Utah State Student Mark Morris, "Live" from Ljubljana, Slovenia
Mark Morris is currently in Slovenia thanks to a study abroad scholarship. Below, he shares some thoughts about study abroad and his advice for hopeful scholarship recipients.
Being awarded the Benjamin Gilman International Study Abroad Scholarship has made it possible for me to have a unique experience in studying at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. I am appreciative of the opportunity to do so, and I'm sure that this semester will be one that I will never forget.
The Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning department at Utah State has had a partnership exchange program with the University of Ljubljana since 1991, making it possible for several students from both universities to have the opportunity to get international experience. Meeting students from Slovenia studying in our department at USU has been a great chance to become friends with students with other viewpoints and varying ideas.
The Gilman Scholarship is a relatively new scholarship, set up to help students have the means to study abroad who otherwise would not be able to do so.
I was fortunate in the fact that the selection committee focusses on majors not usually represented among study abroad students and countries not usually selected for study abroad locations. Any student that recieves Federal Pell Grants is eligible to apply, but you must plan well in advance, as the deadline for the application is quite early in the year. For Fall 2003 programs you must apply by this March.
International experience can be invaluable to students studying in any major, and I encourage all those interested to investigate the possibility of spending
a semester or a year studying in another country.
The deadline for Fall Gilman Scholarship recipients is April 15th. The Gilman Scholarship is an award of up to $5,000 for a semester or year-long program and is awarded to students with financial need who have a Pell grant at time of application. For more information, visit the Study Abroad Web site.
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