About

Broadly speaking, graduate training in the humanities has implicitly privileged the production of peer-reviewed research. With the PhD program culminating in the writing and defense of a dissertation that reflects original research, the expectation is that the PhD student will eventually publish this dissertation either as several peer-reviewed journal articles, or a monograph. Tied to this, a career trajectory in higher education will also include applying for grants and fellowships in order to fund one’s research. They may include grants for foreign language study, conference participation, dissertation writing, travel grants to do archival research or fieldwork, or being in residence at another institution. Such grants often reinforce the university as the locus of original humanistic research, as well as the professional goal of obtaining and maintaining a faculty position within a research university or 4-year college.

The Humanities Center at UCI supports graduate students’ research through external research (information sessions and workshops, grant-writing skills, and 1-on-1 feedback on application materials), internal research and community grants (supported by the Office of Research and the UC Humanities Network), and other opportunities.

Alongside such grants are other opportunities that allow for humanities scholars to participate in broader interdisciplinary conversations, communicate their research to broader audiences, and explore careers outside of faculty positions. The Humanities Center, in collaboration with the Humanities Dean's Office, has been able to fund a number of students to attend external research and professional development opportunities for the past few years. These include the Los Angeles Review of Books Publishing Workshop, HASTAC (Humanities, Arts, Science and Technology Alliance and Collaboratory), the Colby Summer Institute for Environmental Humanities, the National Humanities Center Virtual Podcasting Institute, and Marxist Institute for Interdisciplinary Research. Students must be accepted to these programs prior to requesting funding through the Humanities Center.

Humanities Center Internal Grants

All Humanities Center internal grant and funding opportunities use InfoReady for applications. To access InfoReady, visit: https://ucihumanities.infoready4.com/.

If this is your first time using InfoReady, login with your UCI Net ID, and edit your profile (top right navigation bar) to include your primary department.

The following guidelines are for reference only.

Open grant calls and current application guidelines are available on the Humanities Center InfoReady website: https://ucihumanities.infoready4.com/

Faculty and/or graduate collaborations may apply for up to $2,000. Centers and research clusters already supported by the Humanities Center may apply for up to $1,500.

The Humanities Center supports collaborations that foster vibrant intellectual communities. The new Building Intellectual Community grants provide funding for limited-term sets of activities that bring together colleagues on the UCI campus, in the Southern California region, or from elsewhere to engage in discussion and collaborative activities around a shared intellectual interest. These grants replace the previous Collaborative Conference grants by expanding the range of activities that can be funded and clarifying the purpose of the funding.

These collaborations should engage faculty and graduate students across disciplines. Building Intellectual Community grants may be used to support:

  • academic conferences, symposia or colloquia;
  • a series of events, such as speakers or film screenings, with a unifying theme during a quarter or the academic year;
  • academic trainings (such as new methodologies across disciplines);
  • work groups for fields that cross disciplines.

Building Intellectual Community grants may also be used for limited-term activities that bring humanities research to public spaces or community knowledge creation into academic research spaces.

 

The following guidelines are for reference only.

Open grant calls and current application guidelines are available on the Humanities Center InfoReady website: https://ucihumanities.infoready4.com/.

Graduate students in the UCI School of Humanities who have achieved PhD candidacy are eligible to apply for Individual Research grants (max award $3,000) through the Humanities Center.  Graduate students may receive only ONE Individual Research during their graduate studies. 

Grant funds may be used for research travel, such as flights, ground transportation, and lodging; archival and copying fees; and other research expenses, such as translation or transcription.  Grant funds may not be used to pay for summer living expenses, language study, travel to a conference, food or per diem while traveling, or equipment.

Submission

Narrative Description (two page maximum):

  • Please provide a description of your dissertation project, what you plan to accomplish with the grant funds and how these activities are necessary to your dissertation project.

Project Budget (one page maximum):

  • Please provide a list of all project expenses, identifying which expenses will be paid by the grant and which expenses will be paid by other funds. 
  • Please list other funds – both received and pending – that will be used for this project.

Letter of Support from Dissertation Advisor or Faculty Supervisor:

  • In addition to your application, your dissertation advisor or chair must send a brief email to Amanda Swain (ajswain@uci.edu) indicating support for the application, including why these activities are necessary to complete your dissertation.

The UCI Humanities Center is sponsoring a workshop for graduate students in the arts, humanities, and qualitative social sciences on writing fellowship and grant applications. It will be led by Edward Dimendberg, Professor of Humanities, who has extensive experience in successfully applying for fellowships and grants and has served on numerous fellowship selection committees.

