Advisor FAQ

Q. Who is eligible for the Gilman International Scholarship Program?

A. Please see our Applicant Eligibility Page.

Q. What study abroad or internship programs are eligible for the Gilman International Scholarship?

A. The legislation that created the Gilman Program requires that the student’s selected study abroad program be credit-bearing (any amount).

There is no requirement for the student to transfer the credit nor any requirement for the institution to approve a credit transfer. There is no minimum program length requirement.

Q. Are multi-country programs eligible?

A. Yes, multi-country programs are eligible. Students should not indicate countries that are outside of the program curriculum or to which they have planned independent travel.

Q. I have a student who wants to apply to two separate abroad programs in two separate countries during different semesters. What should they do?

A. Students may only submit one application per open application cycle for one program. This program may span two terms; however, we cannot award students studying on two separate programs.

Q. Are seniors eligible to apply?

A. Yes, as long as the student will be enrolled at their home institution at the time of their Gilman application and throughout their program abroad (and they meet all other eligibility requirements), then they are eligible to apply for the Gilman Scholarship. If they will complete their undergraduate degree before their abroad program begins, then they are not eligible.

Q. What if my student is planning on doing two separate programs in the same country? How do they apply then?

A. The Gilman Program allows only one study abroad program per application and one application per cycle. In this case students should submit their first choice program in their application. To help students find other education abroad scholarships to increase their chances of receiving funding to assist them with both programs, visit the Gilman website’s Other Education Abroad Resources.

Q. is my student eligible for gilman if their abroad program occurs during the term in between their transfer from their community college to a 4-year institution?

A. Yes. Transfer students may apply for Gilman if they are participating during the term between their community college graduation and their enrollment in the 4-year institution. Certifying advisors must be from the institution where the student is currently enrolled during the application cycle.

Q. What is the Critical Need Language Award? Who is eligible for that?

A. Applicants who are studying a critical need language while abroad have the option to be considered for the Critical Need Language Award (CNLA). In addition to receiving the additional funding of up to $3,000, recipients of the CNLA will be offered the opportunity to evaluate and certify their language skills acquired during their program through a recognized oral proficiency language test. To be considered for the CNLA, a brief supplemental essay is required and can be submitted in the same Gilman application. Please see the full list of eligible Critical Need Languages and countries.

Q. What is the STEM Supplemental Award? Who is eligible for that?

A. Applicants who are conducting STEM-related coursework or internships while abroad have the option to be considered for the STEM supplemental award, which provides up to an additional $1,000 in funding. The coursework must already be formally integrated into their credit-bearing program. To be considered, a brief supplemental essay is required and can be submitted in the same Gilman application. Please note that applicants are not required to be STEM majors.

Q. How do students apply for the Gilman International Scholarship and when are the deadlines?

A. Students apply to the Gilman Program through an online application, available approximately six weeks before the deadline. The system allows students to save their progress and return to complete and submit their application at any time before the deadline. The Gilman Program strongly encourages students to begin early to allow sufficient time to write and revise their essays with an advisor.

Applications may be submitted until 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the deadline date. However, Gilman Program office hours are 8 a.m.–4 p.m. Central Time; staff are not available outside these hours to assist with technical issues. Late applications are not accepted.

Students may study or intern abroad at any point during the year for up to one academic year. It is essential that they apply for the correct scholarship cycle based on their program dates. The Gilman Program has two application deadlines each year: one in the spring and one in the fall.

For detailed information, please refer to the Deadlines & Timeline page of the Gilman website.

Q. What are the advisor certifications and how does this work?

A. All applications for the Gilman Program must be certified online by both a financial aid advisor and a study abroad advisor. The financial aid advisor will indicate financial aid information. The study abroad advisor will verify that the abroad program information provided by the student is correct and eligible. If the student is not eligible for Gilman for any reason, please express this in your certification by answering the questions and, if needed, providing explanation in the “Further Comments” box, both of which are reviewed by the Gilman team before the application goes to the next phase of review. This ensures that the application is complete and that the Gilman Program is aware of concerns of eligibility.

Once a student submits their online application, the financial aid advisor and study abroad advisor selected by the student will automatically receive an email to notify them that an application is ready for certification.

The deadline for advisors to submit their online certifications is one week after the online student application deadline. However, we encourage all advisors to submit certifications as quickly as possible. This ensures timely processing of your student’s application and allows time for any questions or issues to be addressed.

Q. How do students know who to list as their financial aid or study abroad advisor?

A. Students must select a study abroad advisor and financial advisor from a list of registered certifying advisors from their home institution. In order for an advisor to be listed as a certifying advisor, an advisor must have a registered account in the Gilman Advisor Portal.

