UIC named Gilman Scholarship top producer

The University of Illinois Chicago has been recognized as one of the top 25 large U.S. universities whose students have earned the merit-based Gilman Scholarship to study abroad.

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The scholarship from the U.S. State Department is marking its 25th year, launching in 2001. Since 2012, the Gilman Scholarship has gone to 304 UIC students.

The honor as a top school for Gilman awardees celebrates the sustained impact of the scholarship at UIC.

"It makes a huge impact on a student to have money to study abroad," said Colleen Gray, assistant director of the Study Abroad Office. UIC students compete against students from all over the country to win the scholarship, and study abroad staff help them prepare competitive applications to be in the best position possible.

The Gilman Scholarship is only open to Pell Grant-eligible students and can cover as much as $5,000 in fees and education expenses for students studying overseas.

This semester, UIC has two Gilman Scholars, who are studying in Argentina and Germany.

What it means for UIC students

To apply for the Gilman Scholarship, students must write about where and why they want to study abroad, how the experience would further their academic or career goals, how they would engage their host community and other details of their study abroad plans.

More than 50% of UIC students are eligible to receive the Pell Grant, making many future study abroad students ideal candidates for the scholarship.

"The fact that the students from UIC who are going for and receiving a Gilman, it just shows how resilient they are and how they really want to make study abroad work," said Josefina Vega, an advisor in the Study Abroad Office. "They want to be able to have these experiences that, maybe when they first arrived at university, they didn't think would be possible."

Jansel Perez is in her third year studying public health and is part of the first cohort of the College of Nursing's newest elective in Ireland. Perez was already in Ireland when she learned she won the scholarship.

"Just seeing the email while I was there, I felt so accomplished," Perez said. "Writing all of the essays made me reflect a lot, and I knew it was a long shot, but it also made me think, 'What if I hadn't tried?'"

UIC students who take a study abroad trip or a full semester say they have returned to campus transformed, with newfound confidence and leadership skills.

Another big requirement - applicants must design an initiative they will lead after their travels, such as spreading the word to other students about the study abroad experience.

Gabriella Malkoun, a senior majoring in integrated health studies, said her project includes joining the Study Abroad Officeand Cultural Experiences Abroad and CAPA: The Global Experiences Network - also known as CEA CAPA, a partner company that facilitates study abroad experiences - at on-campus events to discuss her experiences.

She also highlights the Gilman Scholarship whenever she can on social media. Malkoun studied Spanish medical terminology in Costa Rica during summer 2025.

"Every time I post on my Instagram, I add to the caption, 'If you want to study abroad, apply for the Gilman,'" Malkoun said. "I hear friends talking all the time about wanting to study abroad, and I tell them, 'If you're a Pell Grant recipient, you have to apply for the Gilman.'"

Transforming while studying abroad

UIC has more students studying abroad than ever before. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, UIC sent 220 students abroad; in 2025, it was 384 students, for a 57% increase.

Students who study abroad come back to UIC with skills they can't pick up in Chicago, Vega said.

"The exposure to different ways of learning and engaging with information, that's helpful for the university because it creates a student population that is thinking creatively and in a more international, globalized way," Vega said. "I know when I see students return from study abroad, their confidence goes up dramatically and they walk and speak with more self-assurance and a better understanding of who they are, their place in the world and where they want to go."

Nguyen Dang, a second-year nursing student who traveled to Japan in summer 2025, said finding her way in a very unfamiliar place built her independence.

"I learned to be in a different country and navigate a system that was completely foreign to me," she said. "I did things I would never have the chance to experience and took a class in Japanese comics, which I couldn't do here. I feel like I gained a new sense of independence that I never thought I would be able to as a commuter student at UIC. Every day I was going out and having new experiences."

Hillary Prado won the Gilman Scholarship during summer 2025 and participated in field research in Mexico. The fourth-year Spanish and Latin American and Latino Studies major said she strengthened her confidence by conducting research ahead of her graduation this May.

As part of the program, she learned the culture and traditions of people in Oaxaca, Mexico.

"Just being able to conduct research across all of the cultures that exist in Oaxaca with the humility and respect above everything - it was so eye-opening to me," Prado said. "It was my first time ever doing something like that, and I really enjoyed it."

UIC student Nguyen Dang studied abroad in Japan during summer semester 2025. (Photo: Nguyen Dang) Hillary Prado studied language and culture in Mexico during the summer 2025 semester. (Photo: Hillary Prado) Gabriella Malkoun studied abroad in Costa Rica during the summer 2025 semester. (Photo: Gabriella Malkoun)

Guiding students through the Gilman process

Students choosing to travel abroad should start scholarship hunting early, according to Study Abroad Office staff. The office has built a robust support process to help students earn money to fund their overseas education.

In addition to holding seminars and walking students through the essay-writing process, mentors in the Study Abroad Office help review the essays and applications.

"We want to demystify the fear of applying," Gray said.

Dang says she visited the Study Abroad Office weekly before submitting her essays. Following her success, this year she helped her best friend apply.

"Like with any scholarships, it's important to give yourself a lot of time to invest into the application," Dang said. "It's important to paint a full picture of who you are as a person."

Perez added she's had a positive reaction when she speaks to classes about being a part of the next Ireland cohort.

"Students have told me they applied because I talked to their class," Perez said.

Gray said having students return to pump up future study abroad applicants has helped promote the programs around campus and raise the number of UIC students choosing internships and courses in other countries.

"Whether they're joining our info sessions or providing tips and tricks for writing essays, they level up everyone else here," Gray said. "They come back and ask our office, 'How can I help, what can I do?'

"UIC benefits by having one student see another student who goes abroad."