CHICAGO — DePaul University will provide 25 passports grants to first-year students who are first-generation and Pell-eligible.

Earlier this year, DePaul was selected by the Institute of International Education to receive the IIE American Passport Project grant. The grant provides funding for 25 eligible students to apply for a passport, with the goal for more students to study abroad.

“A new U.S. passport costs $165 and requires a challenging application process,” explained Martha McGivern, director of the study abroad program at DePaul University. She says this opportunity is important because “students who study abroad gain key career, academic and personal skills — including adaptability, resilience, communication and the ability to collaborate across perspectives,” McGivern said.

While DePaul already supports students with the passport application process, this grant will enable the university to provide additional resources to 25 qualifying students to relieve the financial barrier that would otherwise prevent them from applying to the university’s study abroad programs.

“It is essential that we continue to provide DePaul students with access to these programs. Through these grants, DePaul supports students both financially and logistically to take the first step toward a transformational international experience,” McGivern said.

In addition to its 80 study abroad programs, DePaul announced a new opportunity, DePaul Quarter@CIEE, a quarter-length study abroad program with 11 new destinations that begins in the 2027-28 academic year. Students can now travel to Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Bangkok, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Lisbon, Monteverde, São Paulo, Seoul or Singapore during the fall, winter or spring quarters. CIEE has committed to providing need- and merit-based scholarships to DePaul students. 

These destinations, coupled with the passport grant and other scholarships, help make travel and global education more accessible to DePaul students.