Graduate Student Travel Awards
The COSAM Graduate Student Travel Fund provides modest support for COSAM graduate students who are presenting dissertation or thesis research at scientific meetings.
Funds are rarely provided for workshops and are not provided for research effort or travel to research sites. Students should review the eligibility rules, application process and faculty reference requirements before applying.
The Graduate Student Travel Fund is available to COSAM graduate students in good standing.
Travel awards are capped at $500 and are commonly less. Students may request less than $500.
Awards are made to a student only once per calendar year, based on acceptance of the award. If a student receives an award but declines it, the funds are returned to the budget and the student must apply again during the same fiscal year.
Applications are accepted during fall, spring and summer review periods. There is some overlap in the travel periods to provide students with flexibility.
Fall semester
Travel period: Aug. 15-Jan. 15
Deadline: Sept. 30
Spring semester
Travel period: Dec. 15-May 15
Deadline: Feb. 14
Summer
Travel period: April 15-Sept. 15
Deadline: June 1
Applications and faculty references are due by 4:45 p.m. on the stated deadline. Deadlines are not automatically extended when they fall on a weekend. If a deadline is modified, it will be announced.
Late applications cannot be considered.
Students should apply only after the request for applications has been released, typically about two weeks before the deadline.
Before submitting the application, students should gather the required materials and combine them into a single PDF for upload.
Application materials include:
Two-page CV
The CV should describe the student’s education, research and teaching experience, publications and other significant experience.
Program flyer or meeting announcement
The flyer or announcement should identify the meeting, including the location and dates.
Abstract
Students should include the abstract for the work they plan to present, if available.
Explanation page, if needed
If an abstract is not available, students should include a page explaining why and describing the work they plan to present.
A faculty reference is required for the application to be complete. After a student submits the application, the faculty supervisor will receive an email requesting completion of the reference form.
Students should contact their faculty supervisor well before applying to allow enough time for the reference to be completed by the deadline.
Faculty members may also submit the reference early or use the faculty reference form if they do not receive the automated email. The form is intended to be simple and quick to complete, and a strong reference is helpful to the student’s application.
The faculty reference is due by 4:45 p.m. on the application deadline.
Before applying, students should:
✓ Review eligibility rules and deadlines
✓ Confirm that the travel falls within the appropriate travel period
✓ Contact your faculty supervisor about the required reference
✓ Prepare all required application materials
✓ Combine application materials into a single PDF
✓ Submit only after the request for applications has been released
Graduate Travel Committee
