Graduate School Student Travel Grant

The Graduate School Student Travel Grant has three application cycles per year for travel:

  • The application for travel occurring January 1 - May 30 will be open Dec. 12 12:01am - Dec. 15 11:59pm MST.
  • The application for travel occurring June 1 - August 31 will be open May 1 12:01am - May 4 11:59pm MST.
  • The application for travel occurring September 1 - January 15 will be open Aug. 1 12:01am - Aug. 4 11:59pm MST.
    • Applications are only open and available during the time period listed.

The Graduate School offers partial funding for CU Boulder graduate students traveling outside the state of Colorado to present their own research or work at a conference, meeting, or similar event. These travel grants provide up to $650 to students traveling within the Unites States, up to $800 to students traveling to Canada, or Mexico, and up to $1000 to students traveling outside the Unites States, Canada, or Mexico.

Please note this grant is treated like a fellowship and will be reported to the Office of Financial Aid, therefore, please be aware that receiving this grant may affect your student loan package.

This grant functions as a reimbursement. If a travel grant application is approved, funds will be applied directly to the student's university account after the dates of travel have passed and receipts have been submitted. If a student is paying an out of pocket amount equal to or more than the respective travel grant, they will receive a full grant (i.e. $650, $800, and $1000, respectively). If a student's out of pocket costs are below those thresholds, they will receive a partial grant to cover those costs. We will only reimburse for costs associated with transportation, lodging and registration costs. Please be aware that students must be enrolled during the term that the travel occurs or the funds will applied to the next term. If the student's bursar account balance is zero, a refund via direct deposit will be issues to the student. If the account balance is not zero, the funds will go toward covering any balance. This grant is contingent on continued funding by the Graduate School.

Eligibility

  • The applicant must be enrolled full-time as a graduate student and in good academic standing.
  • The applicant must be enrolled in a Graduate School degree program; Continuing Education, Law, and MBA students are not eligible.
  • Masters students may receive travel funding once during their academic studies, and doctoral students may receive travel funding twice during their academic studies.
  • The applicant must be traveling outside the state of Colorado.
  • The applicant must be traveling to a meeting, conference, or similar event to present their own research or work in which they are the primary author.
  • An applicant receiving significant funding (over $1,500 for travel within the United States, $1,750 for travel to Canada or Mexico, and $2,500 for international travel not including Canada or Mexico) from an outside source (fellowship, stipend, scholarship, grant, lab group, department, etc.) is not eligible. 
  • Funding is intended to reimburse out of pocket costs incurred by the student and the grant money may not be used to reimburse anyone other than the student (i.e. departments, lab groups, other students, etc.).

Required Elements

Here are the required elements on the application:

  • Student ID number and contact information
  • Conference name
  • Location of conference
  • Dates of conference
  • Reason for travel
  • Department travel liaison contact information
  • Academic Advisor contact information
  • Supporting documents showing that they will be presenting at this conference, meeting, or similar event (acceptance letter/email, program, abstract, etc.)

Apply here

All students and faculty planning research- and education-related travel should consult and abide by the university’s guidelines and recommendations.

International Travel

International travel involving students that is CU Boulder-sponsored, CU Boulder-affiliated, related to a CU Boulder activity/program, or accompanied by CU faculty/staff, must be registered with CU Education Abroad prior to departure. See the CU Boulder Policy on Student International Travel and Programs and the High-Risk Locations page for full details, and consult the links to the right for further information as you plan your international travel.

Because your travels are CU Boulder-sponsored in part, you may need to register your trip through the International Travel Registration process. After completing this process you will be enrolled in an international health insurance plan and have access to location-specific health and safety information provided by International SOS.

Please visit the International Education website for more information.