Vanessa Cardona

2022 Gilman Scholarship Recipient

Hometown

Valparaiso, IN

Major

Neurobiology and Physiology

College

College of Science

 

Vanessa Cardona was awarded the Gilman Scholarship to study abroad in Denmark and Sweden on the Danish Institute for Study Abroad – Stockholm: Health, Science, and Engineering program. While there, she will be taking courses, completing clinicals, and listening to the medical narratives of the people she meets. With her interest in physical therapy and kinesiology, the opportunity to take a sports medicine course excites her. She looks forward to comparing the differences in healthcare systems, laws, and opinions and seeing first-hand the impact a universal health system can have on a nation.

 

Language learning is a skill of Vanessa’s. From a young age, as the child of immigrants, she has known how to navigate communication challenges. She is bilingual in Spanish and English. Adding Swedish and Danish will advance her towards her goal of becoming a polyglot.

 

Aside from language learning, Vanessa is also artistic with experience creating art exhibits providing the perfect avenue to complete her follow-on project. As part of her proposed project, she plans to make an art display in the Purdue Latino Cultural Center that will convince other students to stop, look, and consider study abroad as a possibility for themselves.