EUGENE - The University of Oregon ranks sixth among American colleges and universities for the number of students receiving Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships. Ten students from the university received the prestigious scholarships during the 2006-2007 academic year.

The Gilman Scholarship is a federal program administered by the Institute of International Education, the same agency that runs the Fulbright Programs on behalf of the U.S. government. The Gilman program provides scholarships to qualified undergraduate students who are participating in credit-bearing overseas study or internship programs during the academic year.

The university shared the sixth-place ranking in a three-way tie with the University of California, San Diego, and the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras.

Gilman Scholars may receive up to $5,000 for full academic-year programs, with the maximum award pro-rated for shorter programs. The Gilman funding pool was increased in 2006 by about $1.5 million per annum, making the odds of an applicant receiving the award about one in three, nationally. About 50 percent of applicants at the University of Oregon received a Gilman Scholarship in 2006-2007.

To qualify for the Gilman Scholarship, students must have been approved for a federal Pell Grant and must have selected a for-credit study abroad program or overseas internship of at least four weeks during the academic year.

An information session is scheduled from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, March 1, in 106 Friendly Hall, 1161 E. 13^th Ave. Anna Dwyer, a 2006 Gilman Scholar, will talk about her internship in Ecuador. For more information on the program or to schedule a meeting with an adviser, call 541-346-3207.

During this academic year University of Oregon students received Gilman Scholarships for study and/or internship programs in China, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Mexico, Senegal and Taiwan. The university sponsors more than 140 study programs and dozens of internships in more than 80 countries worldwide.