FHSD Graduate Student Conference Award

The FHSD Conference Award supports you in your scholarly and professional activities. Applications will be considered for in-person and virtual conference attendance for graduate students in Master’s (thesis-based or course-based) or Doctoral programs, and Postdoctoral Fellows (PDFs) whose primary supervisor is a FHSD faculty member.

Value

Variable, up to a maximum of $2,000. You may receive this award once as a Masters student, and up to twice as a PhD student or PDF. PhD students/PDFs may receive this award once in a given fiscal year (April 1-March 31). If two or more students/PDFs are co-authors/co-leads of a paper or presentation, only one is eligible for an award.

Application, Approval and Reimbursement Timelines

Applications for this award are accepted each quarter of the fiscal year (April 1 — March 31). Up to $15,000 is available per quarter, and any balance is carried over to the following quarter. All applications received within the quarter are assessed at the end of the quarter. If you meet the eligibility requirements, you will receive an email within two weeks from the end of the quarter approving your application.

If more than $15,000 (or $15,000 plus any carryover) is requested in a given quarter, the FHSD Research and Graduate Training Committee will rank applications and award the maximum of $15,000 (or $15,000 plus any carryover).

We encourage you to apply in a quarter before the one in which your conference occurs. Once approved, you may immediately submit receipts associated with conference costs (e.g., registration, accommodation, flights). However, if you do not participate in the conference for which you received reimbursement, or if your status as a graduate student changes, notify the FHSD Research and Graduate Training Committee by email at fhsd.graduateprogram@ubc.ca. You may be required to repay any funds received.

Eligibility

• You must have completed the research/scholarly work for this presentation while at UBCO, and it must be based on your current program of research.
• You must be one of the primary authors and the presenter at the conference.
• You must be in good standing and registered full-time in a research-based FHSD graduate program, AND within the expected program completion time (i.e., 36 months for Masters students, 60 months for PhD students); OR
• You are in good standing and registered full-time in a research-based IGS graduate program, with a primary supervisor who has a primary faculty appointment in FHSD, AND within the expected program completion time (i.e., 24 months for Masters students, 48 months for PhD students); OR
• You are currently employed as a Research Postdoctoral Fellow (PDF) in FHSD at the time of application.

How to Apply

• Complete the FHSD Conference Award application form, including supervisor/graduate program signatures
• Attach the letter of acceptance/invitation that describes the nature of participation in the conference
• Attach a copy of the abstract as submitted to the conference organizers
• Submit as a single PDF to fhsd.graduateprogram@ubc.ca by the end of the quarter—see table above.

Award Criteria and Adjudication

• The application form information must be confirmed by the your supervisor and graduate program coordinator (Masters and PhD students only) prior to submission
• If the collective amount requested by students and PDFs within a given quarter exceeds the available funds ($15,000 plus any carryover), your application will be adjudicated and ranked as follows:
  1. Number of previous FHSD Conference awards (i.e., preference will be given to those who have not received an award during their current degrees).
  2. The PI’s rationale for how the conference will further (a) the trainee’s program of research and career development, and (b) the research interests/reputation of the lab, school, and faculty.