Seventeen Nebraska undergraduate students — including Bojan Dakic from SNR — have earned the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to study or intern abroad between December 2019 and October 2020.
The Gilman is a nationally competitive scholarship awarded twice a year by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and administered by the Institute of International Education. Recently adjusted application cycles have given students the opportunity to apply several months in advance of their program, and allow students to finalize their plans with the reassurance of funding.
For years, UNL’s Education Abroad Office has committed to assisting its students apply for the Gilman Scholarship. Last year, the efforts resulted in Nebraska being named a “Greatest Growth Institution” for the academic year 2017-18.
The Gilman Scholarship Program supports underrepresented undergraduates who might not otherwise participate due to financial constraints, and aims to encourage students to study and intern in a diverse array of countries and to study languages, especially critical need languages. Gilman scholars receive up to $5,000 to apply toward program costs, and may receive up to an additional $3,000 to study a critical language. Two Nebraska awardees—Madison Whitney and Dylan Patrick—both received $7,000 to study Chinese for one semester during the latest round of awardees.
Following is a list of the university’s newest Gilman scholars (alphabetical by last name, with year in school, major, and intended country and term of study):
- Mahaa Albusharif, junior, biochemistry, South Korea, spring 2020
- Daniela Chavez, junior, art history, Argentina, summer 2020
- Jissell Cruz, junior, criminology & criminal justice, Argentina, summer 2020
- Bojan Dakic, junior, fisheries and wildlife, South Africa, summer 2020
- Harley Edic, sophomore, accounting, Spain, fall 2020
- Keltie Imus, junior, advertising and public relations, Ireland, summer 2020
- Randa Ismail, sophomore, biochemistry, France, summer 2020
- Cory Meyer, sophomore, sociology, Japan, summer 2020
- Megan Miigerl, sophomore, biological sciences, Ethiopia and Zambia, summer 2020
- Ashley Nguyen, sophomore, civil engineering, Singapore, summer 2020
- John Nguyen, junior, marketing, France, summer 2020
- Selena Nguyen, sophomore, marketing, United
- Kingdom, fall 2020
- Dylan Patrick, junior, political science, China, spring 2020
- Abby Seibel, freshman, computer engineering, Iceland, summer 2020
- Erin Stocking, senior, nutrition and health sciences, Ethiopia and Zambia, summer 2020
- Autumn Traylor, senior, political science, Colombia, summer 2020
- Madison Whitney, junior, environmental studies, China, fall 2020
The Education Abroad Office offers various resources for students who are eligible and interested in applying to the Gilman Scholarship Program, including informational sessions, essay-writing workshops, and designated walk-in hours. The staff work closely with the Office of Fellowships and the Husker Hub to help students prepare and submit applications.
Deadlines for the scholarship fall in October and March. For questions about applying for the Gilman Scholarship, students can email educationabroad@unl.edu, call (402) 472-5358, or visit Love Library South 110 during walk-in hours from 1 to 4 p.m.
By Rebecca Baskerville, Education Abroad Office