Graduate Student Travel Funding

• The priority of GSC Travel Funding is to provide financial support to graduate students traveling to present their K-State graduate research or scholarly/creative work at professional conferences. Students who are traveling for other purposes or who are attending a conference but not presenting their graduate work may apply for travel funding, but priority will be given to those presenting research or creative/scholarly work at a conference.
• Applicants must be enrolled in a graduate degree program at Kansas State University and must be in good academic standing (have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA). Students must be enrolled in at least one graduate credit hour to receive funds for travel support.
• These funds may not be used for events/activities that will occur after the student graduates from Kansas State University.
• Within a fiscal year (July 1-June 30), a graduate student may be awarded a maximum of $750 for domestic travel (within the U.S.). Graduate students who engage in international travel (outside the U.S.) or a combination of domestic and international travel may be awarded a maximum of $1,000 within a fiscal year.

Step 1 - Apply

Complete the online application (accessible below) at least three weeks before your event start date. You may review a sample application (pdf) to see what information is required in the application.

Information/documentation needed for application:

• Proof of presentation/activity (if available): If you plan to give a presentation or actively participate in the event in some other way, you must provide documentation that verifies your activity. Upload the documentation in the application if you have it. If you do not have this documentation yet, you may apply and indicate that you plan to give a presentation. You may be allocated a pending award until the required documentation is provided.
  
  
• Major professor endorsement form: The Major Professor Endorsement Form must be completed with your major professor's signature and uploaded in the online application. The form may be completed electronically with an electronic signature. The form also may be printed, signed, and scanned as a PDF to be uploaded in the application form. A form with the major professor's name typed in the signature line will NOT be accepted. Endorsement by your department head or graduate program director is also acceptable if unable to obtain a signature by your major professor.

Step 2 - Application review

• Applications are reviewed and allocations are made every 1-2 weeks. Funds are allocated based on points per the funding criteria.
• An effort is made to allocate funds to all eligible applicants. If funding is limited, priority is given to applicants who will present work their graduate work at a national or international conference.

Step 3 - Notification to applicants

• All applicants who submit a fully completed application are notified via email of whether or not they have been allocated travel funding. A list of recipients is posted online by month of travel event.
• If the travel funding recipient is not able to pay for his or her travel upfront, many departments are willing to cover the recipient's travel expenses up to the amount of GSC travel funding prior to the travel and the department will be reimbursed directly by the Graduate School after the travel. Prior to travel, please contact your department office for more information about this arrangement.

Step 4 - Travel occurs

• Consult with you graduate program about making travel arrangements.

Step 5 - Disbursement of travel funds

• If your department paid for some or all of your expenses, the Graduate School will work with your department on disbursement of travel funds. Prior to travel, please consult with your department about how they can assist with your travel arrangements and expenses.
• See additional information on the travel funding disbursement page.

If you are allocated GSC travel funding, the funds may be disbursed to you directly or to your department, depending on how travel expenses are paid. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the funding disbursement process as soon as you have recieved a travel grant.

Travel purpose

• Conference = 5 points
• Other (study abroad; travel for K-State course activities, such as site visits or meetings with industry professionals; travel to take special classes/training) = 2 points

NOTE: If traveling to conduct research/collect data, apply for the Graduate RSCAD Grant.

Location

• Outside of the U.S. = 13 points
• In the U.S. and outside of Kansas/region = 5 points
• In region (Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Oklahoma) = 2 points
• In Kansas = 1 point

Event involvement

• Presenting research, scholary, or creative work = 10 points
  • Giving a talk/oral presentation, presentating a poster, giving a recital, presenting a work of art or design
• Participating on a case study team = 8 points
• Serving as a commentator, discussant, panelist, or workshop coordinator = 6 points
• Author of a presentation but not giving the presentation = 5 points
• Non-presenter = 5 points
  • Attending a conference but not presenting or actively participating in ways listed above, studying abroad, taking special classes, or attending a workshop

Authorship

• 1st/primary author = 6 points
• 2nd author = 5 points
• 3rd author or below = 4 points
• No authorship = 2 points

GSC and Graduate School involvement

GSC involvement is not a requirement for receiving a travel funding, but you will earn more points for engaging in GSC leadership or activities, which may increase your funding allocation. Credit for involvement is awarded for activities completed in the 12 months prior to your application submission.

1. GSC Leadership/Service = 1 point
   • GSC officer
   • GSC committee chair or member
   • Graduate student senator
   • GSC representative on a university committee
   • Graduate School Amabassador
2. Giving a presentation at the following events GSC research forum or Three Minute Thesis = 1 point
   
   • Research and the State (fall)
   • K-State Graduate Research, Arts, and Discovery Forum (spirng)
   • Three Minute Thesis Competition
3. Volunteering at GSC/Graduate School events = 1/2 point
   • Research and the state
   • K-State Graduate Research, Arts, and Discovery Forum
   • Three Minute Thesis Competition
   • GSC fundraiser
4. Attending GSC/Graduate School events = 1/2 point
   • Research and the state
   • K-State Graduate Research, Arts, and Discovery Forum
   • Three Minute Thesis Competition
   • Professional Development seminar
   • GSC meeting

Note: Attendance points will not be granted for attending an event at which you are presenting and/or volunteering

Impact and research/scholarly work statements

Completing this section is optional. You will earn 1 point for each item if you provide a sufficient and relevant response.

1. Impact of event on your professional development = 1 point
   • In 50 words or less, tell us why it is important for you to attend this event in terms of how your attendance at this event will promote your professional development. That is, how will your participation in this event improve your academic standing, job prosepects, etc.
2. Description of your work = 1 point
   • In 50 words or less, describe the research/work you will be presenting using lanugage that can be understood by people who are not experts in your discipline.
   • If you are not presenting work at the event you are attending, describe the focus of the research, scholarship, or creative work that you do as part if your graduate program of study.

Award amounts

Award amounts are determined by points earned in the application based on criteria outlined above.

Submission of an application for a GSC travel funding does not guarantee funds will be awarded. The GSC travel funding is competitive. The GSC has a limited amount of funds for travel and often receives more applications than can be funded. Therefore, students are encouraged to seek funding from other sources and should explore these options well in advance of their travel event.

College travel funding

Many colleges have travel funding programs to support professional travel for graduate students. Follow the links below for your respective college to learn about their travel funding program. If your college is not listed, contact your college dean's office to ask whether they offer financial travel support for graduate students.

College of Arts and Sciences

College of Education

College of Engineering

College of Human Ecology

College of Veterinary Medicine

Department/program funding

Your home department or graduate program also might offer travel support for you to attend conferences or for other academic or professional travel. Consult with your major professor, department head, or graduate program director to find out whether your department or program has funds available to support your travel. You should also ask your major professor whether he or she has funds from a research grant or other sources to support your travel.

Student Governing Association (SGA) travel funding

The Student Governing Association (SGA) offers travel grants, but the application must be submitted by a student organization, not an individual student. If you are involved with a student organization that is registered with the Center for Student Involvement, consult with the officers of that organization about applying for funding to support your professional travel. The Student Allocations Funding Request form is available in OrgCentral. You may be prompted to login to OrgCentral with your K-State eid and password to access this form.

Professional associations

Many professional associations offer travel funding to students attending their meetings/conferences. Research the website of the conference you plan to attend or contact conference organizers to ask whether the association offers travel funding for students. Additionally, explore grants and funding opportunities throughout the year. Many professional, private, and government organizations offer funding to support graduate student research/scholarship, including research-related travel.