Graduate Division Travel Award

The Graduate Division Travel Award provides up to $700 for graduate academic PhD students to present at professional conferences. Award funding is dependent on funds availability.  

As of July 2021, support is available for participation in both in-person or virtual conferences. Note that UCSF travel guidance and policy is subject to change, so please be aware of current guidance at your time of travel. 

Parameters

  • Funds may only be used for transportation (airfare, taxi, shuttle, public transportation) and registration fees (excluding meals and lodging). If the registration fee includes meals, students must contact conference organizer to get the actual registration fee amount minus the meals.  
  • Other travel expenses, such as lodging, meals, membership dues, car rental, parking, airline seat upgrades, abstract and/or poster development, abstract fees, and office supplies are not eligible. 
  • Retroactive requests for funding are not allowed. 
  • Participation in the meeting should be directly relevant to the applicant's research and beneficial to their future career. 
  • Students may receive only one travel award as a PhD candidate who has successfully passed their qualifying exams and has advanced to candidacy.  
  • The total number of travel awards and the amount per award each year is based on the availability of funds. 
  • Applications are accepted year-round; however, funds are limited. Students are advised to apply as early as possible! 

Eligibility Requirements

  • Applicants must be registered UCSF graduate academic PhD students. 
  • Students must be registered in the term during which they attend the conference. If not registered for the Summer quarter, they must plan to register for the upcoming Fall quarter.
  • Students on Filing Fee status are not eligible. 
  • Only PhD students who have successfully passed their qualifying exams and have advanced to candidacy (ATC) are eligible to apply. 
  • Students need to be based at UCSF for those enrolled in dual-campus degree programs.
  • Students enrolled in self-supporting programs are not eligible.  
  • Applicants must be in good academic standing and have no outstanding fee balances. 
  • Applicants must be presenting a paper or poster at an in-person or virtual professional meeting or giving a talk. 
  • Students with fellowships providing a research budget or education allowance must exhaust those funds completely before being eligible for these travel awards. 
  • Students should seek support from research advisers, principal investigators, graduate programs, and schools prior to applying for the Graduate Division's travel awards. 
  • Students may only receive one Graduate Division Travel Award during their enrollment at UCSF.  

Application Deadline

At least ten business days in advance of the proposed departure date (or for virtual conferences, the event start date). Applications are accepted year-round; however, funds are limited. Students are advised to apply as early as possible! 

Application Procedure

Complete the DocuSign application and upload all additional documents to the application. Your application may be rejected if any of the required documents are missing, or if ineligible expenses are included. The DocuSign application  must contain all of the following documents: 

  • Completed application form (the Advisor field is required). Your UC ID number is required on the application. The ID number is 9 numbers and begins with 02. You can find it on the student portal summary page just above privacy settings.
  • Official conference announcement listing dates, location and fees. 
  • Confirmation of participation in the meeting (i.e. acceptance of paper or poster). 
  • Proof-of-payment of registration fees (credit card statement in the applicant's name or verification from conference that payment has been received and processed). Fee cannot include meals. See first bullet in Parameters above for additional information. 
  • Proof-of-payment of airfare. (Not applicable for virtual conferences.) E-tickets are acceptable as long as they show that the applicant's credit card has been charged. Important: Travel must be conducted in the least expensive and most direct way possible. Travel award does not cover seat upgrade costs. 
  • Estimated baggage fees and ground transportation costs. (Not applicable for virtual conferences.) Please provide screenshots/PDFs/other documentation showing the estimated cost of the baggage fees and the ground transportation, such as sample taxi or ride share trip(s) with the cost of the trip(s). 

Award Payments

Graduate Division Travel Awards are paid as reimbursements of actual expenses incurred by awardees for approved expenses. Awardees are required to submit their reimbursement request using MyExpense via MyAccess. The award notice sent via email will have instructions on how to submit the MyExpense reimbursement and awardees are encouraged to submit the expenses for payment as quickly as possible.

Please note that reimbursement requests must be submitted within 45 days from the end of a trip. Any expense reports submitted after the 45-day deadline may cause the award to be reported as taxable income. After the reimbursement has been approved, it will take one week to process payment. The Controller's Office audits every expense report, so make sure all receipts are attached, and the transaction date(s) and receipt date(s) match. Sign up for non-payroll direct deposit to speed up payment.

Awards not claimed 90 days after the conclusion of the conference, or upon graduation (whichever comes first), will forfeit the travel award.

Note for students receiving financial aid: Travel awards do not appear in the student financial aid offer letter and will not count against the student's financial aid.