like you’re chatting with an old friend you’ve known for years. So if you’re new to the alumni association or worried because you don’t know anyone yet, don’t be—I’ll make sure we become close friends.