Funding of Travel Expenses for Conferences

Participation in conferences is important for early-career researchers to present their research findings, expand their networks, gain new insights, and collaborate on interdisciplinary projects. These events not only promote professional and academic career development but also increase the visibility and reputation of the institution in the national and international academic community.

At the University of Bonn there are various programs to promote early-career researchers, through which grants for congress and conference travel can be applied for:

The Bonn Graduate Center supports international conference trips by doctoral candidates from Bonn¹
As part of the Argelander Program for early-career researchers, the University of Bonn awards Argelander Grants to support international conference trips by postdoctoral researchers from Bonn¹
The Equal Opportunities and Diversity Office provides funding for the active participation of female postdoctoral researchers in meetings and conferences as part of the funding program to strengthen the Equal Opportunity Process (STEP)² for female early-career researchers.

In addition to the central funding opportunities, the Faculty of Arts now also provides grants to finance travel to conferences, meetings, or congresses.

However, due to the limited funds available, we ask that you check whether one of the above-mentioned funding options can be used before submitting an application to the Dean's Office.

Who can apply for a grant?

All members of the academic mid-level faculty who are employed at the Faculty of Arts as

doctoral students
postdoctoral researchers
habilitation candidates or
research assistants are eligible to apply.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

Mid-level faculty members who are funded by third-party funds are unfortunately not eligible to apply, as third-party projects generally have their own funds for funding measures. Please check with your project management for more information.

What criteria must be met?

Participation in the conference must

be linked to the presentation of the applicant's own research results in the form of an independent lecture (participation as a co-author together with other speakers is excluded from funding),
be recommended by your supervisor (for doctoral candidates),
demonstrate clear added value for your own research and career planning.

In principle, the following also applies:

To be eligible for a grant, you must first submit a business trip request via the Travel Expenses Department. This is because only expenses that have been approved by the Travel Expenses Department can be reimbursed.

All important information about the Travel Expenses Department can be found in the service portal on Confluence:

https://confluence.team.uni-bonn.de/display/SAPSUP/Hilfe+zu+Reise+Self+Services³

https://confluence.team.uni-bonn.de/display/SAPSUP/Kurzanleitung+Reise+Self+Service+Reiseantrag⁴

Note: It is also possible to request a discount from the Travel Expenses Office when submitting a business trip request. This discount is usually 80% of the expected costs. For more information, please refer to the Travel Expenses Office website mentioned above.

How high are the grants?

The amount of the grants is staggered according to the geographical location of the event venue:

Domestic travel up to 750 euros,
Travel within Europe: up to 1,000 euros,
Travel outside Europe: up to 2,500 euros.

Information on the consideration of sustainability

The Faculty of Arts is committed to the objectives of the University of Bonn to promote sustainable mobility, which are anchored in the current Strategy Paper Sustainability 2024⁵ as part of the 'Field of Action Operations' (p. 34).

We therefore ask you to carefully consider which means of transportation you choose when planning your trip and before submitting your application in order to contribute to the reduction of mobility-related greenhouse gas emissions.

Recommendations on this can also be found in the Guidelines on Sustainability in International Cooperation⁶ of the International Office under point 2 'Mobility'.

Application

Annual deadlines: January 15 / June 15

Applications must be submitted using the application form.

The following must be uploaded with the application form

Explanation of the project (see download)
Confirmation of acceptance of the lecture
Curriculum vitae

In the event of approval, proof of use of the funds must be submitted to the Dean's Office no later than three months after funding.

Application form ⁷

Explanation of the project ⁸

Contact

Please use our online contact form if you have any questions regarding grants! You will receive a reply as soon as possible.

Contact form ⁹