GPSC Travel Grants
We are currently accepting applications for travel occurring in the 2018-19 fiscal year (July 01, 2018 – June 30, 2019)
The GPSC Travel Grants Program has four rounds per fiscal year (with deadlines of October 01, November 01, February 01, and April 01). All four rounds cover travel dates July 01 - June 30 of the same fiscal year.
To ensure your application receives full consideration, please check the Evaluation Criteria Rubric and fill out your application accordingly. All applications filed according to the previously used Selection Criteria will be given a score of zero. Additionally, paper submissions of expense reports, walk-in submissions, or email submissions will not be accepted. Only electronic submissions via the Submittable platform will be accepted.
The GPSC awards grants for graduate and professional student travel for professional development purposes. Event types covered by the grant include but are not limited to:
- Travel to attend/present at academic or professional conferences
- Travel to conduct fieldwork or research
- Travel to participate in summer schools or workshops
- Travel to participate in practicums, internships, or other types of experiential learning
- Travel for a job interview or campus visit
- Travel for study abroad or international study
In order to complete your grant application, you will be directed to Submittable, a third party grant management application. By continuing with this application, you consent to provide your student information to Submittable, and to having Submittable receive and process that student information, in order to complete your application and be considered for a grant award.
NOTE: Please log-in with your UA NETID (email.arizona.edu) account
GPSC Travel Grant Evaluation Rubric
It is suggested that all applicants save their text and responses on a separate document (Word or Google doc) in case an error occurs to ensure nothing is lost. If an error does occur, please contact the Submittable Technical Support team at support@submittable.com as soon as possible.
Last updated: 12/17/18
Range of support and items covered
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- Applications for domestic travel may receive up to $750
- Applications for international travel may receive up to $1000
- You may submit one application for one event for each round. You can only be awarded once per fiscal year.
- Applications can only request funding for travel that occurs in the same fiscal year (July 01 to June 30 the following calendar year) as the application. Awards cover airfare, hotel/lodging, per diem, local transportation, event registration fees, and other types of expenses
- Awards cover a maximum of three (3) nights' hotel stay and four (4) days per diem, not exceeding the lodging and per diem estimates calculated by FSO.
Eligibility
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- Students must be enrolled in a graduate or professional degree program in good standing at the University of Arizona at the time of application (i.e. must pay student service fees). This applies even if the applicant plans to graduate in the current or subsequent term.
- You may submit one application for one event for each round. You can only be awarded once per fiscal year. If you are unsuccessful in one round, you may apply to subsequent rounds until you receive an award.
- Group applications are not allowed. Each student must apply separately for funding. Identical applications will be automatically disqualified from that round of funding.
Application Deadlines and Faculty Statement of Support Deadlines
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- Program rounds cover travel dates falling within the same fiscal year (July 1-June 30).The application rounds are as follows:
- Round 1: Application opens September 1, applications due October 1
- Round 2: Application opens October 1, applications due November 1
- Round 3: Application opens January 1, closes February 1
- Round 4: Application opens March 1, closes April 1
- All required materials and sections must be submitted to the online portal by 11:59 PM Arizona time on the day of the deadline. No exceptions will be made.
- An automated submission confirmation email is generated once an online application is submitted. If you do not receive a confirmation email, please contact the Submittable Technical Support team at support@submittable.com
Faculty statements of support are due at the same day and time as the applications! In your submittable application, you will find a textbox in which you can enter your faculty supporter's email address. Submitting the application generates an email from Submittable which will provide your faculty supporter with a link to upload their statement of support-- this means that if you don't submit your application until 11:50pm the day before the deadline, your faculty supporter may not see their upload link in time to provide you with a letter. While not having a letter of support does not immediately disqualify you, it may affect your total score. So, please plan to submit your application with time to spare!. See the FAQ for details on what the faculty statement of support should include and how it should be formatted.
Selection Criteria
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- The number of awards per round is contingent upon the availability of funds and the number of applications received.
- Applications are reviewed by graduate students from various disciplines. After the judges submit their evaluation scores, a cutoff score is generated based on the number of applications and the amount of funds available.
