Financial Aid

The Keystone Symposia scholarship program offers up to 1,200 USD to Students and Postdoctoral fellows to help defray expenses associated with in-person conference attendance, including airfare (restrictions may apply based on funding source), ground transportation, lodging, and a portion of the registration fee. Receipts will be required to receive reimbursement.

Abstracts submitted for poster presentation will be used as the basis for awarding the scholarships. Scholarship recipients will be selected based on the quality of science of the abstract and the relevance of the abstract to the conference topic. Only one application per abstract is accepted. Only one award per lab will be allocated.

Scholarship Application fees are as follows:

• $50 nonrefundable abstract fee for in-person meetings

Please check specific conference page under the Conference List for any additional financial aid opportunities.

To be eligible for a scholarship, you must be:

• A graduate student or postdoctoral fellow currently enrolled in an academic institute at the start of the meeting for which you are applying. Note: a graduate student is defined as a student who is studying for a higher degree at an academic institution. A postdoctoral fellow is defined as an individual with a Ph.D., M.D., or DVM degree who is engaged in a temporary period of mentored research and/or scholarly training for the purpose of acquiring the professional skills needed to pursue their desired career path and is within 8 years of these degrees. The 8-year degree determination is based on the meeting start date.
• Must attend meeting In Person and present poster abstract.
• An applicant is eligible to receive one award per meeting year (July 1st - June 30th).

Criteria for Abstract Review:

1. Relevance to the meeting topic
2. Significance of the scientific question and results
3. Style
   • Organization (e.g., the abstract has a clear beginning, middle and end)
   • Grammar and spelling
4. Clarity of scientific presentations
   • Clear question or hypothesis
   • Sufficient background
   • The experimental approach and rationale for the approach are clear
   • The results are clearly presented
   • The interpretation and conclusions are reasonable and logical

If you are eligible and wish to be considered for a scholarship, you should complete all the following by the scholarship deadline for the meeting you wish to attend. It is recommended you begin these steps in advance of the deadline date to ensure completion.

After logging into your account, click the “Apply for a Scholarship” button below and please follow these steps:

1. Select your meeting (Step 1 below)
2. Verify your contact information (Step 2 below)
3. Have your mentor submit a letter via our website to verify your status as a student or postdoc (Step 3 below)
4. Submit an abstract for the meeting to which you are applying (with paid nonrefundable abstract fee) (Step 4 below)
5. Contact scholarships@keystonesymposia.org when your abstract submission is completed so your scholarship application can be marked as completed

Attention NIH employees: Keystone Symposia processes scholarships as a reimbursement. Please note that if your employment status with NIH precludes receiving awards as a reimbursement, your award will consist only of registration paid "in kind". You will forfeit the remainder of the award. We will not be able to pay "in kind" for such expenses as lodging and transportation.

NOTE:  Global Health Awards and Underrepresented Trainee Scholarships are also available.

Please click here to view the Frequently Asked Questions for scholarships. If you have any additional questions, please contact scholarships@keystonesymposia.org.

You must Log in to our website (more steps will follow when you are logged in) to start the application process.