Four UM Undergraduates Named Gilman Scholars in 2021-2022 Academic Year

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The UM 2022 Gilman Scholars are Samantha Boutte, a senior from Nampa, Idaho, who will head to Spain for an internship; Stephanie Kowal, a junior from Great Falls, Montana who has her sights on studying in the United Kingdom; Quemarr Moatamedi, a junior from Wintergarden, Florida, who hopes to study in Spain; and Ethan Seiler, a junior from Missoula, Montana, who will spend a full academic year in Japan.

The Gilman Scholarship is a U.S. Department of State program that enables students to study or intern abroad who may not otherwise be able to due to financial barriers. The program aims to increase the number of U.S. citizens who study abroad and thereby foster mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries.


Each UM student earned $5,000 for a semester or full-year abroad. Director of External Scholarships & Fellowships, Dr. Kylla Benes, says scholars are selected for their academic preparedness, program alignment with their long-term career goals, contributions to program diversity, and potential impact on their communities abroad and at home.

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Samantha Boutte

Samantha Boutte is a social work major and is also earning a Global Leadership Certificate. She wants to use time abroad to gain work experience. She will intern for a non-profit in Spain that assists with refugees and immigrant resettlement. As she prepares for a career in social work in the U.S., Boutte says “the internship I received is my dream job, I want to learn about the culture, meet new people, and grow my work experience.”

 

 

 

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Stephanie Kowal

Davidson Honors College student Stephanie Kowal says that earning the Gilman “means that I have an opportunity I never previously dreamed of existing for me—to go and explore another country and gain enriching experiences and new perspectives that will make me a better individual and student.” To fulfill her dream, Kowal is applying to study at the University of Roehampton in London or the University of Essex. Both universities will offer new and unique courses in her fields of psychology and sociology, while serving as a gateway to explore places rich in culture and history, meet new people, and generally get her out of her comfort zone.

 

 

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Quemarr Moatamedi

A transfer student who earned the scholarship in his first semester at UM, Quemarr Moatamedi says that “the Gilman Award gives me a newfound confidence in my ability to achieve my long-term goals. It shows me that with effort and determination I can change the trajectory of my life.” Moatamedi is pursuing a career in translation and hopes to study Arabic, Spanish, and translation/interpretation at the University of Granada, Spain. Driven by his passion for learning about other cultures, Moatamedi hopes that this will be the first of many adventures abroad.

 

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Ethan Seiler

Ethan Seiler, a history major with minors in Russian and Japanese, will use the Gilman Scholarship to study at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, for the full 2022-2023 academic year. With this opportunity, Seiler is excited to see something totally different from his life in Missoula, “plunge” into Japanese culture, and explore the differences and similarities between the U.S. and Japan. Seiler also says the award gave him “a sense of purpose with going abroad, as I'm now spreading the word about both the program and my learning experiences in Japan via social media thanks to the program.”



The Gilman Scholarship can be combined with other campus scholarships and programs to make study abroad feasible. Benes says “for students, traveling and living abroad is a life-changing experience, but for many students this type of opportunity feels out of reach. I hope that more UM students will apply for the Gilman Scholarship and other campus awards and resources to make it possible.”

Students interested in studying abroad should meet with the Education Abroad Office and the Office of External Scholarships & Fellowships as soon as possible.

Our newest UM Gilman Scholars shared their advice to future applicants: ask for help, start early, be flexible, and seek out all available resources to make your dream happen—applying is just the beginning of learning about a new place and yourself!

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Contact: Kylla Benes, UM director of scholarships and fellowships, 406-243-5241, kylla.benes@mso.umt.edu.