- For more information regarding the criteria used by the travel grant judges to evaluate the travel grant applications, please refer to the GPSC Travel Grant Evaluation Rubric
Travel Grants Judges
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- Awardees will be automatically assigned as judges for the next round. In the event you are unable to serve as a judge for the round subsequent to your award, please contact gpscfunding@email.arizona.edu.
- Graduate and professional student volunteers may also serve as judges. Serving as a Travel Grants Judge allows would-be applicants to obtain an insider's perspective on the evaluation process. Other reasons to be a judge include:
- Formulating a more competitive application by reviewing actual applications
- Additional service or volunteer experience for the relevant section of your CV or résumé
- Obtaining an insider's perspective on an evaluation process similar to how major granting agencies (lNSF/NIH/NEH) award research grants
- Being involved in a central part of student governance
- The evaluation process should take no more than 2-3 hours, including a review of the guidelines. If you are interested in serving as a Travel Grants Judge for the upcoming round, please email gpscfunding@email.arizona.edu.
PLEASE NOTE: You MAY NOT serve as a Judge for the same grant round in which you apply.
Notification of Awards
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- The GPSC Travel Grant is not a guaranteed source of funding. Awardees are not guaranteed to receive funding before their travel begins.
- Applicants will be notified via email when an application status changes. You may check your online application portal for updates on your status.
- Award determination may take several weeks. If awarded a travel grant, the amount requested in the application will be distributed through the applicant's Bursar's account within two to three weeks after award notification.
- Applicants who were not awarded are eligible to reapply during subsequent rounds in the same fiscal year.
Award Refund Policy
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- If you are awarded a Travel Grant but are unable to attend or would like to decline your award, please notify the Grants Director at gpscfunding@email.arizona.edu immediately.
- If less than 90% of an award is spent, you may be required to reimburse the University of Arizona. If necessary, your Bursar's account may be automatically adjusted for the amount in question.
Travel Expense Report
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information below- Travel Grant awardees are required to submit a Travel Expense Report within ten (10) business days after completing travel or receiving an award announcement (if travel has already been completed). In the expense report form, please list all items of expenses incurred during your trip. Keep the original receipts of all expenses incurred during your travel and submit these with your expense report.
- Awardees must spend at least 90% of their award. If less than 90% of awarded GPSC funds are used, then that student will be required to reimburse the University of Arizona for the unspent funds. Students are expected to use any other grants/funds they may have obtained to cover travel expenses before using GPSC funds.
How to Submit Your Travel Expense Report
A complete expense report includes:
1. A completed and signed Travel Expense Report form.
2. Receipts for all expenses incurred during your travel, except for meal receipts.
3. Proof of attendance at your event. For conferences, this can be a registration receipt, a copy of the program with your name in it, a copy of your name badge, or other qualifying documentation. For other events, this could include email correspondance, a report, a letter, or other qualifying documentation. Email gpscfunding@email.arizona.edu if you have questions.
All materials must be submitted electronically to GPSCfunding@email.arizona.edu. Please sign both pages with an electronic signature. You will receive an email from us either with further questions/requests, or notifying you that your expense report is complete.
Paper submissions/walk-ins will not be accepted. Only electronic submissions will be accepted.
Failure to submit the required travel expense documentation may result in the withdrawal of a GPSC travel grant award. Failure to submit an expense report will make an awardee ineligible for future GPSC Travel Grants.
Please do not submit a Travel Expense Report until AFTER you are awarded a Grant.
Frequently Asked Questions
Click or enter to reveal information below Click or enter to hide information belowApplication Requirements
What should the faculty statement of support say?
Please advise your faculty recommender that they do not need to submit a full, traditional letter of recommendation. Instead, they should submit a short document stating (1) the name of the conference, event, or purpose of travel, (2) the date(s) and place(s) of the conference, event, or purpose of travel, and (3) a brief statement indicating that they support the travel and endorse your application. In order to maintain standards of double-blind reviewing, we ask that they not include your name in the file name or in the statement of support.
Can I submit one application for two events?
No. Our current Program rules do not allow for submissions for more than one event per application.
What if I am applying for professional development related travel with my student group?
