The University of Southern California (USC) has appointed Korean American educator Carol Kim as its new vice president for enrollment management, the university announced on October 29, 2025. Kim will officially assume the post on February 25, 2026.
The appointment follows that of Byung-soo Kim, who became USC’s interim president earlier this year, marking another Korean figure taking a senior leadership role at the university.
Before joining USC, Kim served as vice president for global recruitment, admissions and financial aid at New York University (NYU). She led a team of about 170 staff members reviewing roughly 120,000 applications annually and managed a $500 million financial-aid budget. She was also the driving force behind the NYU Promise, which grants full-tuition scholarships to students from families earning under $100,000 a year.
In an email interview with The Korea Daily, Kim said, “I am incredibly excited to join the Trojan Family and help advance USC’s commitment to academic excellence and access. Having spent my career building transformative programs, I am eager to partner with the gifted enrollment team to ensure a world-class education remains within reach for talented students from all backgrounds, locally and globally.”
Prior to her time at NYU, Kim led enrollment management and global partnerships at The New School, a private university in New York. At the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), she oversaw international strategy and launched the school’s first online course.
Kim earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from NYU and a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.
Andrew T. Guzman, USC’s provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, said in a campus announcement, “Carol Kim is a visionary leader who has advanced international partnerships and innovative financial-aid models. She will help drive USC’s efforts to strengthen academic excellence and access.”
Meanwhile, Timothy Brunold, who has served as interim vice president for enrollment management for the past year, will continue in that role until Kim’s arrival and then take on an additional position as special advisor to the provost.
BY YOONJAE JUNG [jung.yoonjae@koreadaily.com]
