The Honors Undergraduate Research Program (HURP) is pleased to announce the availability of funds to support eligible students in attending research conferences. Applications for both in-person and virtual conferences are welcome!
Apply for a HURP Travel Award!
Apply for Virtual Conference Support!
Overview
The Honors Undergraduate Research Program (HURP) provides grants for Honors students to travel to regional, national, and international conferences and meetings to present their research. Awards for in-person conferences are limited to $750 and virtual conferences are limited to $150. Students are expected to leverage Shackouls Honors College resources by seeking additional sources of funding (e.g. departmental funding, research grant funding, scholarship funding, etc.) and using HURP travel awards to supplement expenses.
Application for funds must be made prior to conference attendance and payment. Travel arrangements must be made through the student or faculty mentor's home department. The arranging department will be reimbursed the awarded funding after travel has been completed through the University.
Travel awards and virtual conference support are granted on a rolling basis and will be awarded based on the quality of the application and the importance of participation in the conference or event to the applicant's long-term goals.
Travel Awards
Eligibility
Applicants must be working on a research project with a faculty member at MSU and be in good standing with the Shackouls Honors College. In most cases, the student should be giving a talk or a poster presentation at the conference. It is expected that the travel request will be submitted online at least four weeks prior to the planned trip. Students are highly encoruaged to split travel expenses with peers attending the same conference and to coordinate the submission of travel funding applications.
Travel will need to be arranged through the mentor’s department with all travel regulations and forms handled as with any other case of travel. Shackouls Honors College will provide the agreed funding directly to the department. Remember, students are expected to seek multiple sources of funding and use HURP travel awards to supplement expenses.
Application Materials
- Online Application Form
- Letter of Recommendation: In this letter, your faculty mentor must address how long you have been working on the research project, the value of attending this conference to your professional/academic development, and the amount of funding that they and/or their department is contributing to your travel.
- Budget Outline: This must detail all anticipated expenses (e.g., automobile milage, air fare, conference registration fee, hotel, food, etc.), indicate split costs if you are traveling in a group, specify all sources of funding supporting your attendance of this conference (e.g., departmental funding, funding from research grants, scholarship funding, self-funding, etc.), and indicate to which expenses each source of funding will be allocated (e.g., departmental funding will cover the cost of conference registration).
- Proof of Abstract Acceptance: This documentation verifies that your research project has been accepted for presentation at the conference that you plan to attend.
It is the student’s responsibility to check with their research mentor as to whether or not their research project is restricted (i.e., classified, export controlled (EAR/ITAR), proprietary or other restriction). If the research is classified as restricted, the release of any information to the public must be coordinated with the Office of Research Compliance & Security to obtain required authorizations before release. Severe penalties, both civil and criminal, may result if restricted information is made public without the proper authorizations.
Expectations Of Recipients
- Work with your home department or faculty mentor's department in a timely manner to coordinate all travel and purchases related to conference attendance.
- Submit a brief summary of your conference experience within two weeks of your return to the Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and Associate Dean of Shackouls Honors College, Dr. Anastasia Elder, at aelder@honors.msstate.edu. Click here for travel support report writing tips.
- Present your work at the MSU Undergraduate Research Symposium, held each spring and summer.
Virtual Conference Support
Eligibility
Applicants must be in good standing with the Shackouls Honors College.
Application Materials
- Complete the online application, detailing your expected registration costs, whether a faculty member recommended that you attend the conference, and why you are interested in attending the conference.
- If you are presenting research, please also submit proof of your abstract’s acceptance to the conference along with the online application.
Expectations of Recipients
- Submit a brief summary of your conference experience and what you learned within two weeks of its conclusion to the Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and Associate Dean of Shackouls Honors College, Dr. Anastasia Elder, at aelder@honors.msstate.edu.
- If you present research at the virtual conference, please also present your work at the MSU Undergraduate Research Symposium, held each spring and summer.
