Short Trips

Applications: At the earliest three month before the trip and at the latest one month after the trip.

Doctoral students enrolled at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences can apply for a grant to cover the costs of various types of research trips:

• Conferences, congresses, workshops*
• Summer / Winter Schools
• Research stays at universities or other research institutions
• Archive and library research
• Excavations / field studies

Support is provided for trips that are of central importance for the academic qualification and last less than two weeks.

*The prerequisite for a grant for costs of a conference , congress or workshop is usually active participation (e.g. presentation, paper, poster, panel chair). If active participation is not possible, the principal supervisor must justify in the application form why the trip is nevertheless important for the academic qualification.

Conditions

Enrolled doctoral students of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are eligible to apply (also during their leave of absence in the publication phase). In 2025, a maximum grant of CHF 1500 per person can be applied for. Several applications can be submitted until the maximum amount is reached. There is no entitlement to the grant. Amounts of less than CHF 100 will not be paid out. Furthermore, the budget proviso applies.

Grants can be applied for:  

• Travel costs (train, bus, flight including the mandatory CO2 compensation tax*)
• Overnight stay costs (including breakfast)
• Fees for participation in academic events (congresses, conferences, workshops and similar)  
• Costs for networking activities as part of the programme of academic events that are not included in the participation fee (e.g. conference dinner, excursions and similar)
• User fees for archives, museums and libraries

The grant is awarded in the form of an allocated stipend. The application is therefore decided on the basis of a budget plan and taking into account the maximum possible annual application amount. Accordingly, it is also possible to submit an application before booking and paying for a trip. There is no accounting after the trip has taken place, but applicants are obliged to keep the expense receipts relevant to the grant awarded for up to six months after the trip in case of any queries. Minor deviations from the budget plan are permitted. If the trip cannot be taken, the Graduate School must be informed immediately and the grant must be repaid in full.

*Please note that the CO2 compensation tax must be taken into account in the budget plan for flight travel. 

Application

Complete applications must be sent to rechnungswesen@phil.uzh.ch  no earlier than three months before the trip and no later than one month after the trip.

Please note the following restrictions during the turn of the year:

• Applications for trips in November and December must be submitted by 1 December
• Applications for trips in January, February and March can only be submitted from 1 January

For the complete application, please combine the following documents into an integral PDF file with a maximum size of 50 MB:

1. Application Form Short Trip (DOCX, 148 KB)
2. For congresses, conferences,  or workshops: Confirmation of active participation (invitation, programme or similar). If active participation is not possible, the principal supervisor must justify in the form why the trip is nevertheless important for the academic qualification.
3. For flight travel: Proof of entry in the ClimateSmart.travel tool (as a screenshot). Please enter the cost center G-60002-15-02 when entering the data. If you are exempt from the CO2 emissions tax, please enter code 01.

Incomplete or late applications will be rejected without processing. The Graduate School does not enter into correspondence regarding payment, which is usually made within two months of receipt of the application in your account.

Insurance and Secondment

Travel insurance is the responsibility of the doctoral student. Please refer to the ‘UZH for employees’ website for information on any insurance cover provided by UZH. 

Doctoral students with a position at UZH require an authorised secondment if they are absent for more than five working days. If you have any questions or concerns regarding secondment, please contact the person responsible for human resources at your institute.