Visit Day Financials

[rostats]

I recently got accepted into my top choice program and they invited me to come visit in a few weeks, with up to $800 in travel expenses paid for by the department. I live on the west coast and will be flying to the east coast, so the plane ticket is going to eat up most of that allotment. 

 

I'm wondering - is it typical for departments to reimburse for these expenses after the visit? Or do they pay up front? I emailed and asked but have gotten no response. I'm wondering if I should go ahead and purchase the plane tickets myself, or wait for the department to tell me whether they'll be covering that up front. I don't want to wait too much longer since plane ticket prices are going up every day...

 

Thoughts?

[m-ttl]

I don't know how old you are, but it's possible to get cheap flights if you're really dogged about it. (My roommate bought roundtrip tickets from the west coast to Beijing for like $780. She's magic, I'm convinced.) You can try http://www.studentuniverse.com/ (that's why I mention age, I think they have an age limit, but I'm not sure), and definitely clear your cookies/cache before you start searching for tickets! Airlines index what flights you're searching for, and adjust their prices accordingly. 

 

Weirdly, buying tickets in the middle of the night also seems to be helpful. But you should be able to get it under $800, hopefully! 

 

I'd also be inclined to assume they'll reimburse you, but I don't know. 

Edited February 5, 2014 by m-ttl

[Maleficent999]

I think typically it is a reimbursement. They don't just give you $800 in cash. They want you to submit receipts and such and then they'll reimburse you for "up to $800" of those expenses. If you end up spending less, they will only give you what it cost. It could be different at your program, but that's what I've seen.

Edited February 5, 2014 by Maleficent999

[Eigen]

As to whether the department books or not, that will also depend on the program. 

 

One of mine booked the entire trip through a school travel agent- flight, shuttle/taxi, room, etc. 

 

Another handled lodging reservations, but not the flight. I'd give the graduate admin a call, and see what they say. 

[TakeruK]

Agree with Eigen--check to be sure that they aren't already booking things for you. Otherwise, it's always going to be a reimbursement. Until you know otherwise, also keep all your receipts and ask for itemized receipts if you have any meals during your travel because some schools require a full itemized receipts to process the claim ("Credit card receipts" that just show the total won't work in these cases). Some schools will just pay a per-diem though, which is much more convenient, but it's best to keep everything until you know what is necessary. Also, in all of my visits, each of us was scheduled to spend 15-30 minutes with the admin staff in the office to process our paperwork for claiming expenses.