Student Travel Fellowship Guidelines and Application

In an effort to promote its research aims and to infuse an appropriate mix of young members into the Academy, the Academy provides student travel fellowships. These fellowships are designed to encourage optometry students, optometric residents, and students in eye and vision related graduate programs to attend key national meetings and exchange scientific ideas on research. Eligible students are those who are currently enrolled full-time or have graduated/completed residency within a year of the meeting they wish to attend.

Each year the Academy offers a number of travel fellowships of $750 each for students to attend the annual meeting of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) and the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO). Fellowships are awarded primarily for accomplishment and potential in optometric research and education. Academic abilities, including clinical abilities if relevant, are considered. Being the presenter of a paper or poster is required. Award winners will be given one of the following awards based on availability.

• Frank W. Weymouth Student Travel Fellowship
• Academy Student Travel Fellowship
• Irvin M. and Beatrice Borish Student Travel Fellowship
• New Jersey Chapter Student Travel Fellowship (must provide proof of residency)
• Florida Chapter Student Travel Fellowship

Although students can apply to attend a meeting for which they have previously been awarded a travel fellowship, priority may be given to first-time awardees. However, previous winners for travel to one meeting (either AAO or ARVO) are encouraged to apply for the other. Please note that only applicants with an accepted abstract to the meeting that they are applying to will be considered for a student travel fellowship. Other criteria used by the reviewers include the applicant’s one page statement, the faculty evaluation, and the quality of the abstract. Please note that each student may only be the recipient for one travel fellowship per meeting.

Applicants will be notified of the committee’s decision prior to the meeting the applicant wishes to attend. The award checks will be presented to the awardees during the meeting they have been awarded a Fellowship to attend.

• Winners of the student travel fellowship to the ARVO meeting must attend the Monday evening AAO/AOA Reception to receive their award check.
• Award winners to the American Academy of Optometry’s Annual Meeting must attend the Hirsch Memorial Research Symposium to receive their award check.

ARVO 2010 Student Travel Fellowship

The Academy is excited to announce that we will accept student travel fellowship applications online for ARVO 2010; only applications submitted online will be accepted. Apply directly on the submission site. Under ARVO Student Travel Fellowship, select apply. If you are not a current member of the Academy, you must create a profile for yourself before applying (select create one under Awards Call List). For those that are Academy members, whether student, candidate for Fellow for Fellow, please enter your member ID (select login under Awards Call List). Please check that you submitted the following portions of the application:

Education
One-page statement
Questions
Accepted abstract
Nomination Information (Once you submit your application, an email will be generated to the email address provided of your recommender. Your recommender will go to that link and upload their recommendation. ) 

Application deadlines are due Friday, March 12, 2010 and recommendations are due Monday, March 15, 2010.

Academy 2010 San Francisco Student Travel Fellowship
 

The Academy is excited to announce that we will accept student travel fellowship applications online for Academy 2010 San Francisco; only applications submitted online will be accepted. Apply directly on the submission site. Under Academy 2010 San Francisco STF, select apply. If you are not a current member of the Academy, you must create a profile for yourself before applying (select create one under Awards Call List). For those that are Academy members, whether student, candidate for Fellow for Fellow, please enter your member ID (select login under Awards Call List). Please check that you submitted the following portions of the application:

Education
One-page statement
Questions
Accepted abstract
Nomination Information (Once you submit your application, an email will be generated to the email address provided of your recommender. Your recommender will go to that link and upload their recommendation. ) 

Application deadlines are due Wednesday, August 4, 2010 and recommendations are due Friday, August 6, 2010.

  2010 Deadlines:

• ARVO Annual Meeting Travel Fellowships: March 12, 2010, Recommendations due March 15, 2010
• AAO Annual Meeting Travel Fellowships: August 4, 2010, Recommendations due Friday, August 6, 2010
  

Please direct all questions regarding the AAO & ARVO Student Travel Fellowships to:

Helen Chan ()
American Academy of Optometry
6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 506
Rockville, MD 20852

Cornea, Contact Lenses & Refractive Technologies Resident Travel Fellowship

Each year, the Section on Cornea, Contact Lenses & Refractive Technologies of the American Academy of Optometry gives a monetary award to worthy optometric cornea and contact lens residents to attend the annual meeting and participate in section events. To receive the travel award the resident MUST submit all required application materials (informational letter and application), attend the meeting and be present at the CCLRT Section reception on Friday evening, November 19, 2010. The deadline for application is August 6, 2010.