How the Kim Sisters Discovered Their Creative Paths at Otis College

After graduating, Yessica and Avalynn Kim pursued careers in toy design and motion design, respectively.

What would it be like to attend college with your sibling? For Los Angeles-based sisters Yessica (’22 BFA Toy Design) and Avalynn (’23 BFA Digital Media) Kim, moving to the United States to study together at Otis College of Art and Design deepened an already strong bond.

Otis’s strong post-graduation employment rate was very important to me as an international student.”

While the sisters were accepted to several U.S. art and design colleges, they both decided that Otis was “a perfect opportunity,” says Avalynn. For her, the College’s immersive Foundation Studio program for first-year students was a big draw. They were both awarded scholarships.

“There are four big reasons I chose Otis,” says Yessica. “First, it’s in L.A., and that’s very appealing with the weather. Second, I love Otis’s open and energetic vibe. It’s colorful and vibrant. Third is the great curriculum. Last but not least is Otis’s strong post-graduation employment rate, which was very important to me as an international student.”

When the siblings started at Otis in 2018, they lived just five minutes from campus. Yessica eventually found a home in the Toy Design program. “It’s a major that combined everything I wanted: to draw and create fashion and product designs,” she says. 

Avalynn, who studied motion design, turned to Yessica frequently for advice. “I’m good at math and with computers, but I struggled with creativity in school,” she says. “Yessica would push me and guide me. That made me a better designer.”

Both sisters landed job opportunities through the College’s annual Internship and Recruitment Day (IRD) event. There, Yessica connected with Mattel and interned with the global toy brand for its Polly Pocket team. After graduating from Otis, she was hired as an associate product designer, designing Disney Princess dolls. She was promoted to product designer for the American Girl doll team in 2024.

“I love this job the most when I go to a store and see kids with my toys in their shopping cart,” she says. “It makes me feel alive. It gives me confidence. I feel like I’m doing the right thing.”

Avalynn got her job at Devastudios after she connected with the motion design and branding firm during her senior year through the IRD event. “Getting the opportunity to work on Korean projects like Squid Game has been really fun,” she says, noting that maintaining good relationships with people is key to flourishing in creative industries. 

Though Yessica and Avalynn haven’t been roommates in a while—Yessica got married in 2022 and Avalynn got married this year—they live near each other in L.A.’s Koreatown neighborhood. 

“We’ll get coffee in the morning and after work, grab dinner, and just spend time with each other,” Avalynn says.

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