Professional Opportunities Development Funding

All applicants are responsible for reading all the information on this website before applying. Please see the evaluation rubric posted above. Please use the GPSC Club and POD Funding Flow Chart if you are confused about which type of funding to apply for.

• There is a maximum award of $1,000 allowed for any given event or project. 
• At least three UA graduate and/or professional students (in good academic standing) must be directly involved in the event for which funding is sought. 
• A graduate and/or professional student can only be directly involved in one successfully funded POD project or event per fiscal year. Directly involved is defined as being listed on a previously funded application. 
• The event or project being funded must take place within six months of the application deadline. 
• Speaker honoraria may be funded up to $500, with additional funding for travel and lodging as deemed reasonable. Honoraria should be based on the speaker, the number of anticipated attendees and the size of the event. Lodging may only be provided for the days the speaker is committed, plus one night. The funded amounts for speaker honoraria and lodging are determined on a case-by-case basis. 
• Applicants should compare the current budget and event to past years’ events if applicable, including how and why the event and budget changed, but this does not guarantee that the event will be funded again. 
• Events may be advertised on the GPSC calendar upon request since all events should be open to all graduate and professional students. 
• A follow-up report will be required of all recipients of funding. Information that should be included are amount of funds allocated and used, number of attendees, affiliation of attendees, program schedule, etc. 
• Activities that could otherwise be funded through our Travel Grants program will not be considered for POD funding. 
• The activity or potential activities must be in keeping with the mission of the University of Arizona and the GPSC. 
• Acknowledgement of the GPSC’s support is expected on all announcements and public materials. The GPSC logo will be provided for use if funding is awarded. 
• Allocated funds may only be used for the purposes for which they were approved by the GPSC. 
• It is the responsibility of the organization to ensure that allocated funds are spent in accordance with University of Arizona and Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) policy. 
• If the final cost of an approved item exceeds the budgeted amount, the GPSC will not pay the difference. 
• As per the ABOR policy, UA Printing and Publishing has the first right of refusal for all large print jobs done by any club or organization at UA, excluding jobs done at Fast Copy. The GPSC will not be able to pay for items printed off-campus without prior approval from UA Printing and Publishing. 
• The GPSC may fund politically oriented or religious organizations solely for the administration, execution, or maintenance of non-partisan/non-political/non-religious programs, services or special events deemed beneficial to the student body by the GPSC Appropriations Committee. For purposes of organization funding, "political" is defined as "having to do with the organization of individuals who seek to control or influence the action of those who manage the affairs of the state." "Religious" is defined as "having to do with an organization of individuals combining a particular system of faith and worship recognized and practiced by a particular church, sect, or denomination." The Committee funds only secular, non-sectarian activities. 

Application packets must be submitted electronically through our online grants application submission platform. It must be received by 11:59pm (AZ time) on the deadline date to be considered. In the event that a given deadline does not fall on a business day, applications must be received by 11:59pm of the first business day following the posted deadline. All subsequent communication with applicants will be via email. 

The application packet consists of:

• The names, colleges, departments, degree programs, and UA NetID’s of at least three graduate and/or professional students directly involved in the planning of the event. 
• A proposal narrative of no more than 1500 words which includes: 
• A synopsis of the initiative, event, or activity. 
• A description of how this initiative, event, or activity will contribute to the professional development of University of Arizona graduate and/or professional students 
• A brief justification of the items requested in your budget. 
• A brief biography of any invited speakers or list of any vendors, guests. 
• A detailed, well-justified budget  
• A statement of support from a UA faculty member 

Applications will be judged based on how well they satisfy the criteria as laid out in the evaluation rubric. Criteria include: 

• The synopsis of the proposed professional development activity clearly describes the purpose and nature of the proposed initiative. The dates and location of the proposed initiative are clearly listed, plans for the execution of the initiative are described, and the overall purpose and goals of the initiative are easy to understand. If the same or a similar event has been held before, a background on the event’s history and success is given. If this is a new or one-time event, the motivations for organizing the initiative are discussed. 
• The proposal clearly articulates the contribution that this initiative would make to the professional development of University of Arizona graduate and/or professional students. Specific benefits or impacts to the graduate/professional student body are enumerated. The strongest proposals also make a case for how the proposed activity may benefit wider communities, such as their field of study, the rest of the University of Arizona as a whole, and/or the local community. 
• The proposal is free of spelling, grammar, and/or punctuation errors. The proposal is organized in a clear, logical, easy to follow manner, and overall shows a high degree of professionalism. 
• Each item requested in the budget is discussed in the proposal, with a brief justification of why each item is necessary or relevant to the proposed initiative. The proposal discusses whether additional sources of funding are available, and if so, whether and how they have been sought, and which budget items will be supported by additional sources vs. GPSC.  
• Brief biographies of invited speakers are included (if 3 or fewer invitees); or a list of all invited guests/vendors/speakers/etc. (if more than 3 invitees) 
• Each budget item is listed completely and accurately. GPSC funds are not requested to cover any prohibited items; the total estimated expenses match the available funds, including GPSC funding and other funding sources; and the budget clearly illustrates any other sources of funding, including lack of other sources, and details how each funding source will contribute to the overall budget  
• Faculty statement of support addresses: 
• The potential impact that the proposed initiative would have on the professional development of U of A graduate/professional students. 
• The feasibility of the plans for executing the proposed initiative. 
• The necessity and relevance of the proposed budget items.