The Penn Humanities Forum awards five (5) one-year Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships each academic year to junior scholars in the humanities who are no more than eight years out of their doctorate and who are not yet tenured (may not be tenured during the fellowship year). Scholars are required to spend the year (September–May) in residence at Penn.

The Fellowship carries an annual stipend of $46,500 plus single-coverage health insurance (fellows are responsible for coverage for any dependents) and a $2500 research fund. Fellows teach one undergraduate course in addition to conducting their research.

The PhD is the only eligible terminal degree (MFAs and other doctorates such as EdD are ineligible). Humanists and those in related fields (e.g., anthropology, history of science) are eligible to apply. Exclusions are proposals in social science disciplines, educational curriculum building, and work by performing artists (n.b., scholars of performance areeligible).

The fellowship is open to all scholars, national and international, who meet application terms. International scholars are appointed under a J-1 visa only (Research Scholar status). No exceptions can be made, and the Penn Humanities Forum reserves the right to cancel awards if the recipient is unable to meet this condition. Applicants should consult the international programs office at their current university to confirm eligibility before applying for this fellowship.

Call for Applications
Topic: TRANSLATION
Application Deadline: October 15, 2015

NOTE: Applications may be submitted online through the Forum’s secure webform only. Postal and email submissions will not be accepted. Awards are announced in late December 2015.

The programs of the Penn Humanities Forum are conceived through yearly topics that invite broad interdisciplinary collaboration. For the 2016–2017 academic year, we have setTranslation as the topic.

Scholars who received or will receive their PhD between December 2007 and December 2015 are eligible to apply. You must have your degree in hand or have passed your defense no later than December 2015 to be eligible. Your application will not be considered unless this condition is met (i.e., you are ineligible to apply if you will defend or otherwise submit your dissertation anytime in 2016).

During their year in residence, Fellows pursue their own research, are required to teach one undergraduate seminar during the year, and must also participate in the Forum’s weekly Mellon Research Seminar (Tuesdays, 12:00–2:00), presenting their research at one of those seminars.

In selecting fellows, the Forum aims for a balanced mix of recent Ph.D.s and more seasoned tenure-track faculty (who do not yet have tenure). Preference will be given to candidates whose proposals are interdisciplinary, who have not previously enjoyed use of the resources of the University of Pennsylvania, and who would particularly benefit from and contribute to Penn’s intellectual life.