SPS Travel Grants

Nominations

Each Chapter may nominate up to two Chapter members to attend the IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing (ICASSP) or IEEE International Conference on Image Processing (ICIP) in-person. While each Chapter can submit two nominations, there is no guarantee that one or both will be approved. If you plan to submit more than one nominee per conference, please complete two separate nomination forms. 

Each participating Chapter’s candidate(s) is required to be an IEEE Signal Processing Society member in good standing, as well as a current practicing engineer, to be considered for the travel grant support. You will need the nominee's IEEE Membership Number in order to submit the nomination.

If you are a Practicing Engineer and do not have a local Chapter or your local Chapter Chair is non-responsive, then an exception may be made for you to submit a self-nomination. Self-nominations must include the reasoning why; if there is no explanation, then the nomination will not be considered. Consideration of self-nominations is at the review committee's discretion.

Nominations must be submitted no later than the deadline listed in the Important Dates in order to be considered. Please plan accordingly and allow yourself enough time to submit the nomination as there will be no exceptions for late or incomplete nominations. The Society will review the nominations and determine if travel support will be awarded.

Eligibility

In order to qualify for a Practicing Engineer Travel Grant, nominees MUST meet the following criteria requirements:

• Must be an active SPS member, in good standing at time of application
• Must be a practicing engineer and fall into one of the following categories: Industry (including small and medium enterprises), Industrial research and development, Self-employed, Consultant, Unemployed young professionals unaffiliated with universities
• Must have a reference/nomination
• Must physically attend the in-person conference
• If awarded, the grantee must attend the physical conference. If the grantee only attends the virtual portion of the conference, the grantee will not be eligible for reimbursement under the travel grant program.
• Nominees who are professors or students at universities will not be considered for this travel support.
• Practicing engineers who have accepted papers at the respective conference will not be considered.

Expectations

Nominees who are selected to receive the grant are expected to physically attend the in-person conference and complete one of the following actions in acceptance of the travel grant funds:

• Write a short article about the conference for the Society’s newsletter
• Write a summary of one of the sessions for the conference website/newsletter
• Give a summary talk at a local Chapter meeting and report back to the Society about this

Grant Information

Grant Amount. Travel grant support will be awarded in the amount of (up to) US$1,000 for selected individuals traveling within the same continent or (up to) US$2,000 for selected individuals traveling between continents to the conference. If awarded, payment amount is based on submission of eligible receipts up to the allotted amount.

Eligible Expenses. The grants can only be used to cover the travel expenses (i.e. accommodations, economy airfare, transit such as trains, trolleys, buses, taxis, etc. to and from airport, and visa fees, associated with the grantee traveling to the approved conference. Only the grantee’s expenses can be reimbursed. Receipts must be provided for all expenses being claimed for reimbursement under the Practicing Engineer Travel Grant. The receipts must show form of payment used, name, date, and amount paid. Hotel reservation confirmations or bookings, invoices, or quotes for airfare are not acceptable receipts unless the proof of payment is also provided with the document.

All travel expenses must be submitted through IEEE’s NextGen Expense Reimbursement (Concur) tool. Detailed instructions on how to create an account and properly input receipts will be shared with the selected grantees who are receiving travel support.

The Society reserves the right to review all submitted expenses to determine eligibility and the final allowed reimbursement amount. The Practicing Engineer Travel Grant cannot be combined with other Society travel support. If a nominee is selected for more than one travel grant, they will only be able to claim one.

Grant Payment. The grant will be paid on a reimbursement basis and receipts are required for all expenses being claimed. Payments will not be issued in advance. Funds will be issued by way of a bank transfer after the competition via IEEE’s NextGen Expense Reimbursement (Concur) tool. 

Detailed instructions on how to create an account and properly input receipts will be shared with the selected grantees who are receiving travel support.

Prior to claiming your travel grant award, you must submit receipts of your travel expenses that are equal to or exceed the grant amount in order to receive the full travel grant payment.

Important Notes

1. In order for your nomination to be considered, the nominee is required to have current SPS membership and be a practicing engineer (industry) at the time of application.
2. Travel grants cannot be transferred to another individual.
3. Only a limited number of grants will be awarded, and on a highly competitive basis. There is no guarantee that a Chapter's nomination will be selected.
4. The grants will be awarded to nominees who have a genuine need for support.
5. The grants can only be used to cover the travel expenses (conference registration is not an eligible expense) for nominees to attend the conference. The grants, if approved, will be on a reimbursement basis following the conference.
6. All nominations must be submitted via this platform and must be submitted by the deadline set by the travel grant selection committee in order to be considered. Late applications will not be considered, no exceptions.
7. Nominees will be notified of the decision by the email provided on the nomination. Selected grant recipients will be notified with further instructions on how to accept and claim the travel grant.
8. The SPS travel grant selection and oversight committees reserve the right to make the final decision regarding all nominations.
9. IEEE may not be able to provide certain services to certain designated countries, entities, or individuals from those countries or entities. View a list of these countries.
10. Selected grant recipients must make their own travel arrangements and keep receipts for all expenses being claimed. Receipts must include the date, amount, and what it is for.

How to Submit a Nomination

All nominations MUST be submitted to the official Practicing Engineer Travel Grant Nomination System. The link for the current nomination period can be found in the official document (see How to Submit a Nomination section). Nominations submitted in any other way will not be considered.

