www.folger.edu/institute/fellowships

The Folger Shakespeare Library is embarking on a major renovation project to commence in early 2020. While this work is underway, the Folger Institute is committed to continuing its support of collections-based research, and to providing scholars with the resources they need to pursue and advance their work. The renovation offers the Institute the opportunity to create new kinds of awards, to make fellowships more adaptable, and to forge new relationships with archives, collections, libraries, and museums around the world.

Fellowship awards will be $3,500 to support four continuous weeks of work. The deadline for applications is January 1, 2020. Fellowships may be undertaken between July 2020 and May 2021.

Applicants should make a strong case for their proposed topic’s importance, its relevance to a field of study broadly supported by the Folger Library’s collections and programs, and the originality and sophistication of its approach. They should also describe the proposed location(s) of their work, with a justification of why and how this agenda will advance their project. Here are some scenarios an applicant might propose:

• A researcher is planning a trip to multiple archives in order to consult a range of rare materials, all in one trip.
• A researcher requests access to select electronic resources while writing from home.
• A researcher needs the dedicated time to work with a local collection.
• A researcher wishes to conduct research at a repository which is non-traditional, under-funded, or under-utilized.

The Folger has also arranged for a select number of archives, collections, libraries, and museums, without research fellowship endowments of their own, to host Folger fellows at their institutions. Each of these awards comes with an assurance of availability of collections items, space to work, and a contact person for reference consultations. Learn more about hosting partnerships at Jamestown Rediscovery, The John Rylands Research Institute, the Kislak Center at the University of Pennsylvania, Shakespeare’s Globe, and the Wellcome Collection.

Apply now online. Deadline for research fellowships is January 1, 2020.