Graduate Student Senate (GSS)
Mini Grants and other scholarships
Mini-Grants are awarded to students presenting their studies outside of UVM.
Students can receive up to $200 in travel and conference reimbursement.
Mini-Grant applications may be submitted at any point prior to the travel for which funding is requested. The GSS generally meets to review applications and decide upon the awards within one week after the application deadline.
2012-2013 Deadlines are as follows:
-September 28, 2012
-February 8, 2013
-April 12, 2013
Please contact the Graduate College, at 656-3160, if you have any questions.
The Mini-Grant program encourages and supports graduate student travel to present student research at academic conferences or professional meetings. Two general guidelines pertain to all applications:
- A match of at least 50% of the amount requested from GSS must be provided from the applicant's department or program (for example, if $200 is requested, the minimum match is $100, resulting in a total funding of $300);
- Efforts will be made to utilize the avaliable funds to support as many meritorious requests as possible.
Additional Guidelines:
Applications must be made following the forms above. They must include, in addition to the forms, an abstract of the paper/poster, a copy of the meeting announcement (or similar) and a copy of the applicant's curriculum vitae. Additional materials may be attached where deemed appropriate by the applicant. Requests that do not include all required materials will not be considered.
1. Must be presenting a poster/paper at the conference
2. Preference is given to first time applicants (within the past year)
3. Students may receive up to one award per year (so if you receive an award in the fall, you should not apply in the spring)
4. Preference is given to those who are first author
5. For panel presentations, only $200 total for whole group (i.e. you may submit one application and the group will be eligible to receive up to $200 for the trip)
6. All materials must be included with the initial application as described in the directions on the GSS website (including chart string for your matching funds). Applications that are incomplete will not be considered.
The Mini Grant Experience
Check out these stories from recent mini-grant recipients:travelled to Kansas City (home of BBQ) in July (it was hot!) to
present a portion of my dissertation research at the Annual Conference
of the Society for Nutrition Education. Having been steeped in
quantitative research methods from my Masters experience here at UVM,
this was my first opportunity to present a portion of my qualitative
research focused on school nutrition directors. Being a part of a
poster presentation format really allows you to have more in-depth
conversations about your work with graduate students, researchers, and
professionals from around the country and globe. I was fortunate to
attend a small workshop with the editors of the Societys professional
journal (The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior) to learn how
qualitative research is reviewed for publication. This was a
particularly valuable experience since I intend to submit a
qualitative paper to the journal for publication later in the year.
Thank you GSS."
"The Gordon Research Conference-Mechanisms of cell signaling was the
most ideal conference for my field of research because it deals with
unfolding the interconnectedness of different cellular signaling
cascades. This conference allowed scientists and prospective
Post-Doctoral candidates like me, to gain a better understanding of
the molecular concepts and model systems of crucial signaling pathways
related to human diseases like cancer. Interaction with experts and
future post-doctoral mentors in the field of signaling proteins helped
me obtain new insights in my research. Attending this conference
inspired me to explore the other possible answers to my question and
open doors for my career as a Post-Doctoral fellow. Therefore, Gordon
Research Conference - Mechanisms of cell signaling served as a great
platform for me to expand my horizons for understanding the
Ras-signaling pathway and its novel downstream targets. This was my
only chance to present the two chapters of my doctoral dissertation,
receive the criticism from the signaling experts and work with it
during my defense presentation. I want to thank The Mini grant
committee and the GSS for providing me with the travel grant to attend
this important conference."
Need more funding info?
Check out this helpful guide put out by the grad college:http://www.uvm.edu/~gradcoll/?Page=funding/default.php&SM=current/_currentmenu.html
Last modified August 28 2012 09:56 AM