Travel Grants
The Graduate College, in conjunction with GPSC, awards travel grants for graduate and professional students who are attending or presenting research at academic or professional conferences. (In cases where an applicant will not be making a presentation, the student statement and the faculty letter of recommendation, included in the travel grant application, should explicitly explain the importance of attendance for the student's professional development.)
Please submit all correspondence concerning the Travel Grant Program to gpscgrant@email.arizona.edu. Email is highly preferred over phone calls.
Submission Deadlines:
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August 1st
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October 1st
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December 1st
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February 1st
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April 1st
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June 1st
Applications must be received by 5:00pm on the deadline date. In the event that a given deadline does not fall on a business day, applications must be received by noon of the first business day following the posted deadline. Aside from the preceding exception, there are NO deadline extensions, and late applications will not be considered. Travel must be completed within 1 year of the date of application. Applications for support for travel that is concluded prior to a respective submission deadline will not be considered.
Mail the Travel Grant Application package to:
Travel Grant Program
Graduate and Professional Student Council
PO Box 210066
Tucson, AZ 85721-0066
Or hand deliver/campus mail:
Travel Grant Program
Graduate and Professional Student Council
Graduate College Office
Room 322
Administration Building
Eligibility:
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Applicants must be currently enrolled in a graduate or professional degree program at the U of A.
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Applicants must be in good academic standing.
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Applications must be complete and in the format specified to be considered.
Selection Criteria:
The competition for these awards is very great. So every effort
must be made to clearly demonstrate the value of the proposed travel to
the applicant's professional development. Travel Grant evaluators especially
appreciate and give due weight to thoughtful, focused student statements.
The student statement should be understandable to graduate students in
any field.
For more information on the specific criteria the travel grant committee uses to evaluate each travel grant, please see the GPSC Travel Grant Evaluation Form [pdf], [doc].
Range of support:
Awards are contingent upon the availability of funds and the number of applications. The committee will award up to $500.00 per student, even though the cost of attending the conference may exceed that amount. A maximum of three day hotel and per diem will be covered.
Students are eligible to receive one travel grant per fiscal year. A student may apply as many times as desired. (Note that the fiscal year begins on July 1st. For the purposes of implementing the 'one award per year' policy, all awards are treated as given on the application deadline for which a given travel grant application is submitted.)
Students are highly encouraged to apply according to their financial need. Realistic award amounts will receive a higher grade during evaluation. The student's effort to obtain other sources of funding will be viewed positively by the committee.
Notification of Awards:
All applicants will be promptly noticed as to whether they will or will not receive a travel grant, once all of the applications have been reviewed. The process of award determination generally takes between four and six weeks.
Additional Comments:
Applications are reviewed by a committee of deans, faculty members and graduate students from various colleges across campus. Neither the GPSC nor the Graduate College evaluate the applications. Retroactive travel grants or grants for travel in progress at the time of application deadline will not be considered. It is the responsibility of the student to provide clear justification for travel to conferences outside of the United States (Canada is considered domestic travel). Participation in meetings solely organized or solely supported by a for-profit commercial entity will not be considered for funding. All receipts for conference expenses covered by the Travel Grant Fund need to be kept by the student for a period of one year from the date of travel departure and surrendered to the Graduate College upon request.
Application Format and Submission:
A complete application must include:
One copy of the Information Form (to be used for office purposes only)
[Fillable pdf], [doc]
Three copies of the following materials, in the specified order, individually stapled or securely paper-clipped (for distribution to the travel grant judges):
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A brief statement (not to exceed 2 typed pages) which answers the following three questions: 1) Describe the event/conference you will be attending. 2) How will this benefit your professional development? and 3) Describe efforts to secure other funding (if applicable).
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A letter of recommendation from the student's department head or a faculty member in the student's department. This letter must include a statement explaining the availability (or lack thereof) of departmental funds. (If your recommendation letter is sealed, then you may submit the sealed recommendation as a supplement to your other application materials. In this case, please paper-clip your other materials, so that your recommendation letter can be easily added to your other materials.)
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An anticipated budget. Download Sample Budget [pdf]
In the case where applicants are presenting, they may also include a letter of acceptance to present at the conference. This should follow the written statement in the three submitted packets.
Mail the Travel Grant Application package to:
Travel Grant Program
Graduate and Professional Student Council
PO Box 210066
Tucson, AZ 85721-0066
Or hand deliver/campus mail:
Travel Grant Program
Graduate and Professional Student Council
Graduate College Office
Room 322
Administration Building
