This fall, seven UH Hilo students are studying abroad on scholarships. Their stories are inspirational.
From New Zealand to Spain, Japan, Australia, and South Korea, the students are immersed in new cultures, expanding their education, eager to return home with new found knowledge and experience.
By Susan Enright/UH Hilo Stories.
Seven University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo students are studying abroad this semester on scholarships. At the request of Carolina Lam, UH Hilo’s director of global education, each has emailed her their thoughts about the experience, specifically about the impact of the scholarship support on their academics and career aspirations, and how they plan to contribute to the university and local community when they return to UH Hilo.
Study abroad fosters the development of students’ global perspective and helps develop critical workforce skills such as intercultural communication skills and second-language ability, according to the UH Hilo Study Abroad Program website. Another big benefit of the program is that students pay UH Hilo tuition when they are abroad and then come home with new found knowledge and experience to finish their degree program.
UH Hilo’s Study Abroad Program offers a host of scholarship opportunities for students.
Here are this semester’s scholarship recipients sharing their thoughts about their study abroad experiences:
Mila Davis, Kyoto Sangyo University, Japan, Fall 2025-Spring 2026
Mila Davis, who graduated from Waiākea High School in Hilo, is a linguistics major studying abroad on two scholarships: the Freeman Foundation Asian Fellowship Program ($7,000) and the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship ($3,000).
“I am most excited to meet many new people and to be immersed in the culture while abroad,” says Davis. “Everyday I get to experience new things, both difficult and fun and I think it’s allowing me to learn more about myself.”
Davis says the scholarships made her choice to study abroad a lot easier.
“It took the financial burden that I was worried about off my shoulders and in turn, allows me to focus on my studies. I think studying abroad will be a beneficial experience to have for a lot of careers.”
She encourages her peers to study abroad, too.
“I want to encourage my peers who are interested and curious about studying abroad to go for it,” she says. “I can hopefully give them some guidance with my own experience and help others take the opportunity to study abroad.”
Cassie Gault, James Cook University, Australia, Fall 2025
Cassie Gault, who graduated high school from Hardin Valley Academy, Tennessee, is majoring in tropical agroecology and currently studying abroad on a Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship ($3,000).
“This scholarship helps me to be more relaxed about money and gives me more room to think about my studies, extra curriculars, and personal goals,” says Gault. “Any bit of financial aid as a student makes the experience less stressful, aiding in growth and passion pursuits.”
She’s looking forward to returning to UH Hilo and helping other students who want to study abroad.
“It can be really challenging and there’s a lot to keep up with, so I want to prepare other students with my real experiences and tips,” she says.
“I will have also gained experience in a learning environment with different teaching styles and curriculum standards, so it will be cool to share that perspective with students who have only been to one university.”
Kensuke Panek, Meiji University, Japan, Fall 2025
Kensuke Panek, a Hilo High School graduate, is majoring in English and Japanese studies, now studying abroad on a John and Anja McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship for Study Abroad ($750) and a Gertrude E. McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship ($750).
“I am most excited to meet and talk to people from Japan and learn more about the day to day of Japanese students,” says Panek.
“I am also exited to learn about Japan while in Japan. I have started building connections already with both students and faculty and I am very excited to continue and grow these relationships.”
Panek says he greatly appreciates the scholarship help with his academic and career aspirations. “It allows me to spend more time building relationships and studying.” He says the lifelong connections he’s making “may be very beneficial to me and my community in the future.”
He is especially eager to share the knowledge he’s gaining with the UH Hilo community.
“I’d like to help create a stronger relationship between Meiji University and UHH as well as help organize student trips to Japan after I begin my training to become a high school teacher,” he says. “I have started this process by helping with a trip to Japan that is currently in its planning stage and will be happening in mid February.”
Ku Quanan, Korea University, South Korea, Fall 2025
Ku Quanan is a graduate of Ke Kula ʻo Nāwahīokalaniʻōpuʻu Iki Lab Public Charter School in Keaʻau, Hawaiʻi Island. She’s double majoring in Hawaiian studies and political science, currently studying abroad on four scholarships: Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship ($3,000), Gertrude E. McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship ($2,000), Audrey S. Furukawa Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,500), and a John and Anja McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship for Study Abroad ($2,000).
A Hawaiʻi Island native, this experience is the first time Quanan has ever traveled abroad.
“I barely had the opportunity to travel much growing up, so I want to go and know that I can do it,” she says.
“I want to study abroad to prove to myself that I can truly do anything I put my mind to in my life. If I can study abroad, I will never doubt myself again, and I will push myself to try other new things.”
