About the Two Award Types

This academic year, GPC will give out around $70,000 in conference presentation travel awards and $25,000 in professional development travel awards to MU graduate and professional students.  Both awards are post-travel awards- that is, awards are processed as reimbursements after you return from your trip.

The Conference Presentation Travel Award (CPTA) is designed to assist MU graduate and professional students who are representing the University of Missouri by presenting research papers, posters, or creative works at conferences. The award is not a research grant and cannot be used as such but is rather a reimbursement for travel associated with academic or professional work. The maximum amount awarded to an applicant is $600, but most awards are less than this due to the large number of applicants each cycle.

The Professional Development Award (PDA) previously known as Professional Development Travel Award (PDTA) is intended to cover some of the costs for students to participate in non-presentation opportunities at conferences, meetings, workshops, or other relevant outlets that contribute toward preparing the student for employment in their chosen career path. Examples of these conferences include workshops, events where you are an invited speaker (when costs of the trip are not already covered by the inviter), and conferences you attend as an officer of a professional organization. Prior to July 1, 2018, this award was offered by the Graduate Student Association (GSA). To enable students take advantage of the award for both travel and other professional development activities, the maximum amount for the award has been increased to $300.

Wet labs for veterinary and medical students may be submitted to either the CPTA or the PDTA.

Note: Per GPC’s Bylaws, individual students in Represented Areas that are not in “Good Standing” for the semester of the travel award cycle are eligible for at most 50% of the maximum travel award. See this page for the list of Represented Areas currently in Good Standing.

Choosing a Cycle

If your conference end date falls within two cycles, GPC generally recommends that you apply for the first cycle you are eligible for since if you are denied funding you may apply again for the same trip during the next cycle. If you choose to reapply during a later cycle, you will be permitted to revise your application materials. Click here to view eligibility date ranges for Travel and Professional Development Award Application Cycles from AY22 to AY 24.

Eligibility

Any person who is a MU graduate or professional student at the time of application is eligible to apply for a GPC travel award, but GPC will perform reimbursements for only one of each type of travel award per student per academic year (i.e. maximum one CPTA and one PDTA per academic year). Each student may submit a maximum of one entry per award type per cycle, where only one trip can be included in a single entry. Students are permitted to apply to both award types in the same cycle if they attended two conferences, but each conference will of course only be eligible for one of the award types.

Note: You are not eligible for the award if your travel and/or professional development expenses will be covered in full by another department.

Eligible Expenses

GPC can only fund your share of the following expenses:

• · Transportation costs via automobile mileage or airfare to destination
  • For automobile mileage, GPC will reimburse mileage at $0.655 per mile (or the university rate in effect at the time of travel) up to a maximum of $150
• Lodging costs
• Conference registration fees
  • Includes the membership fee if the membership fee plus the conference fee for members is less than the conference fee for non-members.
• In-state airport shuttle expenses (e.g. Mo-X)
• Reasonable ground transportation expenses (e.g. Uber/Lyft/taxi between the airport, lodging, and conference venue), excluding transportation in Missouri.

GPC cannot fund travel-related expenses for:

• Rental cars
• Out-of-state airport shuttles
• Gas receipts
• Airport parking
• Automobile mileage to the airport
• Meals
• Entertainment
• General allowance
• Travel visas
• Presentation preparation materials

Note: Wet labs for veterinary and medical students can be submitted for the CPTA.

Application Criteria

The amount awarded is based on the quality of the application relative to other applications in that cycle. The GPC Finance Committee judges the quality of each application based on professionalism (spelling and grammar, appropriate word usage, formatting, compliance with instructions etc.) and the completeness of the application materials as specified below.

Application Materials

An application is considered complete if and only if it contains the following items:

• Application form
• Statement of intent
• Proof of Acceptance or Application (Conference Presentation Travel Award only)

Veterinary and medical students attending wet labs should describe in non-technical language the content of the wet lab and the procedures you will be performing.

Three example statements of intent are linked below. These are actual statements submitted in the past by students for the CPTA. The Finance Committee thought these statements fulfilled all requirements, and these students received the maximum award amount. Permission to post these examples was obtained by GPC, and names have been removed for privacy.

• Statement of Intent – Example 1
• Statement of Intent – Example 2
• Statement of Intent – Example 3
• Statement of Intent – Example 4

Proof of Acceptance or Application (CPTA only)

For several reasons, GPC no longer requires a letter of recommendation for the CPTA. Instead, we ask that you provide proof of acceptance or application. This piece of the application is not scored, but instead simply verifies your intent to use the funds if you are awarded. To facilitate accessibility, there are three possible options for this criterion (Application Confirmation, Acceptance Confirmation, or Verification Letter), but you may only attach one (1) to your application. No one type carries more merit than another, so choose the one that is easiest for you. If you do not attach at least one of these, your application will be considered incomplete and will not be scored. If you have any questions about this, please email the Treasurer at gpctreasurer@missouri.edu.

Direct Proof of Application or Acceptance: Typically, conferences provide a confirmation when you apply to present (Application Confirmation) or when your presentation is accepted (Acceptance Confirmation) . All you need to do is save that email or webpage as a PDF and upload it with your application, and this is only required for the CPTA.

Indirect Proof via Verification Letter: If the conference is not yet accepting applications because it is too far in the future, then you may provide a Verification Letter from your advisor or another close faculty member who is familiar with your academics/research and can vouch for your intent to present at the conference. This is the only case in which a letter from a faculty member would be necessary, and it does not need to be a long, detailed letter- they are simply confirming your intent to present at this specific conference. If you want to submit a verification letter instead of direct proof from the conference, it is your responsibility to attach that signed letter to your application.

After the Review Process

After the Finance Committee has reviewed applications, award winners will be notified via e-mail by the GPC Treasurer. Applicants who are denied funding will receive a notice, but GPC is not required to give a reason for denial of funding.

Award winners must submit all requested documentation, including a copy of the award letter and original receipts for travel costs, to the location and person(s) described in the award letter. For applications awarded before travel has concluded, receipts will be due within 30 days of your return. For applications awarded for travel that has already concluded, receipts are due within 30 days of award notification. Again, do not submit any receipts until requested, but keep in mind that proper documentation submitted in a timely manner will be required to receive an award.

Alternative Sources of Funding

GPC strongly encourages schools and departments to help fund their students’ conference travel. GPC does not reimburse schools or departments for money they spend, through their budgets or faculty grants, for students to attend conferences. Travel awards will be dispensed only as direct reimbursements to award winners for expenses they must pay themselves. Award letters will provide further details. In addition to applying for GPC travel funding, students are encouraged to contact their departmental ORG representative for information on seeking other sources of funding.

An Opportunity to Present Locally

GPC gives students an opportunity to present on the MU campus through the Research and Creative Activities Forum (RCAF), hosted early in March each year. Students are strongly encouraged to participate in the RCAF as it allows you to gain presentation experience, to receive feedback from judges, and to be awarded cash prizes (cash prizes are awarded to the top presenters in each division). For more information, you can go to the RCAF Page or contact gpc@missouri.edu.