Arcadia University, long renowned as a national leader in study abroad, has been named by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs as among the top recipients of the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship over the past 20 years. 

This year, to celebrate its 20th anniversary, the U.S. Department of State-sponsored Gilman program is honoring the top-producing institutions of the past 20 years. Arcadia is among 20 institutions nationwide to be recognized in the “Small Institution, 20-year Gilman Top Producer” category. Honorees were announced at the Diversity Abroad Conference on Oct. 27. 

“We are proud to celebrate 20 years of partnership between Arcadia University and the Gilman International Scholarship Program,” said Scott Terry, Arcadia’s director of Global Engagement. “The scholarship program helps make study abroad opportunities more accessible to Arcadia students with limited financial means who otherwise would not have the funding for an international academic experience.”   

Since 2001, 64 students from Arcadia have received Gilman awards. Gilman scholarships broaden the student population that participates in education abroad by supporting undergraduates who have been traditionally underrepresented and those who might not study or intern abroad due to financial constraints.

“Expanding access to education and to transformative global experiences is central to our mission at Arcadia University,” said Dr. Jeff Rutenbeck, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs at Arcadia University. “The Gilman Program has helped Arcadia realize this with dozens of students over the past 20 years, and we thank them for their support in helping us in these efforts.” 

The Gilman program has helped to reshape study abroad to make it more accessible and inclusive for American students. Since the program’s inception, more than 34,000 Gilman Scholars from all U.S. states, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. territories have studied or interned in more than 155 countries around the globe.