The Southern California Chapter of The Wildlife Society (TWS SoCal) is
offering an undetermined number of travel awards of up to $1000 each to
help qualifying students and early career professionals attend the 2026
Annual Meeting https://monterey2026.tws-west.org/ of the Western Section
of The Wildlife Society in Monterey, CA (2-6 February 2026). The awards may
cover the costs of pre-conference symposia or workshops (see here
https://monterey2026.tws-west.org/pre-meeting-workshops/ for details).
The Chapter will award grants up to a maximum of $1,000 (depending on
availability of funds) per individual per calendar year. There is no grant
award minimum.
***Please pass this information on to any students or recent graduates that
would benefit!***
Applications are due *31 OCTOBER 2025 *by 11:59 pm PDT. The successful
candidate(s) will be chosen by the TWS SoCal Executive Board using the
following evaluation criteria:
*Eligibility *
All applicants must meet the following criteria:
• Be a member of TWS SoCal ($10/year; sign up here
https://wildlife.org/socal/membership/)
• Be a student enrolled at an accredited college/university within the
chapter’s geographic boundary (San Diego, Imperial, Orange, Los Angeles,
Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties)
• OR be a recent graduate (within the past 3 years) who resides or works
within the chapter’s geographic boundary
*Application Instructions *
All applicants must submit electronic copies of the following:
• Complete application form here https://forms.gle/nb2KQbGnsDwWubkT6 (see
attached for worksheet).
• Proof of TWS SoCal membership (copy of membership dues payment receipt).
• An essay (500 words maximum) describing your interest and career goals in
wildlife, conservation, and management as a whole. Please include a
statement of why you should receive this award.
• If you are planning to present, please include the abstract of your
poster or oral presentation and proof of acceptance (acceptance letter from
TWS-WS) if you have received it.
Applicants will be notified of the award results by 1 December 2025. The
award recipient(s) will be reimbursed for covered expenses after the
meeting and will be required to submit an expense form. The award
recipient(s) is/are expected to attend the SoCal Chapter annual meeting
(Wed, 4 Feb, 8-10 pm), and to submit a newsletter article/social media
post about their experience before reimbursement. Attendance at the Welcome
Reception, Breakfast Roundtable, Student/ECP Speed Networking with Wildlife
Professionals (Thurs, 5 Feb, 4:30-6 pm), and Awards Banquet, are highly
encouraged.
*Please submit all application materials (or questions) to: *
Colleen Wisinski
Student Affairs Committee Co-Chair
*StudentAffairs@tws-socal.org