The GPSC Travel Grant is not designed to fully cover the costs associated with your travel. As part of your application, you are required to show efforts to obtain funding other than the GPSC Travel Grant. External funding that is pending (not yet received), and out-of-pocket expenses should also be included.
What if the cost of my event exceeds the amount provided by the GPSC Travel Grant?
The GPSC Travel Grant is not designed to fully cover the costs associated with your travel. As part of your application, you are required to show efforts to obtain funding other than the GPSC Travel Grant. External funding that is pending (not yet received) should also be included.
Can I apply for a GPSC Travel Grant if I am taking personal time before or after the event?
Yes, but you will be required to submit a justification memo as part of your application explaining that GPSC funds will not be used for personal time.
IMPORTANT: If requesting GPSC funds to cover airfare and taking personal time before or after the event, save an itinerary documenting what the airfare price would be if personal time is not to be taken. Submit this saved itinerary with your expense report upon return from the trip.
Eligibility
I am a student at a different university. Am I eligible for a GPSC Travel Grant?
Unfortunately, no; only registered graduate and professional students at the University of Arizona are eligible. As the Program's funding comes primarily from the Student Service Fee, only students currently listed in UAccess as graduate and professional students who pay Student Service Fees as part of their tuition and fees may apply.
I am an undergraduate enrolled in a dual or accelerated B.A./M.A. program. Am I eligible?
If you are not technically enrolled as a graduate or professional student (which may be verified by looking at the Student view on UAccess), you are not yet eligible for a GPSC Travel Grant. Once you are registered as a graduate student and pay the applicable fees each semester, you will be eligible for a Travel Grant.
I am graduating this semester. Can I still apply?
Yes, as long as you are enrolled in classes at the time of application AND when you intend to use the funds.
Submission Deadlines/Application Submission
My travel dates are in December. For which rounds can I apply?
You can apply for all four rounds. All rounds cover travel dates July 01 through June 30 the following year, which would cover travel dates in December.
I am having trouble submitting my application online. Can I submit my application materials via email?
No, we can only accept application materials via the online application. Judges can only view materials submitted through the online system/portal, and as such, we cannot accept materials in an alternate format. If you are experiencing issues with the online application, please contact the Submittable Technical Support team at support@submittable.com.
Before beginning the application, applicants should save their text and responses on a separate document (Word or Google doc) in case an error occurs to ensure nothing is lost. If an error does occur, please contact the Submittable Technical Support team at support@submittable.com as soon as possible.
My application is not saving. What should I do?
Please attempt to save the application one more time. If you continue to receive an error or the application continues not to save, please contact the Submittable Technical Support team at support@submittable.com for assistance.
I tried to submit an application, but I received a message that applications are not being accepted. How can I submit an application?
If you receive this error message, you have attempted to submit an application outside of a current GPSC Travel Grants round. Please check the information provided on this website for deadlines and dates of round openings and closures.
Selection Criteria
How many awards will be given per round? What are my chances of receiving an award?
The number of awards varies by round according to the availability of funding from our sponsors. Awards are determined by sorting the applicants (names removed) according to the top two judges scores.
How do I determine what to include in my application? How do I formulate a competitive application?
The best way to increase your chances of receiving an award is to formulate your application according to the Rubric posted above under Selection Criteria. Please note that if you contact the Travel Grants Team asking for this information, you may be redirected to the website.
I wasn't awarded a Travel Grant for the last round. Can I appeal the judges' decision?
If your application was not awarded, you are eligible to reapply during subsequent application rounds in the same fiscal year. All non-awardees with concerns about their funding determination will be directed to reapply for the following round.
Travel Grants Judges
Who will review my application?
Both past Travel Grants awardees and graduate and professional student volunteers will evaluate your application. Peer evaluation is an important part of the mission to provide opportunities for professional development for graduate and professional students.
How can I sign up to be a judge?
Please email gpscfunding@email.arizona.edu.
Travel grants are made possible by funds provided by the GPSC, the Graduate College, Student Fees, the Confluencenter, and the UA Alumni Association. Thank you to all of our partners for their contributions to this great program and Graduate & Professional Students.
