Chaerin Kim is a Fulbright Graduate Student Award Scholar and a graduate of Korea University, where she earned a B.A. in International Studies with high honors. A native of Seoul, she spent her high school years on exchange in the United States and later studied abroad for a semester at the University of Tokyo. Her research interests center on the dynamics of the ROK-U.S. alliance and trilateral cooperation with Japan, alongside authoritarian state behavior, domestic polarization, and democratic backsliding.
As an undergraduate, Chaerin interned in the Political-External Section of the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, where she contributed to political reporting and OSINT analysis. She additionally served as a research assistant at Seoul-based think tanks including the UniKorea Foundation and the Ilmin International Relations Institute. Her research and writing have been awarded by institutions including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea, the Korea-America Association, and Korea University’s Division of International Studies. She brings editorial experience from *Global NK Zoom & Connect,* a DPRK-focused policy journal, and from her alma mater’s English-language newspaper, where she served as an editor. Her analyses have been published by the East Asia Institute and in *The Diplomat.*
Concentration: Politics and Security
Hometown: Seoul, South Korea
Academic Background: B.A. in International Studies, Korea University