Isabella Premont and James Sims were selected as Auburn’s recipients of the inaugural Dr Pepper SEC Education Abroad Scholarship. Premont and Sims will each receive $2,000 toward their study abroad expenses. The scholarship seeks to increase the diversity of students participating in study abroad programs.

Premont is a senior in Industrial and Systems Engineering. She studied in China this summer through Auburn’s Engineering program with Taiyuan University of Science Technology and Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture.

"Studying abroad in China was one of the best decisions of my college career,” Premont said. “I engaged with and often became friends with professionals, academics and students. We were able to laugh at and learn from both our similarities and our differences.”

Sims is a junior double majoring in Psychology and Spanish. He will travel to Seville, Spain this fall with Auburn’s Spanish Language, Culture and Internship Program.

“I hope to gain an unforgettable educational experience in which I improve my Spanish while becoming accustomed to the Spanish culture,” Sims said.

Dr Pepper, an official corporate sponsor of the Southeastern Conference since 1984, contributed $100,000 to the league to fund a two-year education abroad program for students at SEC universities, beginning with the 2015-2016 academic year. The program is managed by SECU, the academic initiative of the SEC. By funding these awards, Dr Pepper will provide study abroad opportunities for high achieving SEC students with demonstrated financial need who represent non-traditional study abroad participants.