This NEW grant is established and sponsored by the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society and administered by the Members and Benefits Committee. It is open to all graduate students from any AFRICAN NATION of residence. The grant provides partial financial support for students planning to travel and attend the IEEE AP-S/URSI International Symposium to be held in July 2024, in Florence, Italy. This travel grant program will provide awards (each with the amount of 1000 USD) for 30 students. The awards should be used to partially pay for the in-person conference attendance expenses (tickets, hotel accommodation, transportation, registration fee, etc.). The awarded students will receive wire transfers with the amount of funds AFTER they have attended the conference.

To qualify for the grant

The applicants must be graduate students conducting their research in the IEEE AP-S areas of interest during the time of their applications.

They will have to physically participate in this AP-S conference. A recommendation letter from the student advisor is required that shows:

• the criterion of in-person attendance is satisfied,
• the student’s planned graduation date is January 2025 or after.
• their other travel expenses (i.e., return plane tickets Africa-Italy, visa, travel insurance, transportation, etc.) being covered by the advisor,
• overall recommendation of the student and her/his potential.

Note that each academic supervisor can only nominate one student for the grant. Applicants must also submit a one-page personal statement highlighting their goals and objectives from attending the conference (best if the student is to present an accepted paper).

Student applicants must be IEEE AP-S Student Members (attach a copy of your valid membership card).

Potential Tasks for the Selected Applicants

Awardees are expected to volunteer for at least one full conference day or two half-days during the symposium. The tasks will be decided upon by the local organizing committee, and might include but not limited to filling surveys and interacting with attendees, filling the IEEE AP-S booth and interacting with other Society members, supporting audio/video services, videotaping sessions, etc.

They will be supervised by the local arrangements committee and a local representative will guide them to complete their volunteering tasks.

After the end of the conference, each awardee may be asked to make a final report (maximum 3 pages, highlighting the tasks performed, the overall experience rating, and the benefits from attending IEEE AP-S/URSI Symposium in person as well as impact on her/his research program). Awardees are encouraged to prepare and deliver a presentation to their home university/department/IEEE AP-S Chapter about their conference experience.

Important Dates

To apply, please submit your application by filling out the form available at this link.

Contact Information

For more inquiries about this IEEE AP-S Symposium Student Travel Grant, please contact Prof. George Shaker at gshaker@uwaterloo.ca