Humane Studies Fellowship (HSF)

Programmes: full-time PhD programs in a variety of fields, including economics, philosophy, law, political science, history, and sociology

Countries of origin: Provides funding for students who attend universities outside of the USA.

To be eligible to apply for the Humane Studies Fellowship, you must:

• be enrolled full time in a PhD program at any institution for the academic year;
• have a research interest that contributes to the advancement of classical liberal scholarship.

International students are eligible; however, preference is given to applicants who live or study in the United States, Canada, and/or the United Kingdom.

Previous Humane Studies Fellowship applicants and winners who will be enrolled as full-time PhD students in the coming academic year are welcome to apply. Prior participation in IHS programs is not required. The fellowship is open to PhD students at any university – applicants do not need to be enrolled at George Mason University to be eligible.

The Humane Studies Fellowship (HSF) is a non-residency, renewable award of up to USD 15,000 per year to assist students enrolled or planning to enroll in full-time PhD programs. Humane Studies Fellows not only gain financial aid, but also connect with IHS and our network of scholars working to advance classical liberal ideas in the academy. This includes access to academic advising and invitations to future career development seminars, research workshops, discussion colloquia, and other networking events.

The Institute of Human Studies (IHS), which supports a diverse collection of graduate students across a wide range of academic disciplines within the humanities and social sciences.

No sharing of acceptance rates. The Humane Studies Fellowship is highly competitive with a large number of applicants.

Applications for summer and academic year: funding will open on August 1. Applicants must submit their candidacy by December 1 for consideration.

Through an application form.

To complete the application for the Humane Studies Fellowship, you must upload the following documents:

1. CV
2. A recent writing sample of 3,000 words or fewer. Partial samples of longer works are acceptable.
3. An official or unofficial electronic transcript from your current or most recent institution.
4. Two letters of recommendation are required for this application. On the application, please provide the name and email of two references. When you submit your application, we will send them an email with a link to submit a letter of recommendation. Letters of recommendation are due by December 15, 2020.
5. If applicable, please upload your dissertation proposal.

Applicants can request funding for the academic year and/or summer within the application. Please note summer funding is highly competitive. If you apply for both terms, strong applications must clearly articulate a research agenda or plan to use the funds for each award term.