Travel Awards

SMEA students may apply to the following travel funding opportunities at the UW. All of the following (except for the Maxson Endowment) require students to be accepted to present a paper, poster, or talk at a meeting or conference prior to applying for funding. Always check directly on the funding source’s website for the most up-to-date information and deadlines as they may change without notice.

External travel funding may allow for travel without the requirement to present, and can be searched for using the databases at the bottom of this page.

Wendy Graham Endowed Travel Scholarship

A travel scholarship for School of Marine & Environmental Affairs students presenting at a domestic or international meeting/conference. Awards can be used for lodging, conference/registration fees, transportation, or food. Applications can be submitted throughout the year and awards will be given based on fund availability. Deadline to apply is one week before travel begins. In general students will be awarded:

$400 for lower 48 states/domestic*

$800 for Hawaii/Alaska/international travel*

*Until funds are no longer available for that academic year.

Apply here: Wendy Graham_Scholarship_Application and submit your application to Tiffany Comtois-Dion.

College of the Environment Travel & Meeting Fund

Funding: $1,000 max North America/$1,500 max international travel

Deadlines:

  • Autumn 2024: Friday, October 11
  • Winter 2025: Friday, January 10
  • Spring 2025: Friday, April 4
  • Summer 2025: Friday, July 11

Student application and guidelines are found here.

Graduate School Conference Presentation Awards

Graduate student travel awards are available to assist graduate students with travel fares to major national or international conferences so they may present papers or posters, or to serve as invited speakers. Funds may be used only for airfare or other forms of transportation (e.g. mileage, taxis). Funding: $300 – domestic / $500 – international

To apply for this funding, please email Tiffany Comtois-Dion (tlcdion@uw.edu) with ALL of the following information:

  • Name of conference.
  • URL for conference.
  • Travel dates.
  • Location of conference.
  • Presentation title and type (paper/poster/talk).
  • Other funding you’ve received or applied to for this trip (please include the source of funding and amount(s) received if applicable).
  • PDF copy of letter or email stating your acceptance/invitation to present at the meeting.

Graduate & Professional Student Senate Travel Grant

Funding: $300 – domestic and virtual / $500 – international. Submissions open on the 1st of each month.

Guidelines found here: https://www.gpss.uw.edu/fundings/travel-grants/

Info you will need for your application:

  • Budget number to use for application: please email Suanty Kaghan (skaghan@uw.edu) for budget number
  • SMEA Mailbox #: 355685
  • Department Contact/Advisor: Tiffany Comtois-Dion (tlcdion@uw.edu)

 External Travel Funding Resources

Also, If you are not presenting at the conference you hope to attend, see if the national level or your local chapter of the sponsoring organization offers a “first time attendee” or “professional development” scholarship. Many professional and academic conferences often discounted student rates, and some may waive registration fees partially or in full if you commit to a few hours of volunteering at the conference.

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