Please apply for most awards during Abstract submission for the SMBE annual meeting. SMBE Awards require SMBE membership at application (3 years costs only $10 for students, $30 for others, at https://www.smbe.org/smbe/MEMBERSHIP.aspx). Caregiver awards can also be applied for at registration or by email.

Awards include:

1) SMBE Graduate Student Excellence Award for current graduate and recent postdoctoral researchers; Extended abstracts are not required, just the conference abstract and a CV. Graduate Student Excellence Award applicants will automatically also be considered for Young Investigator and Registration awards.

2) The Young Investigator Travel Award substantially funds the cost of attending, is for any graduate student or postdoc, requires abstract and cv, and will automatically also be considered for Registration awards.

3) The Undergraduate Travel & Mentoring award (including Masters students under a 3+2 system) requires title, abstract, a short explanation (250 words) of why you want to attend this meeting, and mention if you fall into a group traditionally underrepresented at SMBE (including e.g. enrolled in university later in life, or the first in your family to attend university). A short letter of support (250 words) should also be sent from your academic supervisor to SMBE Council, confirming academic status, and that the research is your own.

4) The Faculty Awards: In 2015, SMBE instituted four new awards for: Early-Career, Mid-Career, and Lifetime Research Achievements, and Service to the SMBE Community. Each year, we call for nominations for these awards and ask members to consider nominating colleagues. Briefly, the Junior Award for Independent Research is intended for nominees in tenure-track positions at the Assistant Professor level or equivalent; the Mid-Career Award is for the research contributions of faculty nearing promotion to Full Professor or in the early stages as a Full Professor; the Lifetime Contribution Award is for exceptional contributions to the published literature in the field of molecular biology and evolution; and the Community Service Award recognizes outstanding efforts on behalf of the Society and the broader scientific community. Awardees will receive a cash prize and a trip to this year's SMBE Annual Meeting.

Nominations require a nomination letter, which should clearly indicate the award under consideration and also serve as a recommendation letter; a separate one-page summary of the nominee’s qualifications for the award; a CV of the nominee; and an additional letter of recommendation. Self-nomination is not allowed. The nominator need not be an SMBE member, but the nominee must be a member of SMBE to be considered for the award.

5) Best Graduate Student Paper Awards for MBE and GBE and

6) Best Poster Awards are decided by nomination and a panel of judges during the conference, respectively. 

Caregiver Awards
Caregiver Awards can be applied for during registration, abstract submission, or by email to SMBE Council if an earlier response is needed. Up to $2000 may be awarded for members with children or dependent adults (including adult children with a disability or elderly relatives) to spend as they wish to facilitate attendance. Examples of eligible expenses include (but are not limited to) providing airfare for your dependent or your caregiver to accompany you, flying a relative out to help with care at home during the meeting, or extra help paying for on-site daycare.