Ten UCSF Postdocs Receive $2,500 Travel Grants

Ten UC San Francisco Postdoctoral Scholars received UCSF Postdoc Travel Award grants this year from GEPA to attend conferences and field-specific workshops. The $2,500 award, which is designed to support the transition to research independence, supports attending conferences, workshops, or gaining professional development.

“Because of our UCSF Travel Grants, postdoctoral scholars have been able to broaden their professional networks, present their research findings to global experts in their field, and gain invaluable exposure that strengthens both their careers and the scientific community,” said Chequeta Allen, assistant dean of postdoctoral affairs.

The year’s winners are attending events around the world, including conferences in Hawaii, China, and Spain. 

Abubakr Alshoaibi

“This opportunity allowed me to engage with senior epidemiologists and clinicians, whose constructive critiques reinforced my research approach and encouraged me to advance future studies,” said Abubakr Al-Shoaibi of the Department of Pediatrics.

 

Laura Gambini of the division of cardiology

“I had the opportunity to connect with attendees from varied backgrounds, including clinicians, engineers, and industry leaders,” said Laura Gambini of the Division of Cardiology.

 

If postdocs would like to apply for a 2026 travel grant award, visit the Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs website for more information.  

Congratulations to the following winners!

Grant Recipient 

Dept. 

Conference 

Location 

Abubakr Al-Shoaibi 

Pediatrics 

Obesity Week 2025 

Atlanta, GA 

Francisco Aparicio 

Neurology 

Neuroscience 2025 

San Diego, CA 

Fabio Begnini 

Pharmaceutical Chemistry 

Pacifichem 2025 

Honolulu, Hawaii 

Lucas Cabrera-Zapata 

Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology 

Fens Forum – Advancing Neuroscience 

Barcelona, Spain 

Laura Gambini 

Medicine Cardiology Division 

Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Medical Imaging 

Irvine, CA 

Jon Gauthier 

Neurological Surgery 

Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing 

Suzhou, China 

Prabhat Kumar 

Neurological Surgery 

Biomedical Engineering Society Annual Meeting 

San Diego, CA 

Christine Liu 

Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences 

Molecular Psychiatry Annual Meeting 

Lihue, Hawaii 

Archana Venkataraman 

Cellular and Mollecular Pharmacology 

Cold Spring Harbor Brain Body Physiology Conference  

New York 

Dillys Xiaodi Liu 

Psychiatry  

Alzheimer’s Imaging Conference 

London