Gardens by the Bay in Singapore

UO Recognized as Top Gilman Scholars Producer

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Informative Data Val
By Tim Christie and spencer smith
27 UO students selected for prestigious national award

A total of 27 UO students have been awarded prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships.

Combined, UO students were awarded $79,000, which will help fund their study and intern abroad programs.

The Gilman Scholarship is a prestigious and competitive national award for undergraduate students interested in opportunities abroad. This year more than 17,000 students applied nationwide, a record number.

27
UO students selected
79K
Total grant awarded to UO students

Between 20 and 25 percent of Gilman applicants are awarded scholarships each year. UO students registered a 34 percent success rate, and the UO ranks 14th among all universities, according to the Institute for International Education, which awards the scholarships.

“To see 27 UO students win this award is very special,” said Luis Fernando Ruiz, associate director for Student Success & Analytics in Global Education Oregon.

The awards highlight the success and achievement of UO students, as well as the robust programming that GEO develops — from faculty-led programs to global internships, and university exchanges — that offer opportunities for academic engagement, career readiness, research, and cross-cultural communication, he said.

Students who currently receive the federal Pell Grant can be awarded up to $5,000 to be used for program tuition, room and board, international airfare, and passport and visa fees, among other necessary costs.

The UO’s Gilman Scholars will be going to a wide variety of programs in across the globe, including Singapore to study business, Barbados to study anthropology, and Australia to study wildlands.

Nadia Awwad, a Human Physiology major who will be doing a GlobalWorks internship in Japan this summer in Summer 2025, said being a Gilman Scholar allows her to step outside her comfort zone and expand her horizons.   “To become immersed in another culture while interning abroad is a transformative experience that will foster personal growth,” she said. “The exchange of language and making connections in a different culture transcends perspective and allows you to become the best version of yourself.”

Tetianna Smith-Drysdale, an Environmental Science major participating in the Wildlands Studies in Ecuador program, said, “This scholarship will allow me the life changing opportunity to explore my studies abroad and will contribute meaningfully to my future academic endeavors. I'm so grateful!”

Plaza in Oviedo, Spain

Global Engagement Oregon (GEO), part of the Division of Global Engagement, offers advising and hands-on support for all study abroad-related scholarships. UO students can apply for more than 40 scholarships, like the GEO Passport Grant that covers the fees of obtaining a passport.

Here are this year’s Gilman Scholarship recipients:  

  • Logan Adams, GlobalWorks Internship Mohr Singapore Business Program
  • Samia Ali, Global Business and Economics in London
  • Kendall Allgower, Catalysts for Impact: Nonprofits in Southeast Asia and GlobalWorks in Thailand
  • Nadia Awwad, GlobalWorks Internship in Kansai, Japan
  • Genevieve Belgique, GlobalWorks Internship in Barcelona, Spain
  • Alo Burt, Anthropology in Barbados
  • Isha Dhanjal, Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Galapagos
  • Tamra Duncan, Art and Architecture in London
  • Tsuquindaro Enyart, DIS: Copenhagen
  • Julie Gomez Rosales, DIS Copenhagen
  • Ray Gonzalez Mejia, Hispanic Heritage in Oviedo
  • Ava Goshien, GlobalWorks Internship in Barcelona, Spain
  • Mandy Ho, CIEE: Summer Accelerated Chinese Language in Shanghai
  • Morgan Hood, GlobalWorks Internship in Barcelona, Spain
  • Zoey Hughes, Wildlands Studies: The Australia Project
  • Indy Kilgore-Reyes, Spanish Immersion in Oviedo
  • Ellie Lovas, Architecture in Vicenza
  • Celeste Mendoza- Amezcua, GlobalWorks Internship in Barcelona, Spain
  • Janett Munguia Ortiz, Spanish Language and culture in Segovia
  • Katrina Nguyen, Psychology in Kyoto
  • Suzy Oakes, Hokkaido University Exchange
  • Adriana Ramirez Salazar, Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Galapagos
  • Tetianna Smith-Drysdale, Wildlands Studies: The Ecuador Project
  • Sebastian Stowasser, Wildlands Studies: The French Polynesia Project
  • Alex Tidwell, Mexican Studies and Spanish Immersion in Queretaro
  • Nate Treat, Waseda University Exchange
  • Stella Van Goor, Italian Language and Culture in Siena