Rachel Zhang
📌 Texas-Based Mathematics Educator
MBA, Rice University (USA)
Master’s Degree, University of Edinburgh (UK)
Certified Project Management Professional (PMP), USA
🎓 Academic & Leadership Background
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Current Student Mentor at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business
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Former Admissions Ambassador, Rice Business – responsible for campus visits and interviews for prospective applicants
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Held multiple leadership positions during MBA program:
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President, Asian Business Student Association
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Vice President, International Business Association
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Vice President, Business Strategy Club
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Organizer of the Rice Global Business Visit to China
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Founder of "Mothers in MBA", an initiative supporting women to continue personal and professional growth after motherhood
🧑🏫 Professional Experience
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Experienced in academic consulting and personalized coaching for school applications and academic development
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Currently working in Texas as a mathematics instructor, committed to helping students build strong logical and quantitative skills
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Education is a lifelong practice of the heart, nurtured with love and patience.
I still remember my very first day of kindergarten—
There I was, crouching beside the second-floor balcony, pressing my face between the railings, silently crying as I watched my grandfather ride away on his bicycle, getting smaller and smaller in the distance.
Yes, I admit, my grandparents loved me dearly.
But the long-term separation from my parents left its mark.
Even now, I struggle to find the right way to communicate with them. When I’m overwhelmed, I don’t know where to begin the conversation with them.
So, from the moment my daughter was born, I made a promise:
I would raise her myself, with my own hands and heart.
To give her the chance to broaden her horizons, I applied for an MBA program in the U.S.—starting a new journey that began with improving myself.
Before we left, I made every effort to create a Chinese-immersion environment for her at home. I wanted her to build a strong foundation in her native language.
By the age of 3, she was able to come home from preschool and read me the school notices.
By 6, she had completed her first full read-through of the entire Harry Potter series in Chinese.
At 8, she began writing poetry.
And during the summer she turned 12, even in the U.S., she could still smoothly read through The Legend of the Condor Heroes in Chinese.
Mathematics is often a strength for Chinese students, and for my daughter, while not a passion, I insisted on a solid grounding in mathematical logic and reasoning. From the Math Kangaroo to AMC8, she consistently achieved steady results.
As for English, the American elementary school environment was very relaxed, and she adapted to it quickly.
However, due to the pandemic, I began exploring ways to enhance her English learning online.
Through years of researching the U.S. education system and trying different approaches, I gradually built a hybrid system that blends Eastern exam-readiness with Western skill-building.
When she applied to local private schools, I combined traditional test strategies with holistic academic training—and she was admitted with outstanding scores, ultimately becoming the only non-citizen student accepted into the top private school in our area.
Today, I’m proud of the schools I chose for my children.
My eldest son was selected by the school district to attend a public school for gifted students with a high IQ program.
I believe that raising a child is a journey full of wisdom and challenges.
What fuels me is love—for my own children and for all children.
In every conversation with them, in every interaction with others, I constantly reflect and look inward.
I truly believe:
The only way to change the world is to begin by changing ourselves.
And so, I hope to grow alongside the children—learning, evolving, and walking this path of love and self-cultivation together.