GEC Partners with Something Real and Welcomes New Consultant Jen Mathews

GEC Welcomes Jen Mathews to our consulting team

Golden Educational Consulting was created to help students find their ideal college home, even if that new home is in another part of the world. In fact, we have seen a tremendous increase in interest from our students to pursue their education abroad in recent years. American student interest in international universities has hit an all-time high, driven by rising costs of U.S. higher education, political climate, and the appeal of lower tuition and post-graduation work opportunities. 

With the goal of providing families the best college search coaching while also promoting the mental health and wellbeing of their students, GEC is thrilled to announce a partnership with Something Real, a university advising and higher education consulting organization, and welcome its founder Jen Mathews to our already impressive team of consultants. 

As a foremost expert in global higher education, Jen provides customized college search guidance to families around the world who are considering global college options. 

“I am honored to be partnering with Dr. Thom and join the incredible team at GEC! I am excited to be part of a group that acts with integrity at the center of all relationships with students and colleagues alike, aims to address the high stress of the college admissions process, and helps empower students in finding their unique narrative thread to weave into the community of their dream school. I look forward to contributing my own expertise in international enrollment management and the global university search process to the GEC family of counselors and families!”

Jen brings over 18 years of experience in international admissions and global higher education services to the GEC team, having served as the Director of International Admissions at Syracuse University, as well as serving the admissions offices of Hamilton College, DePauw University, IUPUI (now IU Indianapolis), and Indiana University Bloomington. She has taught admissions programming to both secondary students and professionals at Syracuse University and the University of Pennsylvania, as well as served as a senior leader at BridgeU, an organization that supports students attending international schools in over 140 countries in finding their best fit universities. 

A Hoosier by birth, but attended high school in Hendersonville, Tennessee—where Golden Educational Consulting is headquartered—Jen earned her Honors B.A. in History and East Asian Studies from Indiana University, with minors in International Studies (Global Humanities) and Russian & Eastern European Studies. She went on to earn an M.F.A. in Film Production and Directing from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. During her studies, Jen gained international experience studying abroad in Dublin, Ireland, and Tokyo, Japan, and completing an internship at the Cannes Film Festival in France. She currently volunteers as a mentor with the SHE-CAN scholarship program and stays active in her local community through her involvement with the Indianapolis Women’s Chorus.

I couldn’t be more excited to welcome Jen to the Golden Educational Consulting family and can’t wait to introduce our community to her.

-Dr. Thom

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