From Purpose to Practice
Build a Mission-Driven Consulting Business Rooted in Your Expertise
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Ready to build something of your own, but unsure where to start?
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Interested in consulting, but overwhelmed by the business side?
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Wondering how to turn your expertise into paid consulting work?
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Looking for more autonomy, income, and impact?
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Recently displaced or transitioning between careers?
I offer workshops and individual coaching designed for global nonprofit professionals, educators, and mission-driven experts who are exploring what's next--and want to do meaningful work on their own terms.
Our work together will help you launch a consulting practice rooted in your values--with clarity, confidence, and clients. We will not only cover the knowledge, skills and nuts-and-bolts of a successful consulting practice, but will also tackle critical issues such as identity shift, vulnerability, freedom, and motivation.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
CLARE OVERMANN
CEO, Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA)
Expertly facilitated by Rajika Bhandari, the workshop was thoughtfully paced, striking a strong balance between practical guidance and deeper personal reflection. Participants were invited to do the important mindset work needed to explore consulting, while also leaving with tangible, actionable tools they could use immediately. It was both grounding and forward-looking, offering meaningful support to professionals navigating transition, growth, and new ways of contributing to the field.
RENDI SCHRADER
Senior Director, Office of International Services,
Indiana University
The workshop with Rajika gave me ideas and allowed me to form a plan outline for becoming a consultant. Rajika gave us lots of personal examples and was skillful in generating conversations among our group. Best of all, Rajika helped me feel like I can do this!
NONPROFIT LEADER
Washington, DC
This workshop has been really helpful and interesting. My biggest takeaway: to succeed at consulting, the right mindset matters just as much as acquiring all the practical skills.
current offerings
Consulting Pathways Coaching
A 4-session 1:1 coaching package designed to help you explore consulting as a meaningful and realistic pathway, whether as a full-time move or alongside other professional pursuits. This mini course is structured as a guided arc that moves from clarity to action, while remaining fully tailored to your background, goals, and constraints. These are some of the topics we can cover, based on your needs:
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Shifting your mindset from employee to entrepreneur
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Clarifying your goals, readiness, and transferable expertise
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Defining your consulting niche, articulating your value, and attracting clients
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Business basics, including how to price, package, and market your services
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Building thought leadership, visibility, and influence
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Designing a sustainable and realistic path forward
What's included:
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Four 60-minute 1:1 sessions (Zoom)
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Templates, worksheets, and tools
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Guided exercises or reflection prompts
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A personalized “next steps” roadmap
Single Coaching Session
A focused, one-time session to help you gain clarity, direction, and confidence about your next professional chapter. This is also a good option to do a deep dive into a specific area such as building your thought leadership or exploring writing and publishing to build your influence.
What's included:
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One 60-minute 1:1 session (Zoom)
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Worksheets
From Purpose to Practice: Signature Workshop
My signature half-day interactive workshop offers a guided exploration of consulting as a meaningful next step—whether full-time or alongside other pursuits. Participants will learn how to develop the needed mindset and identify their transferable skills; explore potential consulting scenarios; and gain practical strategies for designing flexible, purpose-driven and alternative career pathways.
By the end of this workshop, you will be able to:
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Reflect on your professional expertise and identify transferable skills that lend themselves to consulting work
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Understand different models of consulting within international education and the broader nonprofit and education sectors
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Assess whether consulting aligns with your professional and personal goals at this
stage of your career -
Learn key steps to get started—such as defining a consulting focus, identifying potential clients, and communicating your value
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Gain practical strategies for exploring consulting as a flexible, purpose-driven pathway during times of transition or career growth
Are you an association or organization who would like to bring a From Purpose to Practice workshop to your members?
Your InstructoR and Coach
Dr. Rajika Bhandari is an award-winning international education expert, author, and founder of Rajika Bhandari Advisors, an international education research and strategy firm. With over 30 years of experience advising global nonprofits, foundations, and
governments, she transitioned into consulting after leading major research, evaluation, and thought leadership efforts at the Institute of International Education (IIE), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and MPR Associates (now part of RTI). Now she’s teaching others how to do the same — with purpose and profitability. Teaching is a passion for Rajika. Throughout her career, she has mentored international education professionals, has guest lectured at several U.S. colleges and universities, and served as an Adjunct Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University.
Dr. Rajika Bhandari
A thought leader with real-world consulting experience, Rajika has served as a trusted partner to nonprofits such as NAFSA, IIE, the Alliance for International Exchange, the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration; to mission-driven companies such as MPOWER Financing and Oxford International; multilateral and global organizations such as the World Bank and the Qatar Foundation; and over 25 U.S. colleges and universities.
A widely regarded expert in her field, Rajika is quoted frequently in the global press, is a keynote speaker on international students, global talent, and Asian American identity; is a widely published author, most recently of the award-winning memoir, America Calling: A Foreign Student in a Country of Possibility; and is the host of the World Wise podcast on the intersections of education, culture, and migration.
Her work has also received significant recognition: in 2019 she was one of 100 individuals globally to receive IIE's Centennial Medal for contributions to the field; she was appointed to the National Academy for International Education in 2024; and in 2025 received NAFSA's inaugural John and Anne Hudzik Prize for Sustained Leadership in Higher Education Internationalization.
FAQs
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Are the workshops and coaching only for nonprofit professionals? What if I am not from a nonprofit background? (No—any mission-driven leader or academic is welcome!)
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Will I need prior consulting experience? (No—we can work together to guide you from step one, from beginning to think about a consulting practice, to expanding and formalizing an existing one.)
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Will I need to start a business immediately? (No—this will be your choice. But my workshops and sessions will equip you to launch a business immediately, should you wish, or at the very least develop a concrete plan for a future business.)
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Is this a good fit if I am not in education? (Definitely! The content is applicable to professionals from a wide range of disciplines and sectors.)
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Will the workshops or coaching help me find clients? (Yes and no. While the sessions will provide you with the knowledge, skills, and tools to identify your ideal list of best-fit clients, they will not provide you with an actual list or names of clients as the ideal client can vary from person-to-person.)