All applicants are encouraged to contact both the financial and study abroad office at their home institutions to confirm which advisors they should select in their application prior to submitting their application. The most common mistake students make in the online application is listing an incorrect advisor, so please make your students aware of the correct advisor to list when they inform you of their plan to apply for the Gilman scholarship. If you would like to be registered as a financial aid or study abroad advisor for your institution please contact the Gilman Program at gilmanadvisors@iie.org to initiate the account creation process. If there are any updates needed for the advisor list at your institution, please also email us at gilmanadvisors@iie.org.

Q. What if I cannot determine my student’s Pell Grant status because their financial aid package is not yet finalized, in review or being re-evaluated?

A. If a student has not yet received his/her financial aid package, then the financial aid advisor can select “I am not permitted to disclose this information or I do not have this information.” in their certification.

Q. What if a student is not currently receiving a Pell Grant, but may receive one during the term of his/her study abroad program?

A. To be eligible for a Gilman scholarship, students must be receiving a Federal Pell Grant the term they are applying for a Gilman scholarship OR the term they are abroad; they do not have to be receiving the Pell Grant both terms. If a student is currently not receiving a Federal Pell Grant, but may receive one during the academic term abroad, they can select “I am not permitted to disclose this information or I do not have this information.” in their certification.” If chosen as recipients, students are notified that they are required to submit proof of receiving the Pell Grant during their term abroad before any funds are disbursed. If they are still not receiving the Pell Grant, the student would be ineligible and need to decline the award.

Q. Does this program require letters of recommendation? What do I need to say in the Further Comments box?

A. No, the Gilman Program does not require, nor do we accept letters of recommendation or other supporting documentation from applicants. Applicants are judged solely based on the information provided in their application. Advisors are asked to refrain from using the Further Comments box on the application certification screen to make recommendations as these will not be reviewed in the selection process.

You may use the Further Comments box to make note of any eligibility concerns only.

Q. How and when do students need to submit their transcripts?

A. The Gilman Program requires transcript(s) as part of the application. All applicants will need to upload either an official or unofficial transcript from their currently enrolled college or university, as well as either an official or unofficial transcript from any institutions the applicant was previously enrolled in as a degree-seeking student. Official transcripts can be opened for the purpose of uploading. Unofficial transcripts may be issued from your institution or web-based from your student account, but copy and pasted versions are not acceptable. If the applicant is a first-year student and does not have a previous record at their current institution, then they will need to upload their high school transcript or previous institution’s transcript along with an enrollment verification letter from their current institution including their in-progress courses. Transcripts need to be legible and accurate, as well as rotated correctly, for the selection panelists to review and take the student’s academic background into consideration. More information and detailed instructions guiding students through the transcript upload process can be found on the Gilman website’s Instructions for Uploading Transcripts into the Gilman Online Application.

Important Reminder: If selected to receive a Gilman scholarship, the applicant will be required to upload an official transcript from their current institution during the award documentation process.

Q. What suggestions can you give me on how to advise and review my student’s Statement of Purpose essayS for the Gilman International Scholarship?

A. When advising students on their Statement of Purpose Essays it is helpful to encourage them to think of and address the impact that their study abroad program or internship will have on their academic, professional, and personal goals.

Q. how do I advise my students on their service project proposal?

A. To help expand the impact of the Gilman Scholarship, all Gilman scholars are required to carry out a Service Project that helps to promote study abroad and the Gilman International Scholarship. This project can be done on the student’s home campus or in their local community and must be completed within six months of their return to the U.S.

Q. Can you give me examples of Service Projects that Gilman Scholarship Recipients have done?

A. You may find here some examples of Service Projects.

Q. When and how will my students be notified of the status of their application? Will advisors be notified as well?

A. All applicants for the Gilman Program will receive notification of their final status via email upon the conclusion of application review and selection processing. For this reason, it is very important that applicants update the Gilman Program should their email address change prior to notification. To review the notification dates please access the Deadlines & Timeline for this academic year.

The Gilman Program will let advisors know through an email announcement that awards are posted, and they can view the list of their students and award amounts in their advisor portal under the Recipients tab.

Q: Is there a PDF version of a blank application to reference?

A: Yes, you can view a PDF version here. However, all applicants will need to submit an electronic application through the portal during an open application cycle. Only applications submitted through the online portal will be considered.

Q. One of my students has been selected as a Gilman International Scholarship recipient. What do they/I need to do now?

A. Recipients will need to follow the instructions contained in the notification email they received regarding acceptance of the Gilman Scholarship they were offered and submit all required award documentation by the given deadline. They are also advised to speak with both their financial aid and study abroad advisors regarding the receipt of their Gilman Scholarship.

