Gilman scholar from Cedarville takes on Oxford

Thad Burson of Cedarville is the recipient of the State Department’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, and is studying foreign policy at the University of Oxford in Oxford, England.

Majoring in political science with a focus on Middle Eastern foreign affairs and law at Cedarville University, Burson hasn’t spent any of his junior year on Cedarville’s campus. He participated in Cedarville’s D.C. Semester program in the fall, where he served as a full-time policy intern for the House Committee on Homeland Security.

The Gilman Program supports undergraduate students in their experiences abroad by providing financial aid for those who opt out of study abroad programs due to financial constraints.

Burson is taking two classes, called “tutorials,” during his eight-week term at Oxford, where he meets once weekly with a professor and conducts his own research for a series of essays on assigned topics. His two tutorials are titled International Relations of the Middle East, and E.U. Immigration, Asylum and Human Rights Law.

After his term ends in March, Burson will spend several weeks exploring Europe with other Cedarville students studying at Oxford, including Thomas Avery ( junior, majoring in history, from Turlock, California), Caleb Forehand (junior, political science; Chinchester, New Hampshire), Kiki Stanton (junior, international studies; Ypsilanti, Michigan) and Savannah Morello (sophomore, liberal arts; Houston, Texas).