Professor Dimendberg has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the Getty Research Institute and twice received Fulbright fellowships and grants from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Research in the Arts to support his research on architecture and urbanism. In addition, he has received fellowships from the American Academy in Berlin, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, the Getty Grant Program, the International Research Center for Cultural Studies, the Center for Creative Photography, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. He was a UC Presidential Fellow in the Humanities from 2008-2009. From 2005–2008 he served as chair of the jury that awards the Millard Meiss book prize of the College Art Association (CAA).  In 2008 he was co-director of the “Urban Visual Studies” Dissertation Proposal Development Fund Workshop sponsored by the Social Science Research Council (SSRC). He later served on the Faculty Editorial Committee of the University of California Press, on the Publications Committee of the Modern Language Association, and as the inaugural Multimedia Editor of the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. From 1990–1998 Dimendberg was Sponsoring Editor in Film, Philosophy, and the Humanities at the University of California Press, and during the course of his work there wrote numerous grants to support the more than 100 books he published as an editor.  

Meeting 1 (Thursday April 11, 12-2pm, HG 1002) will introduce the differences between grants and fellowships, types of funding entities, internal versus extramural support, principles of cost sharing, the timetable of the grant making cycle, the major sources of information about grants, and the principal grants and fellowships in the humanities and qualitative social sciences. Assignment due this session: Before this first meeting, students will identify possible sources of funding for their own research. Rather than simply study the guidelines of funding agencies, students will also conduct a review of recent past grant and fellowship recipients and identify those with projects similar to their own, both as a resource and as evidence of a plausible match.

Meeting 2 (Thursday May 9, 12-2pm, HG 1002) will review first drafts of application project statements. It also will address the elements of grant and fellowship applications: abstract, research timetable, and bibliography, and external letters of support. Special emphasis will be placed on the process of selecting referees and requesting letters. Assignment due this session: Students will complete a first draft of an application for a grant or fellowship.

One-on-one advising sessions (May 7-31, Zoom/TBD) will focus on review of applications and fine-tuning of project statements. Stress will be placed on the importance of clearly presenting a research problem, methodology, investigations to be conducted, and a schedule for completion of the research.

Meeting 3 (Thursday June 6, 12-2pm, HG 1002) will focus on reviewing each application by participants in the workshop.  We will discuss the obligations that come with receiving a grant or fellowship, how to establish a track record and credibility with funding agencies, how to learn from a rejected application, and how to parlay smaller grants and fellowships into larger ones.                             

Break––Summer 2024: Students will solicit feedback from their advisors and other specialists in their fields, and will incorporate their suggestions into their application revisions.

One-on-one advising sessions (September 2024, Zoom/TBD) will provide final review of applications before their submission, with feedback specific to the project of the student and the requirements of the funding entities to which each student is applying.

Throughout the workshop each student will receive individual written feedback and meet individually with Professor Dimendberg. He also will be available for consulting over summer 2024. Lunch will be available during each session, which will provide the opportunity for participants to become acquainted with each other in an informal setting. 

Check back in AY 24-25 for further information.

For instructions and to apply, visit: https://ucihumanities.infoready4.com/#

UCI Humanities Center Funding Requests
for External Professional Development Programs

The UCI Humanities Center will sponsor up to 5 Humanities PhD students per academic year for a professional development opportunity that provides training towards career diversity, public humanities, or incorporates approaches or methodologies beyond disciplinary bounds. It should also be an opportunity that is not already offered through UCI. Previous opportunities that have fallen in this category have included the LARB Publishing Workshop, HASTAC, the Colby Environmental Humanities Institute, and the Marxist Institute for Interdisciplinary Research. Up to $3000 can be requested and used towards travel, lodging, meals, tuition/registration, or other related expenses. Programs that are affiliated with academic associations (AHA, MLA, SCMS, AAR, AAAS) will only be considered if a separate application is required to be part of a cohort, or requires additional time before or after a conference as part of participation (e.g., MLA Public Humanities Incubator).

Guidelines for applying

For students:

1. Students must apply and be accepted to the external program, prior to making the funding request. Funding will supplement any funding received as part of the program (e.g., if the program offers housing, then the Humanities Center can provide funds toward travel and a small stipend).

2. After acceptance, the student can request for funding, providing the following information:

  • Student name, dept., and year in program

  • Dollar amount requested, with breakdown

  • Funding request deadline

  • Justification for funding (300-500 words)

  • Whether the student has applied for funding elsewhere

For external programs/organizations:

1. External programs or organizations can request funding for one humanities graduate student. Students must apply and be accepted through the program’s regular application process. They must provide the following information in their request:

  • Justification for funding (300-500 words)

  • Dollar amount requested, with breakdown of total cost

  • Whether the organization will be receiving funding from other sources

  • Funding request deadline, and whether funding is needed before or after the program

Review Process

The Humanities Center will review and fund requests on a rolling basis, up to a maximum of 5 fellowships per academic year. Students will be asked to share a reflection on their experiences either in person or writing during fall quarter of the following year. Organizations that have received funding approval should update the Humanities Center after student selection and acceptance.

Please send your funding requests and questions to SueJeanne Koh at sj.koh@uci.edu.

After submission, your request will be reviewed and answered no later than two weeks after submission. If approved, you will be offered the option of a pre-trip (taxed) research funds stipend or a post-trip (non-taxable) reimbursement based on receipts. 

