With Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships under their belts, three University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing students will be jetting off to three separate continents this May.
Third-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students Fatima Fall and Rachel Kam and first-year BSN student Riley Moss are recipients of this prestigious, merit-based scholarship from the U.S. Department of State. The program supports international study experiences and internships in more than 170 countries.
Fall, Kam and Moss are among the eight Pitt undergraduates who received a Gilman scholarship for the October 2025 application cycle—an impressive feat, according to Lynnea Lombardi, Pitt Nursing’s Program Manager for Global Programs.
“Fatima, Rachel and Riley's selection out of a historically large pool of applicants speaks to their forward-thinking vision for global perspectives of nursing,” Lombardi said. “The application process includes detailed essays about students' career development and ideas for citizen diplomacy and local contributions. Students often find that they come out of the application process with a deeper sense of purpose for their work and renewed career aspirations.”
For Pitt Nursing students, global experiences typically involve a mix of health care site visits, nursing lessons, networking opportunities and cultural outings. Read on to see where Fall, Kam and Moss are headed and what they hope to learn on their two-week educational excursions.
Fatima Fall
Fall will head to China for her study abroad experience, earning three academic credits toward her degree. She chose this program, led by Pitt Nursing Professor Dianxu Ren, because of her love of Chinese historical dramas and curiosity about Traditional Chinese Medicine. As a self-proclaimed “foodie,” she’s also looking forward to sampling the local cuisine in between nursing activities.
She hopes her time abroad will give her a deeper understanding of health care practices around the world, as well as tools and tactics she can incorporate into her own nursing practice.
“It’s once-in-a-lifetime to study abroad in college, and I would not be able to go abroad without this scholarship,” Fall said. “I’m excited to meet new people and experience a new culture, and I’m also interested in seeing how different countries do nursing differently.”
After studying abroad in China, she would love to visit Africa with a friend and fellow student researcher in Pitt’s School of Dental Medicine to continue their studies of noma, a gangrenous disease that affects the face and mouth, predominantly in sub-Saharan African nations.
Rachel Kam
Kam was “shocked” to learn she had received a Gilman scholarship and plans to apply it to a study abroad experience in Switzerland.
“I've always wanted to go to Switzerland because it has a really pretty landscape, but I also think that getting experience outside of the U.S. is great,” Kam said. “Certain things that work in Switzerland could be applied to my practice here in the States, and vice versa.”
Led by Pitt Nursing Associate Professor Christopher Imes, the Switzerland program includes visits to health care organizations in Zurich, Basel and Geneva, such as the World Health Organization and Red Cross Museum.
In her downtime, Kam hopes to snag a reservation to the Lindt Home of Chocolate, a museum that came highly recommended by a fellow nursing student who previously participated in the Switzerland program. It will be Kam’s first time in Europe, as well as the start of a busy summer break.
Two days after returning from Switzerland, Kam will begin an internship with UPMC, where she will split time between the bone marrow transport floor and medical intensive care unit. Kam hopes her back-to-back experiences will set her up for a successful career related to her interests in oncology and critical care.
“I'm really excited for the opportunities,” she said.
Riley Moss
Looking ahead to her study abroad experience in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Moss is most excited to gain a new—and more interdisciplinary—perspective of nursing. Led by Pitt Nursing Professor Grant Martsolf, the program will focus on the business of health care, exploring how it has been delivered, financed and managed throughout the country’s past and present.
“I liked that it’s a mix of nursing and business students, and I’m interested in the crossover between health care and health care management,” Moss said of her reason for choosing the Argentina program.
The experience will introduce students to professionals, policymakers and institutional leaders who are shaping health care management across the country. It will be Moss’s first time in South America, and she hopes to make some lifelong memories while broadening her nursing education.
“I’ve always dreamed of studying abroad, and this scholarship made it a lot easier,” Moss said. “While we will have activities planned during the day, there is plenty of free time to do your own thing, so I’m excited to go on my own adventures, too.”
The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship program provides funding on an annual basis, with the next round of applications due March 5, 2026. Nursing students who are interested in learning more about global experiences can contact Lynnea Lombardi at lel164@pitt.edu.