Contacts & Resources

• If you have any questions or difficulties submitting a nomination (prior to the deadline) please contact us via email.
• IEEE Signal Processing Society membership can be added here.​

The Signal Processing Society has established a benefit for its Certified Chapters that allows Certified Chapter Chairs to nominate their SPS Student and Graduate Student Members to receive limited travel support (up to US$1,000) to attend ICASSP or ICIP! The grants will be awarded to a limited number of applicants who are planning to attend the conference and have a need for support to alleviate some costs of traveling.

Nominations

Each currently Certified Chapter can nominate more than one student, but only one student from each Certified Chapter is eligible to receive funding. Each candidate must meet the eligibility criteria and attend in-person to receive the travel grant. While each Chapter can submit nominations, there is no guarantee that one nominee will be selected as funding for the program is limited. If you plan to submit more than one nominee per conference, please complete separate nomination forms.

Each participating Certified Chapter’s candidate(s) is required to be an IEEE Signal Processing Student or Graduate Student member in good standing and meet all eligibility criteria to be considered for the travel grant support. You will need the nominee's IEEE Membership Number in order to submit the nomination.

Nominations must be submitted no later than the deadline listed in the Important Dates in order to be considered. Please plan accordingly and allow yourself enough time to submit the nomination as there will be no exceptions for late or incomplete nominations. The Society will review the nominations and determine if travel support will be awarded.

Eligibility

In order to qualify for a Certified Chapter Student Travel Grant, nominees MUST meet the following criteria requirements:

• Must be an SPS Student or Graduate Student Member in good standing at the time of application
• Must be a member of an currently-certified SPS Chapter
• Must have a reference/nomination submitted by the Certified Chapter leadership
• Must physically attend the in-person conference
• Candidates can have an accepted paper at the conference, but the paper will not be considered or reviewed during the evaluation process.
• If awarded, the grantee must attend the physical conference. If the grantee only attends the virtual portion of the conference, the grantee will not be eligible for reimbursement under the travel grant program.
• Students receiving travel grant support through the conference student travel grant program are not eligible to apply. Funding cannot be combined with other SPS or SPS conference travel grant support.

If a nominee does not meet the eligibility requirements at any point leading up to the conference, the grant may be revoked. 

Grant Information

Grant Amount. Travel grant support will be awarded in the amount of (up to) US$1,000 for selected individuals. If awarded, payment amount is based on submission of eligible receipts up to the allotted amount. Nominees and Nominators will be notified via email of the decision.

Eligible Expenses. The grants can only be used to cover the travel expenses (i.e. accommodations, economy airfare, transit such as trains, trolleys, buses, taxis, etc. to and from airport, and visa fees, associated with the grantee traveling to the approved conference. Only the grantee’s expenses can be reimbursed. Receipts must be provided for all expenses being claimed for reimbursement under the Certified Chapter Student Travel Grant. The receipts must show form of payment used, name, date, and amount paid. Hotel reservation confirmations or bookings, invoices, or quotes for airfare are not acceptable receipts unless the proof of payment is also provided with the document.

All travel expenses must be submitted through IEEE’s NextGen Expense Reimbursement (Concur) tool. Detailed instructions on how to create an account and properly input receipts will be shared with the selected grantees who are receiving travel support.

The Society reserves the right to review all submitted expenses to determine eligibility and the final allowed reimbursement amount. The Certified Chapter Student Travel Grant cannot be combined with other Society travel support. If a nominee is selected for more than one travel grant, they will only be able to claim one.

Grant Payment. The grant will be paid on a reimbursement basis and receipts are required for all expenses being claimed. Payments will not be issued in advance. Funds will be issued by way of a bank transfer after the competition via IEEE’s NextGen Expense Reimbursement (Concur) tool. Detailed instructions on how to create an account and properly input receipts will be shared with the individuals who are selected to receive the travel support.

Prior to claiming the travel grant award, the selected recipient must submit receipts of your travel expenses that are equal to or exceed the grant amount in order to receive the full travel grant payment.

Important Notes

1. In order for your nomination to be considered, the nominee is required to have current SPS Student or Graduate Student membership at the time of application.
2. Travel grants cannot be transferred to another individual.
3. Only a limited number of grants will be awarded, and on a highly competitive basis. There is no guarantee that a Certified Chapter's nomination will be selected.
4. The grants will be awarded to nominees who have a genuine need for support.
5. The grants can only be used to cover the travel expenses (conference registration is not an eligible expense) for nominees to attend the conference. The grants, if approved, will be on a reimbursement basis following the conference.
6. All nominations must be submitted via the official nomination submission platform and must be submitted by the deadline set by the travel grant selection committee in order to be considered. Late applications will not be considered, no exceptions.
7. Nominees will be notified of the decision by the email provided on the nomination. Selected grant recipients will be notified with further instructions on how to accept and claim the travel grant.
8. The SPS travel grant selection and oversight committees reserve the right to make the final decision regarding all nominations.
9. IEEE may not be able to provide certain services to certain designated countries, entities, or individuals from those countries or entities. View a list of these countries.
10. Selected grant recipients must make their own travel arrangements and keep receipts for all expenses being claimed. Receipts must include the date, amount, and what it is for.

How to Submit a Nomination

All nominations MUST be submitted to the official Practicing Engineer Travel Grant Nomination System. The link for the current nomination period can be found in the official document (see Important Dates section). Nominations submitted in any other way will not be considered.

Contacts and Resources

• If you have any questions or difficulties submitting a nomination (prior to the deadline) please contact sp-grant@listserv.ieee.org.
• IEEE Signal Processing Society membership can be added here.