On occasion, the Humanities Center (or centers/clusters supported by the Humanities Center) may offer other grant or funding opportunities. Information regarding these opportunities will be sent out via the UCI humanities graduate student mailing list or the related-center's mailing list. 

Open grant calls and current application guidelines are available on the Humanities Center InfoReady website: https://ucihumanities.infoready4.com/.

External Grants and Finding Funding

The Humanities Center helps graduate students in the School of Humanities find and apply for external fellowships and grants to support their graduate studies. Our Ph.D. students have been awarded Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Abroad fellowships for China, Japan and Brazil; Fulbright Student awards for Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and India; the Luce/ACLS Fellowship in American Art; the American Association of University Women Dissertation Fellowship; and other national and international prestigious awards.

The Humanities Center holds a four-part grant-writing workshops throughout the academic year. The workshops include identifying and applying for external funding opportunities, how to write successful applications for grants and fellowships, and developing and communicating your research to different funders and reviewers. Graduate students in their first and second years, as well as advanced students, are encouraged to attend. Announcements are made through the humanities graduate student email listserv.

The Finding Funding workshop is recorded and available for viewing by scrolling down to the bottom of this page.

 

In partnership with UCI’s Graduate Division, the Humanities Center ran the Grant-Writing & Research Development Institute in 2022 and 2023 funded by a grant from the Council for Graduate Schools. The Grant-Writing & Research Development Institute was designed to expand PhD students’ capacities in grant-writing, research development, and project development. Grant-writing is a conceptual capacity and a collaborative practice, along with a set of skills. Whether in faculty, academic administration or nonprofit careers, grant-writing takes place in the broader context of staff team roles, project development, organizational goals, fundraising plans, and institutional partnerships. The institute approached grant-writing holistically with sessions that focused on technical skills, on understanding the collaborative process from a variety of perspectives, and on understanding the role of grant-writing in the broader process of research planning and project development.

Amanda Swain, Humanities Center Executive Director, can assist with finding funding opportunities, planning when to apply for external funding, and preparing proposal materials. The Humanities Center also collects successful applications by previous grant recipients for reference. Contact Amanda Swain at ajswain@uci.edu to set up an appointment.

UCI Grants for Humanities PhD Students

Grad Division Grants - Most grants require ABD status. Check the Funding Timeline PDF for their general deadlines. For questions about Grad Division grants, email Graduate Division Associate Dean Jaymi Smith (jaymis@uci.edu).

* Please note these grants are internal to UCI but not managed by the Humanities Center

School of Humanities Grants - Conference travel, summer dissertation writing support, summer language study, and outstanding TA awards. For questions about SOH grants, email Geneva Lopez-Sandoval, Director, Office of Graduate Study (lopezg@uci.edu).

The SoH Office of Graduate Study will sponsor one student to attend the Cornell University School of Criticism and Theory. For the call and further information, please reach out directly to Geneva Lopez-Sandoval.

* Please note these grants are internal to UCI but not managed by the Humanities Center

Associated Graduate Students - AGS offers conference travel grants (by lottery), project event funding, and paid staff positions (may be announced via email). For questions, email Daniel C. Tracht, AGS Vice President of Administrative Affairs (vpadmin@ags.uci.edu).

* Please note these grants are internal to UCI but not managed by the Humanities Center

Previous External Professional Development Funding Recipients

2021

Megan Cole (English)

Anna Pederneschi (Philosophy)

2022

Natalia Affonso (Comparative Literature)

Sarah Hoenicke Flores (Comparative Literature)

2023

Jose Maria Urdaneta (Spanish)

The next LARB Publishing Workshop will take place virtually from June 24- July 26, 2024. Information about applying to the workshop will become available in December 2023.

Jan. 2020

Megan Cole (English)

Karem Delgado (Spanish)

Wu Jun Ke (Comparative Literature)

Christine Mugnolo (Visual Studies)

Michelle Robertson (English)

Juan Rubio (History)

Dec. 2020

LaShonda Carter (Culture & Theory)

Kathie Foley-Meyer (Visual Studies)

Kristina Horn (East Asian Studies)

Rong Kong (History)

Ella Turenne (Visual Studies)

Isabelle Williams (Culture & Theory)

2022

Anannya Mukherjee  (Comparative Literature)

Maria Carina Saiidi Padilla  (Spanish)

Serkan Ogul Tuna  (History)

 

2022

Nikita Olegovich Prokhorov (Comparative Literature)

2023

Aaron Katzeman (Visual Studies)

Sophie Mariko Wheeler (East Asian Studies)

Applications for the 2024 institute will open on November 17, 2023. More information can be found at their website.

2023

Megan Cole

Information about HASTAC can be found here.

2023

Chenglin Lee (Comparative Literature)

Finding Funding Workshop and Database

The Humanities Center offers support in navigating external grant applications. While we do not maintain a grant database, we have collected several prominent External Dissertation Fellowships and Postdoctoral Opportunities. This list is not monitored, but may be useful for students to begin their research.

For more information about internal and external funding opportunities for graduate students, watch the Humanities Center Finding Funding Workshop.