How a Scholarship Took Me to Prague to Study Abroad

Before this semester, I had never left the United States. Study abroad sounded amazing—and expensive. I didn’t have thousands of dollars to pay for a semester in Europe. Without scholarships, I either wouldn’t have come, or I would have gone into serious debt.  

Finding the Gilman Scholarship 

I first heard about the Gilman International Scholarship from the Learning Abroad advisors at University of Minnesota. They promoted a few scholarships, and Gilman was the main one, so I applied. Then around April, I noticed IFSA offered a matching award—the IFSA Gilman International Matching Scholarship—for Gilman recipients, so I applied for that, too. And I got it.  

The Gilman Scholarship covered my housing, food, and the surprise costs that come with moving to a new country. IFSA’s matching scholarship added another $500, which paid for my flight to Prague.  

Seeing Big Ben in person was unreal. I’d seen it in movies my whole life, and suddenly it was right in front of me.

Seeing more than one city  

Because my living costs were covered, I could keep my savings for travel. Without that, I probably would have stayed in Prague for the whole semester. Instead, I’ve explored London, Vienna, Istanbul, and Lugano, Switzerland. In Slovenia, I saw Lake Bled and visited Savica Waterfall near Lake Bohinj. Closer to home, I took trips to Brno and Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic.  

Seeing Big Ben in person was unreal. I’d seen it in movies my whole life, and suddenly it was right in front of me. In Istanbul, I visited the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia. I had never been inside a mosque or been anywhere where the call to prayer sounds five times a day. It was one of the most different cultural experiences I’ve ever had.  

Life in Prague  

I’ve explored Prague Castle and St. Vitus Cathedral, walked through Old Town Square past Týn Church, watched the Astronomical Clock, and walked more of this city than I can count. On Czech Independence Day, I went inside the Czech Senate for a public debate with the President of the Senate and senators, and met Miloš Vystrčil. I never imagined meeting a European politician on my first trip abroad.  

Small things stand out, too. People here start wearing winter jackets when it’s 40–45°F. In Minnesota, jackets don’t come out until it’s 30 degrees or colder.  

My advice: apply  

If you’re worried that you can’t afford to study abroad, talk to the people at your study abroad office about applying for a Gilman Scholarship. If choose an IFSA study abroad program, you can also apply for their matching scholarship. That support covered the basics, so I could focus on learning and exploring—and have a semester that has changed how I see the world. 

Tyler M. | University of Minnesota | IFSA Career Tech Accelerator, Czech Republic | Fall 2026