Written on September 12, 2018

Travel Grants

So you’ve been accepted as a presenter at a conference, or you just want to go to further your knowledge of the field. This post lays out the process for getting funding.

To Do List / Overview

  • Apply to volunteer at your conference
  • Apply for grants.
  • Apply for matching funds from the Dean of the Engineering College.
  • Ask your advisor if they will cover any costs not covered by above funding.
  • Fill out a DA (Departmental Authorization) form to authorize spending if required by funding source.
  • Book travel.
    • Save all receipts for hotels, flights, and other transportation.
    • It is not required to save food receipts.
    • Tip at most 20% on taxis/Lyft/Uber. Larger tips will not be reimbursed per university policy.

Conference Volunteering

Many conferences provide reduced price or free conference registration for student volunteers. Usually, they have more students applying to be volunteers than volunteer positions, so be sure to apply early.

Some conferences or professional societies (like IEEE) also offer travel grants for student presenters. Check on the conference website. They usually post links to all available programs.

Grants

Apply for all the grants that you are eligible for to cover as much of your travel expenses as possible. One grant typically will not cover all your expenses.

There are four main sources of travel grants available to CS graduate students. Click grant titles to expand.

Computer Science Department Conference Support Scholarships

Website

Cycle :

  • Rolling basis throughout academic year until funds are exhausted

Amount :

  • $300 - $1,000

Eligibility :

  • Must be presenting a paper
  • Fill out and submit Department Conference Support Scholarship form to Rajshree
  • Have faculty advisor send Rajshree an email attesting to the quality of the conference (e.g., top tier, acceptance rate, stature) and whether you will be presenting a paper.
  • Priority given to students presenting at national CS meetings
  • Students can receive funding once per year

Graduate School Travel Grants

Website

Cycle :

This application for travel occurring 9/1/19-12/31/19 will be open: July 17-18, 2019 This application for travel occurring 1/1/20-3/31/20 will be open: November 13-14, 2019 This application for travel occurring 4/1/20-8/31/20 will be open: March 11-12, 2020

  • July applications fund travel between September 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019
  • November applications fund travel between January 1, 2019 and March 31, 2019
  • March applications fund travel between April 1, 2020 and August 31, 2020

Deadline :

  • Application is always only open for 48 hours, midnight to midnight
    • July 17-18, 2019
    • November 13-14, 2019
    • March 11-12, 2020

Amount :

  • $300 for US conferences
  • $500 for international conference

Eligibility :

  • Cannot have received travel funding during the last application cycle
  • Masters students can receive travel funding once
  • PhD students can receive funding twice

UGGs Travel Grants

Website

Cycle :

  • Fall applications fund travel between August 15th, 2018 and March 1st, 2019
  • Spring applications fund travel between March 1st, 2019 and September 1st, 2019

Deadlines :

  • Fall - September 14th 2018 at 5pm
  • Spring - TBA

Amount :

  • <= $300 for North American travel only (US, Canada, Mexico)

Eligibility :

  • International students check here
  • Students can only receive travel funding once.

Dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science Matching Funds

Website

Cycle :

  • Rolling basis throughout academic year until funds are exhausted

Deadline :

  • 2 weeks prior to travel

Amount :

  • <=$300 for North American travel
  • <=$400 for international travel

Eligibility :

  • Must be presenting a paper
  • Must have applied for the Graduate School Travel Grant and have been denied
  • Must be receiving funding from the department or your advisor
  • Students can receive funding once per year

Advisor Funding

Your advisor may also be able to provide funding though a grant, especially if the paper you are presenting is grant funded. Talk with your advisor about available funding and the travel grants that you are applying for.

Departmental Authorization Request Form (DA)

Check with Rajshree about whether you should submit a Departmental Authorization Request Form for your travel. This is the form is REQUIRED if you are funded by your advisor.

This form is basically a budget for your travel. You need it to get reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses and after it’s approved you’ll be able to book your flights using the university’s travel agency

Wait to book flights and hotels until after the DA is approved!

Booking Travel

If you use a DA, you are required to book your flights using the university’s travel agency, Christopherson Business Travel. Once your DA is approved, you’ll receive an email with information for how to book with them.

Save all receipts for hotels, flights, and other transportation. You’ll give these to the department (or whoever is giving you your travel grant) at the end of your travel to get reimbursed. Usually, digital photos of receipts are sufficient and can be easier to keep track of.

Tip at most 20% on taxis/Lyft/Uber. Larger tips will not be reimbursed per university policy.

Estimating Per Diem Rates

Food expenses are calculated using per diem rates, so you don’t need to save meal receipts.

I believe the official per diem rates are set by

But it would be worth asking what you’ve been approved for so that you don’t over spend.