(subject to approval of NSF travel grant award and the availability of funds)
The IEEE SECON 2017 conference are pleased to offer a number of Student Travel Grant Awards. The award can be used to cover the full or a part of student attendees’ travel cost (up to $700) to attend IEEE SECON 2017. Applicants need to register and attend the conference and the award is made in the form of post-conference reimbursement to cover student travel related expenses based on valid receipts. We especially welcome applications from underrepresented groups (e.g., African-Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Native Pacific Islanders, etc), women, and non-author students.

Eligibility for Student Travel Grant Award
1)     The student must be enrolled in a full-time graduate program at an accredited U.S. institution.
2)     The student needs to register and attend IEEE SECON 2017 conference.
3)     If using the award for airfare reimbursement, the student will fly with a US-based carrier. According to NSF policy, only airfare on a US-based carrier can be reimbursed.

Application Process
An application for the student travel award should contain:
1. The applicant's vita.
2. A letter from the student including paper title if the paper has been accepted by SECON 2017.
The letter should include the following information. (1) A brief summary of research interests and accomplishments to date; students should demonstrate a serious interest in networking, through their course work and projects. (2) A description of areas reflected in the SECON 2017 program that would impact the student's research. (3) A statement about why the conference attendance is important to the student. Explanation on why attending IEEE SECON 2017 would be difficult without the travel award.
3. A recommendation letter from the student's advisor including the following. (1) Confirmation that the student is a full-time student in good academic standing. (2) The suitability of the SECON 2017 program material to the student's research area. (3) Ways this particular student would benefit from attendance at the conference. (4) The strengths and potential contributions of the student. (5) Commitment from the advisor to cover the additional costs of travel to SECON in excess of the student travel award.
An application should be submitted as a single PDF file to Student Travel Grant Award Chair, Dr. Ranga Rao Venkatesha Prasad (rvprasad@ieee.org) and Dr. Kewei Sha (sha@uhcl.edu) via email.
1. With Subject: SECON-2017 Student Travel Award Application (please note, emails may be missed without this subject)
2. Please mention the paper title and the paper number if applicable.
3. All materials as outlined above as a single PDF file
 
 
Deadlines
Application deadline: May 5, 2017 at 23:59 EST
Notification deadline: May 12, 2017
Awardee acceptance deadline: May 17, 2017 at 23:59 EST

FAQs
1. Should I merge my advisor’s recommendation letter with my application for submission?
Yes. Every applicant should submit all application materials as a single PDF file, which includes all required items listed in the “Application Procedure” section described above.
2. Should the advisor's recommendation letter be also in PDF?
Yes. It should be an item in the single application file in PDF submitted by the student applicant.
3. If my advisor prefers to submit the recommendation letter separately from my application, what should I do?
Please ask your advisor to send the recommendation letter to Dr. Ranga Rao Venkatesha Prasad (rvprasad@ieee.org) and Dr. Kewei Sha (sha@uhcl.edu) via email.
4. Am I eligible to apply for the student travel award being an author of a workshop paper?
Yes, you are welcomed to apply.
5. Am I eligible to apply for the student travel grant if I don’t have a paper accepted by IEEE SECON 2017?
Yes, you are encouraged to apply. We have funds reserved for non-author applicants.  
 
Award Selection Committee
Venkatesha Prasad, TU Delft, Netherlands
Kewei Sha, University of Houston – Clear Lake, USA

Award Selection Committee Advisors
Bhaskar Krishnamachari, University of Southern California
Niki Trigoni, University of Oxford

Contact
If your question is not addressed in the FAQ section, please contact the Student Travel Grant Award Co-Chairs Dr. Ranga Rao Venkatesha Prasad (rvprasad@ieee.org) and Dr. Kewei Sha (sha@uhcl.edu).