Gary Burns Graduate Student Travel Grants

Gary Burns Graduate Travel Grant Application Process

Description: The Midwest PCA/ACA is pleased to announce an annual program of travel grants for graduate students to attend the MPCA/ACA conference.

Amount: Grants (4)

Submission Process:

1. Four grants of $100 each will be available each year. MPCA/ACA reserves the right to issue fewer than four awards in any given year or to issue more than four awards in a given year if money from the preceding year remains unspent.

2. To apply for a grant, you must submit an email with the following:

   • Your name, the name of your paper, and your institutional affiliation.

   • An electronic copy of your paper in .doc, .rtf, or .pdf format (you must submit a completed paper, not only an abstract, but your paper must include an abstract).

   • Proof of graduate student status (acceptable forms of proof include a photocopy of a student ID or current course schedule, or a letter from your advisor)

3. ​To apply for the Award, your proposal must have been accepted and your presentation must be scheduled at the conference.

4. Winners will be determined by a selection committee appointed by MPCA/ACA.

5. Applicants who do not receive the Award are still expected to attend the conference. If failure to receive the $100 Award makes it financially impossible for you to attend the conference, you should not apply for the Award. The Award is intended to provide supplemental support only and is not assumed to be the primary source of funds for travel to the conference.

6. The Award will be presented in the form of a $100 check payable to the author of the paper. For coauthored papers, checks in equal amounts will be written for each author, with the total of the checks equaling $100. Your check will be enclosed in your registration packet at the conference. You must attend the conference to receive the Award. Money from any unclaimed checks will revert to the MPCA/ACA treasury.

Send your email to: Awards@mpcaaca.org. The deadline for receipt of submissions is August 1 of the year of the conference.

Paper Guidelines:

MPCA consists of scholars from across the arts, humanities, and social sciences.  Thus, completed papers should be written for a general scholarly audience.

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Conference presentations may take the form of an informal talk or a more formal speech (or reading). The former is common in the social sciences and in presentations that use charts or graphs, or that discuss art, music, or other media forms.  In the latter format, presenters frequently read a paper; this is more common in the humanities.  Some presenters read formal papers, while others read a more accessible “reading version” of a formal paper.

Entrants may present a paper in any format they choose, and are encouraged to consult with their professors regarding presentation style.  Papers may use any style (MLA, APA, etc.).  The length of the paper can vary depending on how it will be presented.  If the paper will be read, it should be the appropriate “reading length” for a 15-minute panel presentation; this is typically about seven pages (two minutes per double-spaced page, excluding notes/bibliography).  If, on the other hand, the paper won’t be read, but is the basis of a talk/presentation, then longer papers may be submitted.  While there is no page limit, it is assumed that the content of the paper can be presented in 15 minutes.  In other words, the paper will be evaluated based on the assumption that it will be condensed into a 15-minute presentation.  Thus, if a presentation is based on a lengthy research project – for example, a senior thesis – the committee would recommend submitting a shortened “reading version” for the competition.

Please only submit to 1 award or grant category. Submissions to more than one category will not be selected.