Since 2001, the Gilman Program has been assisting talented American undergraduates by providing merit-based scholarships of up to $5,000 to financially support their international study abroad programs and internships.
Many of these students have been Carls. In fact, Carleton has recently been named one of the top 25 highest producing colleges of Gilman scholars in the United States! To celebrate this incredible achievement, we reached out to a few current Carleton students and asked them to tell us about the Gilman application process, their off-campus study programs, and how their scholarships helped them have personally and academically rewarding OCS experiences.
Tell us about the application process for the Gilman Program, especially the service requirement. How did you share your experience with others?
Carlos Trejo ’26: “For our Gilman applications, we had to write a series of essays generally explaining why we were interested in travelling, and what we were hoping to contribute/take away from our international experiences. The service requirement was one of the more challenging questions for me, but I chose to provide the most reasonable and honest response for how I wanted to give back to Gilman. I’ve had lots of experience working with Canva for the Smash Bros. Club and the GSC, so I opted to promote the Gilman scholarship through a flyer that would be available at the TRIO office for distribution. I was also invited to give a talk segment for one of TRIO’s events about financing OCS, but that was beyond what I had declared I would do for the application.”
Nathan Zhang ’27: “The application process wasn’t a ton of work. There were a few 200 word essays, if I remember correctly, including a proposal for a service project. For my service project proposal, I said that I would give a presentation on my OCS program and highlight the Gilman Scholarship as an opportunity for financial support while abroad. When I got back, I asked around in the CS department and talked to Helena, who is in charge of the OCS department, about opportunities to give a presentation. I ended up representing AIT Budapest at the World Fair and talking about my experiences at AIT. Gilman also doesn’t require you to follow your proposal exactly.”
How has going on OCS influenced your academic and/or professional goals?
Carlos: My OCS was really influential in shaping my comps ideas. I am a Religion major, and I initially thought I would do a research paper on something related to Marian studies, perhaps on the Virgin of Guadalupe. However, as my class visited various churches in Rome, I noticed that many of them had tombs decorated with marble plaques, and somewhere near those plaques stood (or flew) human skeletons. I became interested in understanding the type of religious work that death performs in Catholic institutions, and then I remembered about the existence of the Mexican local death saint, Santa Muerte. Now, my comps is based on ritual objects dedicated to Santa Muerte and how these objects are used to shape beliefs and attitudes surrounding the Mexican skeleton saint.
Nathan: I wouldn’t say my academic or professional goals have changed by going abroad, as I still plan to attend med school. I do feel that studying abroad was incredibly rewarding, and I certainly feel more inclined to travel to other countries in the future.
Describe a memorable experience you had on OCS.
Carlos: “I remember having an exhilarating experience at Venice. I went to an opera performance, “Il Barbiere de Siviglia,” at Musica a Palazzo. The show was extremely engaging and funny, with a lot of running around and a good pie thrown at one point. But the best part is that I got involved in the performance! The actors engaged with the audience partly by physically interacting with them as if they were side characters. I was sitting near the performance, and there was this one actor who repeatedly included me at various moments in the show by mocking me and even shaking my shoulders back and forth at one point. By the end of the performance, I was beginning to consider whether that actor had a thing against me, but to my utter surprise, as soon as the actor got up on stage to bow, he walked over to me and pulled me in to bow to the audience with him! I left that night feeling like a star, and I definitely felt that I got my money’s worth from that venue. This experience cemented my love for opera and my desire to engage in more operatic performances in the future!”
Nathan: I remember riding a tram along the Danube to the Buda Castle area and seeing the Hungarian Parliament across the river at night with all the lights on. Also, seeing the Danube at sunset when crossing Margit Bridge in the fall was breathtaking.
What advice do you have for students who are on the fence about applying for a Gilman scholarship or even studying abroad?
Carlos: “I don’t think there is much to lose from applying to Gilman. In fact, while the application process is a bit long, I found that Gilman provides a very generous amount of money for people who get accepted. The Gilman scholarship really helped a lot with trying out a bunch of meals and purchasing lots of gifts for my family without having to worry too much about my financial situation. In terms of going abroad more generally, I haven’t met anyone thus far who went on an off-campus trip and regretted it, and I would definitely go back to Rome if I could! I was initially unsure if I would enjoy going to Rome since that wasn’t my #1 choice, but I still ended up loving everything I learned and saw throughout my trip. My one recommendation I have for people going on OCS is to try and establish stable social connections with other Carls who are also travelling, preferably before or early on the trip. While you might spend a lot of time with other Carls through classes, it’s also nice to navigate life in a new place with people who are familiar to you.”
Nathan: “I made a lot of lifetime memories studying abroad, and Carleton makes studying abroad very accessible to all students. I would definitely encourage studying abroad, even if it’s just to experience going to school in another country. Also, not only should you go, you should also plan to go to other neighboring countries, especially in Europe. As for the Gilman Scholarship, I would also encourage applying. Not only do you receive financial support, you also can connect with a network of Gilman Alumni and receive professional development opportunities.”
How can students go about finding resources like the Gilman Program to financially support their OCS?
Carlos: “I learned about the Gilman scholarship through recommendations by staff at the OCS office. The OCS website is a must-see for people who want to finance their OCS, including the “External Scholarships” page (which features the Gilman Scholarship Program as a first resource to go to).”
Nathan: “I found out about the Gilman Scholarship from a Carleton email, so I’ll admit that I didn’t do a lot of searching. However, I would recommend talking to Helena in the OCS office, as she has a great deal of experience advising students who going abroad and would probably know about various scholarships that students have applied to.”
To see the full list of Top Producing Institutions, visit the Gilman Scholarship website. To learn more about funding your OCS, visit the Carleton OCS website or come visit us in Leighton 119!