Students

Student programs, paper assistance, and young-professional opportunities.

IEEE IES Students and Young Professionals Paper Assistance Program

The Student & Young Professionals (S&YP) Activity Committee of the Industrial Electronics Society (IES) is continuously implementing a paper assistance program (IES-SYPA) – a competition-based financial support for the IES S&YP members to attend IES Majority-Sponsored Conferences.

IRAI 2026 funding

For IRAI 2026, around 10 SYPAs of up to USD 1,500 each are available. The award covers transportation to the venue city and back (using the most economical means of transportation), meals, and accommodation in a hotel not higher than 3-star class.

During the conference, we will also run a SYP Forum – a special event helping students and young professional members stay connected in the IES community. The forum offers a unique opportunity to ask questions and get professional advice directly from IEEE Fellows, the IES President, AdCom members, and experienced colleagues. The programme includes keynote speeches by leaders from academia and industry, a 3M video session, and an open discussion between participants. We encourage all conference participants to join!

How to Apply for IES-SYPA

Eligibility

  • You MUST be an IEEE member — Student, Graduate Student, or Young Professional (YP up to 15 years after graduation).
  • You MUST be a member of the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society.
  • You MUST have a paper accepted at the conference as an author or co-author, and be the person presenting it.
  • You MUST reside outside the host city.
  • Your paper must be fully registered.
  • You SHOULD NOT have received the SYPA in the last 2 years.

Application steps

  1. In the submission system, toggle the correct membership (Student or YP) — the “IEEE-IES SYPA” tab appears once your paper is accepted.
  2. Click that tab and submit the required information, document, and 3-minute video.
  3. Wait for the two-round video review (see below).
  4. If selected, attend the conference and present at the 3-Min Video Session.

Video requirements

Strict video rules — non-conforming entries are disqualified
  • Length MUST be exactly 3 minutes. Even 1 second more or less is not tolerated.
  • Avoid PowerPoint slides for most of the video. Be creative and generate interactive content. Watch other videos for ideas.
  • Some seconds MUST include paper information: title, authors, affiliations, your university/company/research team.
  • The last 5 seconds MUST acknowledge IEEE IES for the IES-SYPA.
  • The video MUST be shared via Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, etc. Provide a link that is viewable to anyone (no permission required).
  • No background music unless from the YouTube Audio Library or with explicit, verifiable proof of licence for YouTube publication. Submitters must declare compliance with international copyright laws and YouTube policies, with attribution in the video description. Avoid third-party “free music” sites not officially affiliated with recognised licensing platforms.

Once your paper is accepted, the IEEE-IES SYPA tab will appear, and you can apply for it as:

IEEE-IES SYPA Tab IEEE-IES SYPA Tab

Ensure you have turned on the required membership options in your profile at the top-right corner of the submission system. You should be an IEEE and IES member and also a Student or Young Professional. Account settings Account settings Account settings Account settings

For any questions regarding the SYPA application submission issues, please contact the conference support team directly at conferences@ieee-ies.org

Review Process

The committee members will review videos in 2 rounds. All applicants will be given one chance to update their videos according to the 1st-round comments. Then, the final video will be reviewed in 2nd-round and receive an average score based on its impact, creativity, style, presentation, video quality, etc. The ones with the highest scores from both paper and video reviewers will be selected as the winners of the IES-SYPA. They will receive financial support for travel expenses and a diploma during the Gala dinner.

The winners’ videos will be uploaded to the IES YouTube Channel, and you will receive an email including the link to your video on the IES YouTube Channel. You should copy that link to the IES Facebook Event page of the conference and wait for the thumbnail to appear, then post it!

Moreover, you should post the link to your video to the IEEE Collabratec. You are also allowed to share it on any other websites. The direct link to the Facebook event page and IEEE Collabratec Group will be sent in the same email and will be available on the conference website.

Timeline (in EDT)

EventDate
IES SYPA Application submission deadline30 June 2026Next
1st-round general comments on videos sent by15 July 2026
Submission of the final 3-minute video25 July 2026
Announcement of winners5 August 2026

To Receive the Travel Assistance

  1. You MUST be on the list of final SYPA recipients.
  2. You MUST attend the conference and give a 3-minute speech during the 3-Min Video Session.
  3. You MUST submit the surveys (prior to, during, or after the conference) provided by the SYPA organising committee.
Don’t forget the video file

Bring your video file to the 3M Video Session. Videos are displayed on a large screen, and you will speak to the audience for 3 minutes — keep it brief and informative.

All details (place, date, time) for the 3M Video Session and the diploma ceremony will be announced on the first day of the conference.

Travel award & reimbursement

The fund can cover meals not included by the conference, transportation, and accommodation. Keep your receipts and use the Concur platform to submit expenses and required information. All instructions are on the SYPA page of the conference.

Note: Do not use Concur for booking SYPA travel — use it only for reimbursement. Conference registration fees are not covered under this travel grant.

Some tips to prepare your video

  1. The 3M video session aims to help researchers/engineers (students and young professionals) learn how to advertise their projects to the public and promote themselves. Whether your work is theoretical or by simulations, you are expected to prepare the movie as interactive, live, and interesting for the viewers. Record some minutes from the running results in the software during simulation or practical tests.
  2. Record some videos from your hardware design or even software results (e.g., the screen of your computer) while they are running. Or add some discussion with co-authors, research team, etc. At least 70% of your video should include interactive parts rather than solid slides.
  3. It is recommended that you present the work with your own voice during the video recording. Please present it in a different way than a PowerPoint presentation. Your video will be placed on the IES YouTube Channel and should attract viewers.
  4. Showing some information on the video using simple texts as subtitles is also recommended. Note that the voice is helpful for YouTube viewers; however, during the conference, it will be replaced by your 3M speech. The video may be displayed without sound during the S&YP 3-Min Video Session.
  5. Sometimes, background music can make your video much more enjoyable.
  6. The audience has already seen your paper presentations, so be different in your videos.
  7. Try to make people interested in your videos. Devote some seconds of the video to your office, lab, or any place you work in, and show the stuff you use for that project, introduce co-authors and supervisors, explain motivation, etc.
  8. The 3M video does not need to show the details of your work. Some concepts are enough to attract people’s attention. Deep theoretical and mathematical concepts are useless for advertising your project to people with different interests.
  9. Note that the video should be impressive and interactive. Static pictures interest only some. Find gifs or flash images from the Internet.
  10. Ensure you have the copyright for materials used in your video, including animations, songs, photos, etc.

Take a look at other videos posted on the IES YouTube channel to get some ideas:
https://youtu.be/WJf6z_1eTqY
https://youtu.be/GP-rRp4vgjA
https://youtu.be/IML7pDSwXfg

On behalf of the IES YP committee,
Chathurika S. Wickramasinghe (Chathuriwicky@ieee.org)
Chair, IES YP Activity Committee

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