When she returns to UH Hilo, she plans to share with local students all the new knowledge she’s gained while abroad.
“Studying abroad has allowed me to take classes that interest me that were not available to take at UH Hilo, especially for my political science major,” she says. “I just want more local students to have the same opportunity that I did to take those classes that are different, or that may even suit your future interests more.”
Rachael Rush, University of Carlos III Madrid, Spain, Fall 2025-Spring 2026
Rachael Rush, a graduate of Yamhill-Carlton High School, Oregon, is majoring in business administration, studying abroad on an Audrey S. Furukawa Study Abroad Scholarship ($700).
She says the scholarship has brought the opportunity to continue her degree overseas without having to worry about the financial obstacles that sometimes prevent students from doing so. She’s able to focus her attention on academics, language and communication skills, understanding a different culture.
“What I’m most excited about is the personal growth that comes from stepping out of my comfort zone,” she says.
She’s also seeing how important it is to learn from people with other origins, cultures, and viewpoints, and she wants to share that insight with her fellow UH Hilo students when she returns home.
“International relations may impact both career and personal development,” she says. “I want to inspire people to go beyond what they feel like they already know and understand how interacting with the world may open doors in any field, whether through brief presentations, casual conversations, or mentorship. My hope is to assist more people of my community in realizing that learning about different cultures is not only fascinating but also a skill that may influence their future.
For Rush, studying abroad is crucial to her professional aspirations, “particularly as I want to work in international business in the sports or motorsport sector,” she says. “I can get closer to those objectives and develop into the professional I want to be thanks to this scholarship.”
“Living in Madrid and traveling to new places gives me the chance to learn who I am outside of the environment I’ve always known,” she adds. “I’m looking forward to becoming more independent, more confident, and more open-minded. Experiencing different cultures and navigating new situations will push me to grow in ways that will stay with me long after the program ends.”
Kahiau Snyder, University of Waikato, New Zealand, Fall 2025
Kahiau Snyder, a graduate of Kamehameha Schools Maui, is majoring in linguistics and Hawaiian studies, studying abroad this semester on four scholarships: Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship ($5,000), John and Anja McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship ($1,750), Gertrude E. McVickar Endowed Excellence Scholarship ($1,750), and Audrey S. Furukawa Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,500).
“As a Hawaiian language speaker and linguistics major, studying at te Whare Wānanga o Waikato has been a unique opportunity to discover hononga (connections) between my own culture and language and that of my host country,” says Snyder.
“I plan on sharing these hononga with my colleagues and classmates at Ka Haka ʻUla o Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language through a reo Māori workshop held in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi highlighting the similarities and differences between te reo Māori and ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi.”
Snyder says that without this scholarship, he would have missed out on some of the best experiences of his life.
“This scholarship helped me study in Aotearoa and learn mātauranga (knowledges) that I will carry with me thought my undergraduate and graduate studies in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and linguistics,” he says. “These mātauranga will likely be included in my future papers and theses, as well as my future work as an educator.”
He says his favorite part of studying abroad in Aotearoa has been learning te reo Māori, the Indigenous language of the Māori people of New Zealand.
“I attended a kura reo held on the University of Waikato campus where a bunch of reo speakers and learners gathered for a weekend full of practicing and refining our language skills. This is a memory I will undoubtedly hold with me throughout my life.”
Royce Ken Yasutake, Seinan Gakuin University, Japan, Fall 2025
Royce Ken Yasutake, a graduate of Milpitas High School, California, moved to Hilo with his family in 2021. He is a Japanese studies major studying in Japan on an Audrey S. Furukawa Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,000).
“This scholarship will help me achieve my academic and career aspirations through getting me steps closer to becoming an interpreter and translator in the Japanese language,” says Yasutake.
“I am hoping to find a career in the Hawaiian tourism industry with my Japanese language skills that I hope to improve abroad.”
He’s most excited about meeting new people and making new connections.
“I am also excited about surviving alone in another country that I’ve always been interested in and learning its customs.”
He has plans to make a small blog or document to share with friends and family to educate them about studying abroad in Japan and surviving in Japan in general, focusing on practical advice such as how to get around in Japan and what customs a visitor would need to get used to.
Story by Susan Enright, public information specialist for the Office of the Chancellor and editor of UH Hilo Stories. She received her bachelor of arts in English and certificate in women’s studies from UH Hilo.
Editor’s note: Mahalo to Carolina Lam, UH Hilo’s director of global education, for producing this story.
