Communication of outcomes is an essential part of the research process. Professional communication typically occurs through publications or conference presentations. Austin College supports its students to disseminate research outcomes through either venue. Select a button below for the type of award you are looking for.
Publications
Publishing your work in peer reviewed journals is one form of research communication. Most journals ask authors or readers to help support the costs of printing or maintaining a research journal. These fees can be expensive and we encourage the faculty and student to explore all options for funding. Austin College provides funding opportunities for student authored manuscripts to be published in undergraduate only and professional journals. Applicants must be enrolled undergraduate students at Austin College at the time of application and at the time of the initial manuscript submission. Applicants must be working collaboratively with an Austin College faculty member on a research project or have an Austin College faculty member sponsor knowledgeable about the research and outcomes. Please examine the application and refer any questions to the CREATE office.
Conference Travel
Participation in professional meetings and conferences is an important way for you to communicate your research to others in your field, network with your peers, and expand your understanding of the scope and nature of research. Austin College provides funding opportunities for students whose research requires travel or for conference presentations of research projects through a variety of mechanisms. More information about each funding source, requirements for funding, and application instructions are below. Please read thoroughly and refer any questions to the CREATE office.
Eligibility
Applicants must be enrolled undergraduate students at Austin College at the time of application and at the time the funds will be used. These funds are specifically for students traveling to professional conferences that will aid in their development as scholars or professionals. Applicants must be working collaboratively with an Austin College faculty member on a research project or have an Austin College faculty member sponsor knowledgeable about the conference and outcomes. To be eligible for funding, you must present your research (talk or poster), your name must appear on the conference abstract, and Austin College must appear as an author's address. Funding for non-presenting students will be the lowest priority and supported as funds are available. Non-presenting students seeking professional development will still need to carefully justify conference attendance and give a presentation on campus after returning from travel.
When to Apply: Applications are considered on a rolling basis and awarded on a first come, first served basis. Awards are for future expenses only and funding awards must be approved prior to departure. It is requested that ALL applications are submitted at least 30 days in advance of the travel date. Applications submitted less than 14 days before departure may not be considered. This award is intended to offset or cover conference travel expenses incurred by the student. The student must arrange your own travel prior to the conference, and the travel award reimburses you or pays once conference expenses have been incurred.
Travel Funding
While conference attendance is encouraged, funds are limited and consequently students normally must be presenting their work in order to be eligible for funding. Typically, no more than 20% of the annual travel budget will be used for non-presenting conference attendees. Funding applications are not reviewed on the merit of the abstract or research, acceptance of the abstract by the conference is considered as the merit review. Funding from the various travel programs may cover expenses for travel including: airfare, lodging, conference registration, mileage, rental vehicles or shuttles, meals, abstract fees, poster printing charges, or other conference related expenses. Some funding sources may be more restrictive of allowable expenses, so it is important to read instructions carefully. Please note that the following apply to all funding sources:
- Austin College does not fund airport parking nor transportation to and from the departure airport.
- Austin College will not reimburse alcohol purchases.
- Austin College is a tax exempt organization and will not reimburse taxes on meals and hotels within the state of Texas. Make sure to get copies of the correct forms from the CREATE office before departing.
- To ensure adequate funding for all students, Austin College encourages students to carry luggage on to the plane. Any airline baggage fees must be justified in application.
Students may be awarded more than one travel award in a calendar year as long as the total funding does not exceed the maximum allowed from any specific fund and the work being presented is different. Students are not eligible for SDF funding more than once per semester. Students will not be eligible for support to present the same work more than once; therefore it is important that students and mentors decide WHICH meeting is the most appropriate. Non-presenting students are restricted to only one conference per year and a lower annual maximum. Award preference will be given to applicants who have not already received funding to present in the college’s fiscal year. Typically, students combine funding from multiple resources on and off campus as individual awards usually cover only a portion of allowable expenses.
What is expected of Travel Award recipients and their mentors?
Students are expected to:
- Use awarded funds only as indicated in the proposed budget.
- Share accommodations, when appropriate, with other AC students who are attending the same conference/event up to the maximum number of individuals per room allowed by the facility. Any exceptions to this must be approved in advance.
- Forfeit and return unused funds.
- Submit detailed receipts to the CREATE office and a reflection report within 30 days of the end of the project or travel.
- Acknowledge support from the relevant Austin College office in the dissemination of the research.
- Failure to meet these expectations may result in a forfeiture of the award and future ineligibility for funding.
Faculty mentors are expected to:
- Mentor the student in her/his pursuit of the proposed research project.
- Support the expectations of students listed above.
- Assist student in preparing travel fund application and making conference travel arrangements.
- Acknowledge support from the relevant Austin College office in the dissemination of the research.
- Collect photographs from the conference and submit to CREATE a photo of your student presenting their work.
Traveling to one conference with multiple students?
Please have each student individually submit their funding request using the application form. You may wish to work with the students to standardize some text to the prompts. To help with accounting, completeness, and clarification, please also send a summary memo to the CREATE office that shows the 1) the average break down of costs per student; 2) total costs incurred for all students and 3) a roster of students attending.
Students receiving travel support to present their research are also highly encouraged to participate in the Austin College Student Scholarship Conference as appropriate.
