Folger Shakespeare Library Fellowship 2021

Sponsor

The Folger Shakespeare Library

Program

The Folger Shakespeare Library Fellowship

Description

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 and to make fellowships more adaptable. The global pandemic, ongoing at the time of this announcement, requires that adaptability. In 2021-2022, Folger research fellowships will place value on many different forms and phases of scholarly enterprise as well as places to pursue it.

In their applications, scholars 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 type of work they would like to undertake, with a justification of why and how their research agenda will advance their project.

Folger fellows join together to create a high-powered, multidisciplinary community of scholars, who come from different fields but who share cognate interests in literature and history, art and performance, philosophy, religion, and politics. Scholarly discovery is a hallmark of the Folger Institute Fellowships Program. Our fellows are given the time and resources to bring their research projects to fruition. And they do so in the company of other scholars who are also engaged in testing ideas, weighing arguments, and stimulating fresh approaches to research, performance, and writing.

Eligibility

1. Nationality. Folger fellowships in 2021-2022 are open to scholars of any nationality. The Folger is eligible to sponsor international scholars  under the J-1 visa.
2. Degrees and Training. Applicants for Folger Fellowships should hold the Ph.D. by the time they begin their residency (with the exception of our funding partnership with the Omohundro Institute, which is open to scholars who are ABD). Archivists, creative artists, curators, dramaturgs, filmmakers, librarians, performers, and playwrights should hold an appropriate terminal degree in their field. 
3. Exclusions. Folger staff, current consultants, and members of the Folger Shakespeare Library Board of Governors are not eligible to apply for Folger fellowships. Folger staff members should direct inquiries about research leave and professional opportunities to their supervisors and/or to Folger Human Resources.
4. Projects. The Folger will only award two fellowships per research project. Each application process is separate and each competition stands on its own.
5. Endowments and Funding Partners. Applicants do not need to specify a named endowment or funding source in their proposals. Applicants will be considered for all fellowships for which they are eligible.
6. Travel. Travel to work in archives, libraries, or museums is not a requirement of fellowship support and will not be the basis of an award for 2021-22. For those who subsequently decide to travel, we expect that you will inform yourself about, and follow, the most up-to-date public health guidelines in both your place of origin and your destination. All fellows are required to check with relevant research institutions in advance to make sure that they are open to scholars whose work is supported by outside funding (i.e. a fellowship from the Folger). Folger fellows are also expected to adhere to the public health and safety requirements of any institutions they visit during their fellowship.
7. Professional Ethics. All Folger fellows are required to abide by the Folger Institute’s Code of Ethics.

Prize

The Folger Institute will offer non-residential research fellowships, in the amount of $3,500, to support four continuous weeks of research and writing.

Special Notes

Please note that research activities carried out in the context of COVID-19 need to adhere to the University of Guelph COVID-19 research principles, policies, guidelines and processes as they may be updated from time to time and communicated on the Office of Research Web-Page.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted online, using the application portal provided on the Folger Shakespeare Library Website. Application criteria may be found on the Folger Shakespeare Library website.Please submit an OR-5 and a completed application to research.services@uoguelph.ca by the external deadline. 

For More Information

For more information, contact stratprg@uoguelph.ca or contact Amanda Herbert at aherbert@folger.edu. See the Folger Shakespeare Library website for more information.