Welcome to the Humanities Initiative

Each year, the Humanities Initiative generally offers three Research Fellowships to graduate students in the humanities and art disciplines, including but not limited to history, art history, music, philosophy, cultural studies, literary and language studies, religious studies, drama and performance studies, cinema studies, and gender studies. Fellows are expected to be present in New York within the University community for the entire year of their residency. They will meet on a weekly basis to discuss their work-in-progress and that of invited guests, and will participate in Initiative activities, including the planning of an annual humanities festival.

Eligibility
All Ph.D. candidates maintaining matriculation with full-time status in the Graduate School of Arts and Science (including IFA, Performance Studies, and Cinema Studies) or the Steinhardt School are eligible to apply. GSAS students may apply for a Fellowship for post-MacCracken support.

Funding
Graduate Student Fellows receive a nine-month stipend of $23,046, comprehensive health insurance, maintenance of matriculation and service fees, and a research award of $2,000.

Department nomination
Students must be nominated by their department chair in consultation with their director of graduate studies. A department may nominate up to three applicants.

Selection criteria and review process
Fellows will be selected by the Humanities Initiative Fellowship Review Committee. The proposal and the department nomination will form the basis for the Committee’s decision making. Criteria for selection will be the strength and promise of the research project, the student’s academic record, and the potential for the student to contribute to and benefit from broad-based interdisciplinary discussions and activities.

Application format
Applications should contain the following materials. Please submit one complete, collated copy of your application to your department chair, who will forward it with a nominating cover letter to the Humanities Initiative. Please do not staple any part of the application (paper clips are fine).

1. Face sheet
   Please download the Face Sheet and fill in the requested information before printing.
2. Research description
   The proposal, consisting of no more than 1000 words, should describe the dissertation, its importance for the field in particular and the humanities more generally, and the progress expected to be made during the Fellowship year.
3. Full curriculum vitae
4. One official graduate transcript in a sealed envelope
5. Letter of recommendation from dissertation advisor
   This letter should assess your expected contribution to your field and your ability to engage productively with an interdisciplinary group of scholars. It should be submitted by the dissertation advisor directly to the department chair and should form part of the application packet.
6. Nominating letter from department chair
   In the case of multiple applications from the same department, a single letter is acceptable as long as it addresses each candidate.

Dissertation fellowship research stipends
In addition to the two Graduate Fellows to be funded through the Initiative, two winners of the GSAS Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship will be selected as Honorary Fellows to participate in the year’s weekly meetings and events. Each Honorary Fellow will receive a research award of $2,000 and will take part fully in the Initiative’s programming. No separate application is necessary to be considered for the Honorary Fellowship.

Application deadline and submission
Applications for the Graduate Student Research Fellowship competition may only be submitted through the student’s department. Applicants should therefore check on internal departmental deadlines. Final applications are due to the Humanities Initiative no later than Monday, November 8, 2010. One complete copy, collated in the order listed above, should be forwarded by the department to the following address:

The Humanities Initiative
Graduate Student Research Fellowship Competition
New York University
20 Cooper Square, Fifth Floor
New York, NY 10003-7112
Attention: Asya Berger

Notification
Applicants and their respective departments will be notified of award decisions on or around February 7, 2011.

Further information
Questions regarding applications are welcome and should be addressed to Asya Berger.