6 Cyclones Receive the Gilman Scholarship for Study Abroad
The Study Abroad Center would like to congratulate the six recipients of the Gilman International Scholarship for the October 2023 cycle. The six students will be participating in programs taking place in Italy, Ireland, Spain, Belize, and Germany, and will study abroad in 2024 or over the 2024-2025 academic year.
To be eligible to apply for the Gilman students must, among other requirements, be receiving a Federal Pell Grant and be applying to or accepted for a credit-bearing study abroad program of any duration. The application process requires preparation and involves crafting a Personal Statement as well as two Community Impact essays. These three essays gave students a chance to introduce and advocate for themselves and their programs, show how they will be successful abroad, and address how their experiences will help them and their community when they return home. The six successful ISU students were selected based on volunteer reviewers’ holistic scoring of their applications, which included a review of their academic records (provided by the student) in addition to the essays.
In this cycle alone, there were over 5,000 applications submitted and approximately 1,700 recipients selected from across every state in the US, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. On average, 70 percent of Gilman recipients self-identify as racial or ethnic minorities, 60 percent are from rural areas and small towns across America, and half are first-generation college/university students. The Study Abroad Center and ISU study abroad community is proud to have six ISU students represented among this cycle’s recipients.
Gilman recipients can receive up to $5,000 in scholarship funds, and ISU’s recipients were awarded a combined total of over $20,000 from this cycle. Unlike other scholarships though, Gilman funds are sent directly to recipients, who can then use the funds for any eligible expenses including tuition, housing, visa and passport fees, flights, food, and more. And though ISU did not have any students selected for them in this cycle, the Gilman also offers supplemental awards for students studying a critical need language (up to $3,000) or conducting STEM-related research (up to $1,000) while abroad.
The six ISU students selected for this prestigious award will also benefit from future opportunities: in addition to professional development offerings like the Scholar Network, Gilman-hosted webinars, and Alumni Ambassador Program, Gilman alumni are eligible for Non-Competitive Eligibility hiring status with the federal government as well as certain graduate school scholarships. The Gilman scholarship certainly opens doors for recipients, so the Study Abroad Center once again congratulates the six selected students on their efforts and recognizes the impact of this award both for their time abroad and upon their return.
The Gilman scholarship accepts applications during two cycles per year, with deadlines in March and October. The next cycle will open in mid-January 2024 and close on Thursday, March 7th, 2024 at 11:59pm PT. Eligible students planning to study abroad between May 1, 2024 and April 30, 2025 should consider applying for this scholarship, and can begin to draft their essays following the prompts available here. Applicants who would like assistance with their materials can reach out to the following staff on campus:
John Milstead – Coordinator of Nationally Competitive Awards – milstea5@iastate.edu
Stephanie Lopez – Study Abroad Advisor – snlopez@iastate.edu