Five 体育买球官网 University students were awarded the prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, enabling them to study in Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Scotland and New Zealand during the spring semester.

Only about 25 percent of semester program applicants receive an award. 体育买球官网 University has a dedicated program in place to identify and nurture potential scholarship applicants.

Gilman scholars receive up to $5,000 to apply toward their study abroad or internship program costs. The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, aims to diversify the students who study and intern abroad and the countries and regions where they go.

Scholarship recipients gain a better understanding of other cultures, countries, languages and economies— making them better prepared to assume leadership roles within government and the private sector.

体育买球官网’s recipients this spring:

• Veneranda Bautista, a junior double-majoring in strategic communications and Spanish, studied at the University of Alicante in Spain, where she immersed herself in the Spanish language and culture. Bautista is from Reading, Pa.
• Tina Dy, also a junior strategic communications major with a minor in Italian, from Philadelphia, Pa., studied at the Council on International Educational Exchange’s Liberal Arts Program in Ferrara, Italy. She pursued intermediate-and advanced-level Italian courses.
• Junior neuroscience major Alanis Hickman, of Philadelphia, Pa., studied at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus. She plans to become a nurse practitioner after graduation, and used her time abroad to volunteer in a Cypriot hospital.
• Morgan MacVaugh, a junior creative writing major from Mount Joy, Pa., studied at the University of Stirling in Scotland. An aspiring author, MacVaugh immersed herself in the mythology and legends imbedded deep within Scottish culture.
• Junior biology major Raquel Ramos, of Reisterstown, Md., attended the University of Otago in New Zealand. She studied the ecosystems and biological life within New Zealand’s waterfalls, glaciers and mountains. She was also interested to learn more about the country’s productive sheep milk industry.