Arranging travel
This resource page provides instructions on how to travel as a student in the School of Music.
Important terms to know:
- Worktags — These are a letter and number combination unique to each funding source. Much like a bank account or credit card number, worktags tell our financial system where to draw money from when you are purchasing or being reimbursed.
- Spend Authorization — This is an outline of your budget submitted into our Workday financial system that receives formal approval to spend money from your funding source(s) for this travel. An approved Spend Authorization is required prior to any travel. Traveling without an approved Spend Authorization means you are not eligible for reimbursement, so please ensure you complete this step.
- Expense Report — This is a request for reimbursement after you have made purchases. You will provide receipts to verify the amount spent, and you will be reimbursed either by check (for non-employees) or electronic transfer (for student employees).
Traveling as a Non-Employee
If you are not a student employee, email ASC-Music-Finance@osu.edu to create a Spend Authorization on your behalf. Please include:
- Your planned spending
- Your funding source(s)
- The reason for your travel
- An address for your reimbursement checks to be sent to
The Fiscal Team will input on your behalf and let you know when your travel is approved. After approval, you can make travel-related purchases.
When you have made purchases and need to be reimbursed, ASC-Music-Finance@osu.edu can process that for you as well.
Traveling as a Student Employee
If you are a student employee, learning the Workday system can be valuable as you may use various request systems in your career. Below are the steps to take to make your own Spend Authorization and Expense Report.
If you are struggling with submission or simply need to focus on your schoolwork, email ASC-Music-Finance@osu.edu and we are happy to help guide you or make submissions on your behalf.
STEP 1 — Secure your travel funding
See Student Funding Opportunities for details on available funds and grant applications. If your grant is approved, you will receive a confirmation and worktags that you will need to use on your request.
STEP 2 — Plan your budget
Outline your intended expenses for your trip and their cost. This will help you moving forward. Important items you may need to include:
- Airline ticket
- Hotel stay
- Conference registration fee
- Ground transit (bus, Uber, Lyft, taxi)
- Vehicle rental
- Meals: refer to Per diem rates for estimated costs of the location where you will stay
STEP 3 — Create a Spend Authorization
Prior to traveling, you must submit and receive approval on a Spend Authorization in Workday. This is an estimated budget plan with a detailed rationale for your travel. It will route to the appropriate approvers who will confirm you can travel. You cannot travel for university business without an approved Spend Authorization.
See the Create a Spend Authorization Guide [pdf] (opens in a new window) to complete this task. Contact ASC-Music-Finance@osu.edu if you need assistance with this process.
STEP 4 — Purchasing and Traveling
Prior to and during your travel, it is important to keep all itemized receipts for anything you will need reimbursed for. If needed, you can take a picture of your receipt with your phone so you will not have to worry about losing the physical receipt.
Once you have made a purchase, you may request reimbursement. You may request multiple reimbursements up to the limit of your grant(s), so you do not need to wait to submit all receipts at once.
STEP 5 — Reimbursement
Reimbursement requests must be submitted within 30 days of trip completion.
To request Reimbursement, you will need to enter an Expense Report into Workday. See Create an Expense Report [pdf] (opens in a new window) for the process; reach out to ASC-Music-Finance@osu.edu for any assistance. Reimbursement will use the same method as your paychecks.