Gabriel DeLorenzo Angeloni in front of the Nikko Toshogu shrine during his time studying abroad in Japan Credit: Gabriel DeLorenzo Angeloni. All Rights Reserved.
February 5, 2025
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship (Gilman) Program is accepting applications from students of limited financial means intending to studying abroad until Friday, Mar. 7 at 2:59 a.m.
Penn State Education Abroad, in partnership with Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM), host two information sessions on the Gilman Program to educate students on the scholarship and provide application advice.
The Gilman Program was created in 2001 to encourage students across the U.S. to study or intern abroad. The namesake of the scholarship, late U.S. congressman Benjamin A. Gilman, established the program under the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. Today, it’s funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Nearly 3,000 scholarships of up to $5,000 are awarded each academic year.
Students who either currently receive a Federal Pell Grant or provide proof that they will receive one during their time abroad qualify for this scholarship. Traditional study abroad and internship abroad programs can be funded with Gilman Program awards.
Applicants must be studying in a location with a Level 1 or 2 Travel Advisory. More information on travel advisories can be found on the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs website.
Penn State Global offers a $200 incentive grant for qualifying students who submit a Gilman Program application. Students who meet the scholarship’s eligibility criteria and attend one session on strengthening their Gilman Program application will receive this grant. Terms and conditions are outlined on the Penn State Education Abroad Scholarships webpage. To receive the incentive grant, eligible students must attend one of the two workshop sessions. Pre-registration is required for all sessions.
Six Penn State students were awarded Gilman Program scholarships in the fall 2024 cycle, which sets a record-breaking number of awardees in one term for the institution.
As a student, Gabriel DeLorenzo Angeloni — now Penn State education abroad adviser — entered college knowing he wanted to study abroad. His love for travel combined with his desire to experience other cultures fueled his interest, he said. Despite his aspiration, he thought the financial aspect of studying abroad would make it impossible for him to experience.
“I didn’t think that studying abroad would be feasible with paying increased tuition, additional expenses and not working for a semester,” said DeLorenzo Angeloni.
After speaking with a classmate and conducting research on his study abroad options, he discovered the resources available to decrease the financial impact of study abroad. One of those resources was the Gilman Scholarship.
“I wanted to study abroad, and I realized I could do that with this newfound information. It became apparent to me that it was a possibility due to the affordability of the program and scholarship opportunities,” said DeLorenzo Angeloni.
DeLorenzo Angeloni ended up receiving a scholarship from the Gilman Program. The funds he received were able to cover nearly 25% of his experience abroad.
A portion of his scholarship went toward groceries, housing and other essentials. Another portion enhanced his experience by allowing him to participate in class-led excursions and deepen his interaction with his host culture in Minato City, Japan.
“I was able to go to the mountains to stay in a traditional Japanese hotel, join a field trip to another prefecture to visit a temple, do traditional dancing and learn more about the cuisine. All these things I was able to purchase with Gilman funds,” said DeLorenzo Angeloni.
Ultimately, DeLorenzo Angeloni’s experience abroad, made possible in part by the Gilman Program, influenced him to return home, reevaluate his field of study and eventually pursue a career in international education.
“I wanted to give back to my community and see what work I could do to make [international education] more accessible while also providing information and my perspective to students who might be in the same situation I was in,” said DeLorenzo Angeloni.
DeLorenzo Angeloni’s biggest piece of advice to students is to lean on their communities. Students forget about their support systems and networks and should use them more, according to DeLorenzo Angeloni.
“I was able to ask so many different people not only that I knew very well but also other people within my university to review my application materials. Exhaust all your resources,” said DeLorenzo Angeloni.
Applications must be submitted on the Gilman Program website. There are a few components that comprise the application:
All components must be submitted by the deadline.
Contact Education Abroad (EducationAbroad@psu.edu) with questions about the scholarship.
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