2025–2026 Tech Conference Scholarships You Can Still Apply For (With Deadlines)
Attending major conferences can open doors for early career professionals by leading to career opportunities, networking, and a chance to make real connections with people in your industry. But, they’re expensive!
Thankfully, there are a number of professional organizations, companies, and universities that provide fully-funded and partially-funded scholarships to help early career professionals, students, and underrepresented groups to attend top tier STEM, tech, and other industry conferences.
Below are four conference scholarships you can still apply for in 2025–2026. Whether you're an aspiring researcher or a future software engineer, these are high-impact opportunities worth bookmarking.
APPLY ASAP
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APPLY ASAP 〰️
1. Citadel Conference Travel Grant
Citadel has recently launched its Citadel Conference Travel Grant, an exclusive opportunity for motivated students in areas like mathematics, physics, statistics, and electrical engineering. This grant is open to those currently enrolled in bachelor’s, master’s or PhD programs in these disciplines, subject to conference participation guidelines. They’re accepting applications for 2 fully-funded conference scholarships for Grace Hopper Celebration and NeurIPS
Selected applicants will attend the world’s top conferences with their financial needs fully met, allowing them to focus on pushing the conversation forward in their chosen fields. Read the FAQs page for conference-specific requirements.
What’s covered?
Round-trip airfare, hotel, meals, airport transfers, and full conference registration
Invitations to Citadel-hosted dinners and recruitment events
Who can apply:
Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD students in Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, or other quantitative fields
Eligible conferences:
Grace Hopper Celebration, NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, ACL, APS March/April
Deadlines:
Grace Hopper: Apply by September 29, 2025
NeurIPS: Apply by September 26, 2025
2. QCon San Francisco Diversity Scholarship
What’s Covered:
Complimentary QCon SF conference ticket
(Note: Travel, hotel, and visa support not included)
Who Can Apply:
Senior Software Developers (5+ years of experience) who identify as members of historically underrepresented groups in the tech industry
What conference?
QCon San Francisco (November 17–19, 2025)
Deadline:
Apply by Monday, October 6 at 11:59 PM PST
3. UMD Catalyst Conference Scholarships
What’s Covered:
Conference registration, t-shirt, and access to UMD networking events
For in-person conferences: airfare, shared hotel accommodations, and ground transportation
Who Can Apply:
University of Maryland undergraduate and graduate students in computing-related majors or minors
(Priority given to juniors, seniors, and students in select graduate programs)
Eligible Conferences:
Grace Hopper Celebration, Richard Tapia, AfroTech, oSTEM, SACNAS, Techsgiving Summit, BEYA STEM, CAPWIC
Deadline:
Apply by October 3, 2025 (for Techsgiving Summit)
Limit: one in-person scholarship per academic year; max two total
✨ Pro Tips for Winning Conference Scholarships
Start early – Some require essays, transcripts, or letters of recommendation.
Tailor your application – Highlight your academic background, projects, or unique perspective. Share the story of you! People want to get to know you and how attending this conference can change your life.
Follow up – Keep an eye on emails for deadlines and next steps
