Yuki Tanaka loves to bake and hopes to someday run her own business in the industry.

Although Yuki Tanaka is new to CSI, she is not new to getting an education in the US. She’s currently in her first quarter, pursuing one of the school’s Business Certificate Programs. Enrolled in the Marketing Concentration, Yuki is taking the next logical step to achieving her dream of opening her own business.

“Before I came to CSI, I graduated from a community college where I studied Culinary Management,” she says. “After that I worked at a restaurant for one year doing my OPT.”

OPT, or Optional Practical Training, gives international students the opportunity to gain valuable practical work experience in their field while in the US. Since Yuki majored in culinary arts, the restaurant was a great fit. F-1 visa students are limited to 12 months of OPT per educational level. Yuki hopes to be able to get even more experience through Curricular Practical Training, or CPT, in the near future. CPT is a little different because students can do that while they are enrolled in classes. 

Classes for Entrepreneurs

With her experience in the culinary arts, a business certificate program like what CSI offers, made sense to Yuki. She has started doing some baking projects on her own, but wants to eventually go the entrepreneur route. “I was a cookie decorator at the restaurant when I did OPT,” she says.

She dreams of someday running her own bakery, but knows she has more to learn. “I’m hoping that I can do another program at the school,” says Yuki. She knows that CSI has many options that could give her a well rounded business education. She may decide to take Hospitality Leadership or Business Fundamentals.  Those are programs that will lay the foundation that could help Yuki achieve her dream of being a business owner.

Online and Classroom Learning for International Students

For now, Yuki is enjoying her time in her classes. She’s enrolled in a hybrid program at CSI, where she splits time in a physical classroom with time doing asynchronous learning online,  “I go to school on Monday. And then I do the Zoom class on Wednesday.” Yuki does her in-person learning at CSI’s Chicago campus. 

After attending another school, she loves the flexibility that CSI’s options offer, “I like the schedule. I only need to go to school one day per week and I have more time for myself. At the community college, I needed to go every day,” she says. That flexibility is great, but it presents a new challenge, “I love it but I need to make sure that I am disciplined because I have to do so much work by myself.”

One trick that Yuki has for staying disciplined is that she uses a timer to get her homework done. “I set a timer when I study. I’ll set it for like one hour and then tell myself to focus. I turn off my phone and for that one hour, I will focus completely.” 

Recommendation for CSI

Like many international students, Yuki has loved her experience at CSI. She is really enjoying learning from her marketing teacher, Amber Moore, “I like her. She has her own style. It’s not like she’s just leading a power point. She will talk about her experience and stuff.”

Yuki says she would recommend CSI to other F1 visa students. “It’s a very good program, especially with the schedule flexibility. You don’t have to go to school every day,” she says. She also likes the international aspect of the school, “You can meet people from other countries. I like that part.” 

If you’re an international student considering entrepreneurship in any field, CSI can help you learn what it takes to start a business. Contact our staff today to learn more.