1. Purpose of the EGPA Travel Grant

The European Group for Public Administration (EGPA) recognizes that economic and financial constraints can represent a significant barrier to conference participation for PhD students and early-career researchers. In line with its commitment to academic inclusiveness, diversity, and equal opportunities, EGPA foresees a Travel Grant to support their participation in the EGPA 2026 Conference and/or the PhD Symposium, to be held in Rome at Sapienza University from 24 to 27 August 2026.

The EGPA Travel Grant is designed to support emerging scholars, particularly those from institutions with limited financial resources, to promote international and interdisciplinary engagement, and to encourage sustained involvement in EGPA Permanent Study Groups (PSGs) as part of their long-term academic development.

2. Grant specificities

The EGPA Travel Grant aims to contribute to the costs associated with participation in the EGPA 2026 PhD Symposium and/or Annual Conference. The grant specificities are as follows:

• Amount: a maximum of €500 per selected applicant;
• Eligible expenses: travel and/or accommodation costs directly related to participation in EGPA 2026.
• Payout: reimbursement after participation, upon submission of official receipts, in accordance with EGPA financial procedures.

The travel grant does NOT include any waiver of the EGPA registration fee.

All grant recipients are required to register for the EGPA PhD Symposium and/or Annual Conference and pay the applicable registration fee.

3. Eligibility Criteria

The travel grant is open to PhD students and early-career researchers whose academic work is relevant to the themes of the EGPA 2026 PhD Symposium and the Annual Conference. Applicants are expected to meet all of the following eligibility requirements:

• Academic status: to be enrolled in a PhD programme or to be affiliated as an early-career researcher within three years of PhD completion at the time of participation in EGPA 2026 (i.e. August 2026); this enrolment or affiliation is at an academic institution in Europe;
• Conference participation: to have submitted an abstract to the EGPA 2026 PhD Symposium and/or to the EGPA Annual Conference (e.g. to participate in a Permanent Study Group or an Ad Hoc Group);
• Attendance commitment: to participate in-person at the EGPA PhD Symposium (24 August 2026) and/or the EGPA Annual Conference in Rome;
• Motivation: to demonstrate the drivers of one’s participation in EGPA 2026 in accordance with one’s research agenda and academic development (see further below).

4. Application Deadline and Requirements

Applications for the EGPA Travel Grant can be sent to egpa-conference@iias-iisa.org by 10 May 2026.

To apply for the EGPA Travel Grant, the following documents are required:

• A Curriculum Vitae (maximum 2 pages);
• Evidence of academic status;
• A statement of one’s PhD enrolment or early-career researcher status (e.g. official enrolment certificate or declaration) at an academic institution in Europe;
• A short written motivation (maximum 200 words) responding to the following question: How will the EGPA Travel Grant support your future research and academic development?

Please indicate your Conftool ID on your application. Incomplete applications or applications submitted after the deadline will NOT be considered.

5. Assessment criteria and notification

Applications will be assessed through a three-step process:

1. Applications will be reviewed and shortlisted by the EGPA Travel Grant Team, based on the following criteria:

• Eligibility for application (see the eligibility criteria regarding academic status, conference participation, attendance commitment, motivation as specified before);
• Scientific quality, originality and relevance of the research to be presented at EGPA 2026;
• Overall contribution to EGPA’s values of diversity and inclusiveness, including institutional, geographical, disciplinary, and gender dimensions.

2. On this advice, the EGPA Steering Committee will make the final decision on the applications selected

3. Notification: applicants will be informed by the 26th of May 2026 about the application outcome (i.e. acceptance or rejection).

6. Grant Payment

Travel grants will be reimbursed after participation in the EGPA 2026 Conference and/or PhD Symposium, in accordance with EGPA financial procedures. Further details regarding reimbursement modalities will be communicated to successful applicants in due course.

7. Contact Information

For additional information, please contact egpa-conference@iias-iisa.org.