Purpose

The GSA Conference Travel Grant is intended to help offset the costs of travel or registration fees at professional conferences at which a graduate student is presenting original research. Eligible students will receive up to $500 in reimbursement for registration or travel costs related to conference travel during the 2023-2024 academic year.

Please note that you do not receive the grant beforehand, it is only processed after you attend your conference and submit proof of attendance. Examples of proof of attendance are a picture of your conference badge, of you presenting, or a letter or email from the conference organizers confirming your attendance. This proof of attendance can be emailed (as JPEG or PNG file type ONLY) during or after you attend the conference to gsa-vpfa@ucsb.edu

You can find additional funding through the Academic Senate.

 

Eligibility 

This grant is open to graduate students at all levels. Advancement to candidacy is not a requirement. Students serving as a commentator/discussant are not eligible for the travel grant. Students on any kind of leave from UCSB and not enrolled in courses are not eligible for the travel grant. For summer conferences, you must be enrolled in the subsequent Fall quarter in order to receive the grant. This is a Graduate Division requirement.

An applicant must be accepted to present original research data and have expenses not covered by other funding sources. Applicants who plan to attend a conference but are not presenting at that conference or who have complete funding for the conference through other sources (department, academic travel grant, etc.) are ineligible. 

Students may only receive one grant per academic year. The academic year includes the summer after the spring quarter. For example, if you get a travel grant during the 2023-2024 academic year, you will not be eligible for funding during the summer of 2024.

 

 

 

Lottery Process

2023-2024 rules: During the academic year, forty-five travel grants are allocated each quarter. Eligible applications will be chosen randomly using a lottery system after the application process has closed (see deadlines section below). Late applications are not accepted. Disbursement of grant money may take up to 4 weeks due to the Graduate Division financial approval process.

Deadlines 

Applications are accepted for review at the beginning of the quarter in which the student will attend the conference. Please refer to the application window dates below to confirm when you need to submit your travel grant.

Fall quarter (September 17-December 31) submit application by 10/20/23 at 9PM.
Winter quarter (January 2- March 31) submit application by 1/26/24 at 9PM.
Spring quarter (April 1-June 14) submit application by 4/19/24 at 9PM.
Summer sessions (June 15-September 14) submit application by 5/31/24 at 9PM.

 

APPLICATION WINDOWS 

Fall Quarter 2023: Submit application between 09/25/2023 and 10/20/2023. Grant recipients will be notified by 10/31/2023.

Winter Quarter 2024: Submit application between 01/02/2024 and 01/26/2024. Grant recipients will be notified by 02/07/2024.

Spring Quarter 2024: Submit application between 03/25/2024 and 04/19/2024. Grant recipients will be notified by 04/30/2024.

Summer 2024: Submit application between 05/13/2024 and 05/31/24. Grant recipients will be notified by 06/14/2024, but grant disbursment will not commence until the Fall of 2024.

   

Grant Application Materials

To apply, please complete the GSA Travel Grant Application and email it to the VP of Financial Affairs (gsa-vpfa@ucsb.edu). You will also need to upload the following documents to the travel grant application.

 

  • Confirmation of your acceptance to present
  • An abstract of the paper/project to be presented
  • A receipt of conference registration fees (if available)
  • Receipts for travel costs (flights, hotel, gas, etc.) must match the amount requested AND show a completed transaction OR that it is a non-refundable expense
    • Hotel: if the receipt shows the room is booked for 2 people, only half the cost may be reimbursed
    • Gas reimbursements are based on mileage at $0.655 per mile (must send screenshot of Google maps with starting and end point showing number of miles driven)
    • no reimbursement for food
    • if your receipts are in a currency other than USD, you MUST provide conversion information in the form of a screenshot OR a bank/card statement reflecting this transaction in USD (as PDF)

Due Date for Final Documentation 

The GSA must receive all final documentation (receipts, proof of attendance, etc.) by the last day of the quarter for which the grant was requested. Any grants that do not receive all documentation by the end of the quarter will be revoked, and the corresponding funds will be rolled into the next quarter.

The GSA will reimburse you after you return from your conference with proof of your travel. Usually, GSA has allotted 45 grants per quarter.

Reimbursements will be processed using GradPoint via your BARC account. Funds should direct deposit to your bank account. Please make sure that your BARC account is set up for direct deposit!