The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is pleased to announce the summer 2015 early application awards offered. Selection panelists from various colleges and universities across the nation met at the IIE office in Houston, Texas to review over 300 applications for the inaugural early summer application cycle. More than 100 outstanding students were selected to receive the scholarship to attend study abroad programs and career-oriented internships for academic credit in countries all around the world. To view a list of selected Gilman Scholarship recipients, please visit www.iie.org/gilman. 

The Gilman International Scholarship Program is a congressionally funded program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE) through IIE’s office in Houston, Texas. The Gilman Scholarship Program offers grants of up to USD 5,000 to U.S. undergraduate students of high financial need participating in a study abroad program or international internship eligible for academic credit. Students studying a critical need language could be eligible to receive a grant of up to USD 8,000. The Gilman Program aims to diversify the kinds of students who study and intern abroad and the countries and regions where they go by supporting U.S. undergraduates who might otherwise not consider these unique and valuable opportunities due to financial constraints.

A new study by ETS on adult competencies among millennials shows that the United States lags behind most OECD nations, despite crosscutting access to higher education for millennials in the United States. — Inside Higher Education

This magazine article features a recent IIE report entitled "Charting New Pathways to Higher Education: International Secondary Students in the United States," which offers insight into the rapid growth in the number of overseas students coming to the U.S. to attend high school. — Language Magazine

A Modern Language Association report shows a decline in foreign-language course enrollments at U.S. colleges over the last four years, which MLA speculates may be a result of the greater attractive of "career-oriented subjects such as business in the wake of the recession." — Chronicle of Higher Education

The Institute of International Education (IIE) and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) will be hosting this year's annual Colloquium on International Engineering Education from Nov. 5-6, 2015 in New York City. The Annual Colloquium attracts engineering and foreign language deans and faculty along with study abroad professionals, administrators, and senior leadership at higher education institutions. Representatives from industry and various government agencies are also in attendance.

We are currently soliciting proposals for presentations and sessions. Session topics include:

• Engineering and entrepreneurship
• Foreign language acquisition and engineering education
• Beyond transactional partnerships
• New York as a destination for STEM
• Funding opportunities

The U.S. Department of State's Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program would like to invite you to the fourth webinar in our Gilman Web Symposium Series for the 2014-2015 academic year, "International Exchange Opportunities for Students with Disabilities" on Tuesday, February 24, at 1:00 PM CST.

This online forum, moderated by Gilman Program staff member Randi Butler, will feature Ashley Holben from Mobility International USA at the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange, who will be discussing study abroad opportunities for students with apparent and non-apparent disabilities. We will also hear from Lori Rezzouk, a Student Services Specialist in the Study Abroad Office at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, who will provide insight on how she supports UNC students with disabilities wanting to study or intern abroad. Lastly, we will hear from two Gilman Scholarship alumni, who will share their own personal experiences of studying and interning abroad. 

This symposium will be closed captioned. Please indicate other accessibility accommodations when registering. Accessibility accommodation requests should be made by February 18, 2015. 

Stay tuned to the Gilman Program's Webinars & Workshops page at www.iie.org/gilman for future announcements of scheduled web symposium topics. You can also find recordings and transcripts of previous Web Symposiums on this page. 

The WISE Prize for Education recognizes an individual or a team of up to six people for an outstanding contribution to education. Established by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, this prize is the first global distinction to recognize an outstanding, world-class contribution to education. The achievements of the nominated individual or team should have had a significant and lasting impact upon education at any level and should demonstrate an inspiring and visionary approach. WISE welcomes nominations by individuals or institutions—including schools, international organizations and private companies—from anywhere in the world.

The Summer University at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow is a new initiative designed to provide students from around the world with unique opportunities to enhance their knowledge in area studies and beyond. Offering a broad interdisciplinary selection of courses, the Summer University is open to all students and will be of particular interest to those who study International Relations, History, Political Science and other social sciences and humanities. Many of the courses, taught in English, focus on the politics, history, economics and culture of Russia and Eurasia.

The first Virtual Study Abroad Fair, hosted by CollegeWeekLive, IIE, and the U.S. Department of State, is a unique opportunity for U.S. students to learn more about the benefits of study abroad, program options, potential host countries and funding opportunities. Students and families can log in from 12:00 to 8:00 PM EST to watch live presentations and chat with representatives from all over the world.

Please share with your students

The Institute of International Education (IIE) invites you to update or add study abroad funding opportunities to our online student directory, www.StudyAbroadFunding.org. With hundreds of scholarship and grant opportunities listed, www.StudyAbroadFunding.org is a comprehensive directory on finding study abroad funding opportunities for study abroad professionals and candidates. It features detailed descriptions of grants, fellowships, and scholarships for undergraduate and graduate study, and doctoral and postdoctoral research all around the world. 

Basic listings are free, and we provide many affordable opportunities—now including video—to better publicize your institution’s programs. To evaluate the affordable upgrade options, click here. If you have any questions, contact iiesupport@naylor.com.