The Gilman Scholarship Program encourages advisors to assist recipients, where appropriate, in compiling their required award documentation as indicated on the Award Documentation Checklist.

All award documentation must be submitted by the student via their recipient portal. All communication regarding award documentation and status will be directed to the individual recipient.

Q. My student hopes to study abroad for an academic year, but the second semester of their program is conditional upon their academic performance during the first semester abroad. What should they do?

The Gilman Program does not accept nomination or conditional letters as proof of acceptance to a study abroad program. Because an acceptance letter from the student’s study abroad program or host institution is required prior to award disbursement, the student should only apply for a Gilman Scholarship for the term(s) for which they can provide an official acceptance letter.

You can check here for more information about recipient requirements.

Q. One of my students has been chosen as a recipient of the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship but they will not be studying abroad this term after all. What do they/I need to do now?

A. A Gilman recipient may defer their award to a future term within the program start date range for the application cycle. For more information on the timelines for each application cycle, please review the Deadline and Timelines page on our website. If a student would like to participate on a program after these time frames, they would need to decline their award and reapply to a future application cycle. Students can update their program dates on the Scholarship Decision Form in their Gilman account.

Q. What if my student is still planning to study or intern abroad, but they have changed their program/host country. What do they/I need to do now?

A. Program changes are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Students may request a change in program/host country by updating their Scholarship Decision Form in their recipient portal. The study abroad advisor will also need to re-certify the new program information via the advisor portal.

Q. What if the country my student has chosen Changes to a Level 3 or level 4 travel advisory either prior to or while they are abroad?

A. As the Gilman Scholarship Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs no Gilman Scholarship may be awarded to a student studying in a country that is currently has a Level 3 or Level 4 Travel Advisory. Certain areas within these countries may be designated within the Travel Advisory as either “Do not travel to” (Level 4) or “Reconsider travel to” (Level 3) locations, as such; students will not be allowed to travel to these areas.

If a Level 3 or Level 4 Travel Advisory is issued for the country prior to the departure, the Gilman Scholarship Program will assist the student in finding an alternative location abroad to retain their scholarship status; however, changes to the program may impact the award amount. If they are unable to find an alternative location for that term they will need to decline their Gilman Scholarship and they then will be able to reapply for a future application cycle.

The Gilman Scholarship Program regularly sends Gilman scholars abroad any updates to Consular Information Sheets, Public Announcements or Travel Advisories for their country of study. It is for this reason that all Gilman scholars abroad are required to maintain a valid, working email address with the Gilman Program and submit their emergency contact information in their application and onsite contact information upon arrival to their host country. Should an emergency arise abroad or a Level 3 or 4 Travel Advisory be issued, the Gilman Program would use the contact information contained in the recipient’s online Gilman account to contact the recipient or their emergency contacts abroad or within the U.S.

Moreover, all Gilman Scholarship recipients are required to register with the U.S. Embassy in their host country via the online registration system, Smart Travelers Enrollment Program (STEP). Should an emergency arise the embassy will be able to locate and advise the student further regarding the situation in that country. Generally, most universities and/or study abroad programs will require the return of students in countries where a Level 3 or 4 Travel Advisory has been issued. The Gilman Program will work closely with recipients and their home institutions in these situations that may impact their scholarship status.

Q. How will the award be issued and disbursed? Will it be sent directly to the student or to the university?

A. Recipients will have their funds directly deposited into their bank account. They will be required to complete a one-time registration via Zelle, the payment service facilitating IIePay payments.  The email address on file with IIE must match the information provided when registering for Zelle. You can check here for student instructions for receiving their funds.

Gilman recipients are responsible for any and all financial obligations that arise from participation in their chosen study abroad program or internship. Gilman Scholarship funds can only be used for program related expenses, such as tuition, program fees, room & board, transportation, insurance, and books. Gilman Scholarship funds cannot be used for costs not required by or as a part of the program abroad.

Funds cannot be disbursed until all required award documentation has been received by the Gilman Program. From the date the recipient’s documentation file is complete, it will take between two and three weeks for the funds to be sent to the student’s bank account.

Q. What if my student returns early from their program?

A. Students’ inquiries for early returns are evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Generally, if the student has made payments on program related expenses, they would still be able to receive/keep funding. However, this will be dependent on the student’s particular situation. They may be required to provide receipts, etc. The student will need to follow up directly with their Gilman Regional Advisor at gilmanrecipients@iie.org.