American Philosophical Society, RESEARCH PROGRAMS
Information and application instructions for all of the Society's programs can be accessed at our website, http://www.amphilsoc.org. Click on the "Grants" tab at the top of the homepage.

INFORMATION about ALL PROGRAMS
Purpose, scope
Awards are made for noncommercial research only. The Society makes no grants for academic study or classroom presentation, for travel to conferences, for non-scholarly projects, for assistance with translation, or for the preparation of materials for use by students. The Society does not pay overhead or indirect costs to any institution or costs of publication.

Eligibility
Applicants may be citizens or residents of the United States or American citizens resident abroad. Foreign nationals whose research can only be carried out in the United States are eligible, although applicants to the Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology must be U.S. citizens, U.S. residents, or foreign nationals formally affiliated with a U.S. institution. Grants are made to individuals; institutions are not eligible to apply. Requirements for each program vary.

Tax information
Grants and fellowships are taxable income, but the Society is not required to report payments. It is recommended that grant and fellowship recipients discuss their reporting obligations with their tax advisors. Grant funds are not to be used to pay income taxes on the award.

Contact information
Questions concerning the FRANKLIN and LEWIS AND CLARK programs should be directed to Linda Musumeci, Director of Grants and Fellowships, at LMusumeci@amphilsoc.org or 215-440-3429.

Questions concerning all LIBRARY FELLOWSHIPS should be directed to libfellows@amphilsoc.org or 215-440-3443.

Questions concerning the MELLON FELLOWSHIPS should be directed to Magdalena Hoot at mhoot@amphilsoc.org or 215-440-3442.

 

BRIEF INFORMATION about INDIVIDUAL PROGRAMS

Franklin Research Grants
Scope
This program of small grants to scholars is intended to support the cost of research leading to publication in all areas of knowledge. The Franklin program is particularly designed to help meet the cost of travel to libraries and archives for research purposes; the purchase of microfilm, photocopies or equivalent research materials; the costs associated with fieldwork; or laboratory research expenses.
Eligibility
Applicants are expected to have a doctorate or to have published work of doctoral character and quality. Ph.D. candidates are not eligible to apply, but the Society is especially interested in supporting the work of young scholars who have recently received the doctorate.
Award
From $1,000 to $6,000.
Deadlines
October 1, December 1; notification in January and March.

 

Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research
Scope
The Lewis and Clark Fund encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation. Applications are invited from disciplines with a large dependence on field studies, such as archaeology, anthropology, biology, ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, and paleontology, but grants will not be restricted to these fields.
Eligibility
Grants will be available to doctoral students who wish to participate in field studies for their dissertations or for other purposes. Master’s candidates, undergraduates, and postdoctoral fellows are not eligible.
Award
Grants will depend on travel costs but will ordinarily be in the range of several hundred dollars to about $5,000.
Deadline
November 15 (letters of support due November 11); notification in early April.

 

Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology
Scope
The American Philosophical Society and the NASA Astrobiology Institute have partnered to promote the continued exploration of the world around us through a new program of research grants in support of astrobiological field studies undertaken by graduate students and by post-doctoral and junior scientists and scholars.
Eligibility
Grants will be available to graduate students, postdoctoral students, and junior scientists who wish to participate in field studies for their theses or for other purposes. Undergraduates are not eligible.
Award
Grants will depend on travel costs but will ordinarily be in the range of several hundred dollars to about $5,000.
Deadline
February 15; notification in May.

 

The APS Library offers a variety of long- and short-term residential fellowships for scholars at various stages of their careers. Subject-specific research is supported, primarily in the areas of early American history, the history of science and technology, and Native American and Indigenous topics, as is work in the digital humanities. Application deadlines will be determined shortly, and new opportunities are continually being added. Please consult the APS website, https://www.amphilsoc.org/grants/fellowships, for the most up-to-date information.

 

Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellowship

Scope
The two-year fellowship, based in the APS Museum, will provide hands-on experience in curatorial work and the opportunity to pursue an independent research project, preferably one related to the collections or programs of the Society’s library and museum. The Mellon Fellow will conduct research in the APS collections four days per week in preparation for the APS Museum’s interdisciplinary exhibitions exploring the intersections of history, art, and science. The fifth day may be used for independent research.
Eligibility
PhD in any humanities discipline, awarded within the past five years. The history of science, 18th- and 19th-century American history, and the history of art often relate most closely to exhibition content. However, the museum's approach is interdisciplinary, and applications from qualified researchers in any humanities discipline are welcome.
Stipend
$51,548 a year plus benefits, along with additional funds for research support, travel, and relocation.
Deadline
TBD.

Information updated August 2022

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