Professional Development Grants are intended to support professional development and research activities organized by Graduate Center students. It is open to all Graduate Center students. The grants may fund a wide range of projects, including student-organized conferences, publications, and workshops on aspects of professional development.

Funding for professional development projects is available to individual students, departmental groups, Chartered Organizations, and ad hoc groups at all campuses where doctoral students are located. In order to apply for a DSC Professional Development Grant, applicants must submit a proposal and estimated budget. The Professional Development Committee of the DSC evaluates the proposals and selects recipients.

The maximum award amount this year is $700. Additional and matching funds are also available in extraordinary circumstances; see Bylaw 14.6.

Some examples of professional development projects are:

• workshops on aspects of professional development such as public speaking, teaching, resume writing, job searches, grant writing, etc.
• conferences about student research in any field (sciences, engineering, business, humanities, social sciences)
• publications of conference proceedings, student research activities, or research findings

Requirements

• All grant proposals MUST be received at least one (1) month before the event/publication date.
• All events must be publicized at least fourteen (14) days in advance in order for the event to be eligible to receive grants from the Professional Development Committee.
• The DSC Professional Development grant is only open to projects and events organized by students for events that are open to the participation of all GC students, and invitation to participate shall be made public (through fliers posted at the Grad Center, announcements in The Advocate, email to the GC community, etc.)
• Grant recipients must advertise DSC sponsorship (in part or in whole) in flyers, ads, etc.

Submit a request
Before submitting your request, you will need have a line-item budget prepared and mock publicity drafted indicating DSC sponsorship. You must also login or register to create, edit, and track your request.

Claiming Funds
Awarded funds may be claimed as reimbursement through check request. All requests must be accompanied by original receipts. (On the "Organization type" line, indicate Professional Development Grant and on the "Purpose" line, indicate the name of event/project.

PLEASE NOTE: There is no guarantee that funding allocated to a specific initiative will be allocated at all or in the same amount the following year nor is there any guarantee of full or partial funding for any Professional Development proposal. Organizers are encouraged to also look for sponsoring from additional sources. Students who have been awarded a Professional Development Grant for a given event or publication cannot apply for a DSC Cultural Affairs Grant.