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Rackham Graduate Student Professional Travel with Children Grant

The grant is intended to support Rackham graduate student parents who incur expenses while traveling with small children (under the age of six) while attending conferences, workshops, meetings, or other academic events as part of their scholarly research or in pursuit of professional career readiness both within and outside of academia. Requests may also include dependent care at home while the student is traveling, the cost of transporting the dependent, car seat and crib rental, and daycare charges. Students must certify that funds requested for dependent care are due to professional travel, and are above and beyond normal dependent care expenses (e.g., normal day care or care by a spouse, partner, or other family member will not be covered).

Eligibility

Rackham students are eligible to apply for funds if:

  • The student is in good academic standing in a Rackham degree granting program.
  • Students are not eligible for the award prior to the first term of their Rackham registration.

Deadline

Ongoing. Complete applications must be received one week prior to travel. No retroactive requests will be considered.

Award Description

Rackham students are eligible to request one award up to $750 within a 12 month-period. Please note that the IRS considers reimbursed child travel expenses as taxable income.

For students who qualify for need-based financial aid (including the child care subsidy), receipt of this Rackham award may reduce the original loan amount or subsidy. Please contact the U-M Office of Financial Aid for help evaluating your individual circumstances.

Application Process

  1. At least one week prior to the planned travel, the graduate student should complete a request for pre-approval using the online form. No retroactive requests for reimbursement will be granted.
  2. Graduate students will receive a pre-approval for travel expense from Rackham ([email protected]).
  3. The graduate student must use a personal form of payment for any travel expenses and retain all related receipts.
  4. Promptly after returning from the trip, the graduate student should complete a request for reimbursement using the online form, which will require uploading appropriate receipts and a brief explanation of each expense. Requests for reimbursement must be made within 60 days of travel.