Ten National Fellowships Open to Temporary Faculty
by Chris Cumo
ONE OF THE best-known fellowship competitions is the Fulbright Scholar Program. Every year the Council for the International Exchange of Scholars, under an agreement with the State Department, awards some 800 fellowships for recipients to teach or do research in one of 140 countries. With so many available, almost anyone can find an award, believes Judy Pehrson, director of external relations for the CIES. Awards cover teaching or research for two to nine months, sometimes longer. Pehrson encourages adjuncts and independent scholars to apply.
“They are good candidates,” she says. “Most of them have lots of teaching experience.”
Applications, the deadline for which is August 1st of each year, are at www.cies.org.
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation offers fellowships in the humanities, the natural and social sciences, and the creative arts. The number of adjuncts and independent scholars who apply fluctuates from year to year and is difficult to pinpoint, notes Liz Gurl, assistant secretary of the Foundation. Fellowships cover six to twelve months and hold no conditions. The Foundation determines each stipend on a case-by-case basis. In 2001, the Foundation awarded 183 fellowships with an average stipend of $35,931. The deadline is October 1, and the Foundation notifies recipients the following April. Candidates must submit an application, available at www.gf.org/applic.html, a narrative outlining their accomplishments, a list of publications, exhibitions, musical scores, or film, and a statement of research plans, no longer than three single-spaced pages.
The National Humanities Center awards some 40 fellowships per year, one or two of which go to adjuncts and independent scholars, estimates David Rice, the NHC’s associate director for communications. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. and have amassed a record of publications. Anyone in any field of scholarly inquiry may apply, though recent Ph.D.s should be beyond the revision of their dissertation. Fellowships cover research between September and May, and stipends range up to $50,000 plus $2,500 for research and travel expenses. Candidates must submit an application, available at www.nhc.rtu.cn.us, a CV, a project proposal, and three letters of reference, all postmarked by October 18.
The National Endowment for the Humanities offers a variety of programs, including six- to twelve-month fellowships. Stipends are $40,000 for at least nine months and $24,000 for six to eight months. The NEH begins accepting applications each March 1, with a May 1 deadline, and a notification in mid-December. Candidates must submit an application, available at www.neh.gov/grants/onebook/fellowship, a project proposal no more than three single-spaced pages, a one-page bibliography of primary sources to be consulted, a CV, and two letters of reference.
The Penn Humanities Forum of the University of Pennsylvania offers Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships in all areas of the humanities except curricular research and the performing arts. The topic for 2002-2003 will be “The Book,” with research focusing on whether books will remain an important literary and cultural form in this millennium. In addition to research, fellows will teach one course per term at a stipend of $34,000. Applications are at humanities.sas.upenn.edu/mellonform.htm and must be submitted by October 15. Fellowships are for untenured
scholars who received or will receive their Ph.D.s between December, 1993, and December, 2001. Opportunities are promising for adjuncts and independent scholars, believes Jennifer Conway, director of the Forum. She admits that few apply but is committed through advertising to increasing their awareness of the award.
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars offers twenty to twenty-five fellowships per year and seeks proposals on national or international issues. Applicants should have publications beyond the dissertation and a research interest in governance, the United States’ global role, or the long-term challenges confronting the United States or the world. Fellowships normally cover research between September and May, though they are available for as little as four months. Recipients of a nine-month award receive an office and a stipend up to $85,000. Applications are available via e-mail request at fellowships@wwic.si.edu. The deadline is October 1, and the Center notifies recipients
the following April.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science awards fellowships in science and technology policy with a focus on public policy or the intersection of science and government. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. in the natural or social sciences or an MS in a branch of engineering and three years of experience. The stipend is $52,000, with fellowships to begin in September. The normal appointment is one year, though fellows may apply for a one-year extension. Candidates must submit an application, available at fellowships.aaas.org/application.html, by January 10 of the year in which they expect to begin the fellowship.
The National Science Foundation’s Societal Dimensions in Engineering, Science and Technology Program offers some thirty fellowships per year. Research should focus on ethics, values, or the uses of science and engineering. Proposals may run to fifteen pages and must be submitted at www.fastlane.nsf.gov/dllMenu.htm
by August 1. Fellowships range from one summer to two years with a stipend of up to $18,000 for a summer, to $60,000 for two semesters, and $120,000 for two years. About five adjuncts and independent scholars apply for a fellowship per year, estimates Rochelle Hollander, program director; their success in winning an award roughly equals that of tenured professors.
The Library of Congress awards up to ten fellowships per year to support research using its foreign-language collection. The stipend is $3,500 per month for four to nine months. Candidates must submit an overview of the Library’s materials to be consulted, a timeline for the completion of research, and a description of the publications that should stem from research. Applications are at www.acls.org/appform.htm, with a deadline of November 1. The Library notifies recipients the following March.
The National Endowment for the Arts offers fellowships to creative writers and translators of prose or poetry. Fellowships follow a two-year cycle, with awards to prose one year and poetry the next. The stipend for writers in $20,000 and that for translators between $10,000 and $20,000, depending on a project’s length. The deadline is March 11, and fellowships for 2003 are in poetry. The NEA will not accept applications, which will be available at
arts.endow.gov/guidefLit03/PDFFirst.html, before January 1.
Those wishing to learn about additional fellowships should consult the History of Science Society at depts.washington.edu/hssexec/grants/index.html. The list is updated regularly and includes fellowships in
all disciplines, not merely history of science.
