Five University of Vermont students have been awarded prestigious Benjamin A Gilman Scholarships. The Gilman is a nationally competitive award given to accomplished students with financial need who wish to study abroad.

Anders Christiansen ’14 was awarded a Gilman to study in Brazil for the spring 2012 semester. Christiansen is an Honors College student and an economics major in the College of Arts & Sciences. He is from East Montpelier, Vt.

Alexandria Frechette ’13 was awarded a Gilman to study in Gabone, Botswana for the spring 2012 semester. Frechette is a double sociology and political science major in the College of Arts & Sciences. Frechette is from Sanford, Maine.

Ariel Henley ‘13 was awarded a Gilman to study in the United Kingdom for the spring 2012 semester. She’ll be in Cantebury at the University of Kent as part of the Buckman Overseas Program with UVM’s English Department. Henley is double political science and English major in the College of Arts & Sciences. She is from Alamo, Calif.

Sayoko Kubotera ‘13 was awarded a Gilman to study abroad in Namibia for the spring 2012 semester. Kubotera is an animal sciences major in the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences. Kubotera is from Delmar, N.Y.

Storm Leland ’13 was awarded a Gilman to study abroad in Belize during the spring 2012 semester. Leland is a social work major in the College of Education & Social Services. Leland is from Burlington, Vt.

UVM students received a total of $20,500 in study abroad scholarship money from the Gilman awards. The Institute for International Education recently ranked the University of Vermont fifth in the nation among public doctoral universities for the percentage of its undergraduate students -- 32.5 percent -- who participate in study abroad programs. The Gilman Scholarship Program aims to diversify the kinds of students who study abroad and the countries and regions where they go. The program provides awards that allow American undergraduate students who receive federal Pell Grant funding at a two-year or four-year college or university to participate in study abroad programs worldwide.

The Gilman program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and administered by the Institute of International Education. Awards are given out each semester. The next deadline for the Gilman Scholarship for summer and fall 2012 study is March 1, 2012. For more information, contact the Office of Fellowships Advising at (802) 656-4658.