Jazmyn Mustafa, a sophomore psychology major and neuroscience minor, participated in an education abroad program in Scotland through Arcadia University during summer 2018 and is a Gilman Scholarship recipient.

My education abroad program was through Arcadia University. It was called the Arcadia University STEM Summer Research Program 2018. I went to Glasgow, Scotland, for six weeks and had the chance to interact directly with 17 other students. We lived in flat-style housing, made family dinners and explored the city as well as surrounding towns during the weekends. One of my favorite memories was hiking up a mountain of the Isle of Arran. Some of my closest friends on the trip and I took an adventure and made it to the peak, breathing in fresh air and seeing spectacular views. 

Throughout the week, we would work full time on research projects. My specific research project was called "Autism and intersubject correlation of brain activity while watching dance." Essentially, my role was to analyze previous data to make brain maps that would show differences in social brain areas of typically developing participants versus participants with autism spectrum disorders while they were in a fMRI watching ballet videos.

The Gilman Scholarship was instrumental in facilitating my education abroad experience. Without the $5,000 award, it would be impossible to go on my trip that in total costs about $7,000. I would definitely encourage other students to apply to the Gilman because it connects you to so many alumni and opportunities for other awards. Having a prestigious, competitive scholarship may also help serve as credibility when applying to graduate schools which is very important to me.