Scholarships & Financial Support

One of the central objectives of the Asian Congress of Herpetology (ACH) is to make international scientific exchange more accessible to students, early-career researchers, and emerging conservation practitioners from across Asia.

Scientific talent is not distributed according to financial capacity. Many promising young researchers work in countries, institutions, or circumstances where the cost of international travel, registration, accommodation, or specialist training can prevent them from participating in major scientific meetings.

ACH aims to help reduce these barriers.

Subject to available funding from sponsors, institutional partners, foundations, and donors, ACH 2027 will offer a range of competitive scholarships, grants, and participation-support opportunities.

How to Apply

Scholarship opportunities will appear in the participant's ACH account when Abstract submission applications open.

Designed for Indonesian (local) students studying or residing outside the island of Java who have an accepted abstract for presentation at ACH 2027 and require financial assistance to travel to Yogyakarta. Priority will be given to students travelling from regions where transportation costs create a significant barrier to Congress participation. Best for Indonesian undergraduate, Master's, and PhD students based outside Java.

To be eligible, an applicant must:

• be a citizen of Indonesia;
• be currently residing, studying, or based in Indonesia;
• travel to Java from one of the islands outside the island of Java specifically to participate in ACH 2027;
• be currently enrolled as an undergraduate, Master's, or PhD student;
• have an accepted abstract for presentation at ACH 2027;
• be the presenting author of the accepted abstract; and
• demonstrate genuine need for travel assistance.

Priority considerations: Scientific merit of the accepted abstract, financial need, distance and cost of travel, career stage, and potential benefit of ACH participation. Students based in Java are not eligible for this travel-grant category, although they may apply for other ACH scholarships where eligible.

Support: A partial or full contribution toward eligible domestic travel expenses to Yogyakarta, subject to the value and availability of grant funding.

Designed for Asian (international) students travelling to Indonesia from one of the 51 Asian countries recognized within the ACH geographic framework to present an accepted abstract at ACH 2027. The purpose is to ensure that financial barriers do not prevent promising young researchers—particularly those from countries or institutions with limited international travel funding—from contributing to a genuinely representative Asian Congress.

To be eligible, an applicant must:

• be a citizen of one of the 51 Asian countries recognized within the ACH geographic framework;
• be currently residing, studying, or based in one of those 51 eligible Asian countries;
• travel to Indonesia from one of those eligible Asian countries specifically to participate in ACH 2027;
• be currently enrolled as an undergraduate, Master's, or PhD student;
• have an accepted abstract for presentation at ACH 2027;
• be the presenting author of the accepted abstract; and
• demonstrate genuine need for travel assistance.

Priority considerations: Scientific merit of the accepted abstract, financial need, distance and cost of travel, career stage, and potential benefit of ACH participation. Students based outside the 51 recognized Asian countries and travelling to ACH from outside Asia are not eligible for this travel-grant category, although they may apply for other ACH scholarships where eligible.

Support: A partial or full contribution toward eligible international travel expenses to Yogyakarta, subject to the value and availability of grant funding.

The ACH Young Herpetologist Scholarship recognizes and supports promising active researchers under 35 years of age who are making meaningful contributions to amphibian and reptile research, conservation, or related fields. Best for Active early- and mid-career herpetologists with a demonstrated record of research, publications, fieldwork, conservation activities, or other relevant scientific contributions.

Selected recipients will receive:

• ACH 2027 Congress Stay Package benefits; and
• Domestic transportation support to Yogyakarta from either Soekarno–Hatta International Airport (CGK), Jakarta, or Yogyakarta International Airport (YIA), according to the recipient's travel arrangements and the transportation options provided by ACH.

International airfare to Indonesia, visa costs, personal expenses, and other costs not specifically included in the scholarship remain the responsibility of the recipient unless otherwise stated.

Applicants must:

• be under 35 years of age at the application deadline;
• be actively engaged in herpetological research, conservation, or a closely related field;
• demonstrate recent and continuing research activity;
• have an accepted abstract for presentation at ACH 2027;
• be the presenting author of the accepted abstract; and
• provide a brief CV or research profile demonstrating their scientific activities and achievements.

Selection will be competitive and based on scientific merit, research productivity, originality, contribution to herpetology, career potential, and the expected benefit of participation in ACH 2027. Priority may be given to applicants from Asian countries in accordance with ACH's objective of strengthening the next generation of Asian herpetological leadership.

The ACH Standard Registration Scholarship provides registration support for selected participants who demonstrate scientific merit and genuine financial need and who would otherwise have difficulty participating in ACH 2027.

Best for: Undergraduate students, graduate students, and early-career researchers who require financial assistance to attend and present their work at the Congress.

To be eligible, an applicant must:

• be registered under, or have selected, the Standard Package;

• have an accepted abstract for presentation at ACH 2027;

• be the presenting author of the accepted abstract; and

• demonstrate genuine financial need.

Priority considerations: Only participants applying through the Standard Package will be considered for the ACH Registration Scholarship. Applicants selecting the Economy, Congress Stay, Luxury, Platinum, or Companion Package are not eligible for this scholarship. Priority will be given to citizens of Asian countries.

Support: Awards may provide partial or full support toward the Standard Package registration fee, subject to the availability of scholarship funds and competitive selection.