1. Completing the UGA Travel Authority form
Romance Languages professionalization workshop
December 4, 2015
Timothy Gupton, PhD

2. Attending conferences
Generally speaking, encouraged and/or required
If you’ve already been accepted, Congratulations!
Don’t delete the acceptance – you will need it!
There are many opportunities for travel funding on campus and within the department

3. Travel accounting
Completion of Travel Authority (TA) documents may vary from institution to institution
Procedures may vary
This needs to be done to account for your absence from campus
It also documents your intended participation as a presenter at a conference

4. Travel accounting Consider this process to be professional development
You will likely complete a similar process at your eventual job.
Some institutions reimburse for attendance only, too!

5. What if I don’t have funding?
Don’t give up hope. Funding may very well become available – sometimes as late as the end of the fiscal year (end of June).
The TA documents your whereabouts

6. When to complete a TA? The sooner, the better
They should be submitted 4 weeks in advance for domestic travel, 6 weeks for international travel (*Note: this differs from the Romance Languages travel webpage)
**Note: other links (keep this page open)
Go to UGA Travel Authority
Note that there is a special TA form for international travel

7. The TA form The basics: name, department, ID # (leave blank)
Nature of official business
Detailed justification of travel
Dates absent, Address while absent from campus
Direct charge (only for those who already have funds awarded)
Authorized travel agencies: (I use Global Escapes)

8. The TA form (cont’d) Department contact: Sharon Yen
Phone number
This is Sharon’s specialty. Please go to her if you have doubts or questions.
Please be nice to her.

9. The TA form: Expense estimates
Meals: use GSA per diem estimates (afterward, you can submit receipts, or be reimbursed for per diem amounts)
Use the link here (or google it):
Search by city
You see: daily lodging max. and M/IE
M=meals, IE=Incidental expenses (e.g. parking)
Know the breakdown:

10. The TA form: Expense estimates
First & last day rates: 75% of total
By meal breakdown: you cannot claim meals prior to departure and after return home (sorry!), so do not include them in your estimate

11. The TA form: Expense estimates
Lodging: Use your max. estimate
NYC in May: $270 / night (you will likely claim less later, e.g. if you share a room, use airbnb.com, etc.)

12. The TA form: Expense estimates
Transportation: use your favorite airline for an estimate (coach seating only, sorry…)
Don’t forget to include estimates for shuttle buses, public buses, metro fare, taxi, etc. – whatever you will use to get to your venue

13. The TA form: Expense estimates
Other: most common expense here is conference registration fees
Note on reimbursement: you cannot exceed max. allowable amounts (well, you can, but it won’t be reimbursed, so don’t do it!)
Time of departure: indicate this
Mode of travel: air, bus, car, etc.
 What if you travel by car? (to ATL or beyond…)

14. The TA form: Expense estimates
Travel by car
Mileage is reimbursed at a rate of $0.575 per mile for business travel
mileage needs to be calculated from UGA (Gilbert Hall) to the airport / destination, and not from your home address, unless it’s on a weekend
Use googlemaps, mapquest, etc. to estimate mileage total to/from and multiply by $0.575
Get reimbursed for your airport drive

15. A completed TA form

16. You’re done! Nice! Now print your TA form using portrait print layout
Sign the form and leave it in Dr. Casado’s mailbox for her signature
Any remaining issues, problems will be handled by Sharon Yen
You may have to complete/print your TA again if there are errors

17. What’s next? Prepare your conference talk!
Practice your conference talk as part of the Romance Languages colloquium before you go (so you don’t embarrass us!)
Knock ‘em dead at the conference!
Keep all your receipts from your travels!
SO, how do you get reimbursed?

18. Getting reimbursed
Go to the UGA Travel Expense Login:
Many blanks are the same as the TA and some are not
After you finish, SAVE your TE document
Then print, and sign
Tape (no staples!) all original receipts to a letter-sized sheet of paper (this is for ease of scanning)

19. A completed TE form (page 1)

20. A completed TE form (page 2)

21. Getting reimbursed Receipts that are letter-size do not require taping
Write any necessary explanations on the sheet of paper (e.g. shared room expenses)
Ask Sharon if you have any questions (and be nice…)
Staple your expense documents to the TE form, sign it, and leave in Sharon Yen’s mailbox

22. Getting reimbursed: important
If you already have dedicated funding, reimbursement takes time, typically 2-4 weeks
Be patient.
If you do not already have travel funding, you will have to be more patient…

23. What else?
Submit the Romance Language Travel report to the Travel Funds committee:
Remaining year-end funds get allocated to grad students
Attach acceptance and program listing of you & your presentation (Sharon will have record of all your receipts)

24. Anything else? Ask your major professor.
Check to see if your conference offers awards or prizes to graduate student presentations.
Know your deadlines.
There are funds available from the Graduate School at UGA:
Preference goes to PhD, dissertation research