The American Philosophical Society's Library & Museum in Philadelphia invites applications for short-term residential research fellowships. These funding opportunities provide one to three months of support for researchers in residence and are open to scholars in all fields who show a demonstrated need to use the Library & Museum’s collections for their project. Approximately 25-30 short-term fellowships are awarded each year.
The APS's collections make it among the premier institutions for documenting and exhibiting the history of the American Revolution and founding, the history of science from Newton to NASA, and Indigenous languages and cultures. The Society’s collections include more than 14 million pages of manuscripts, 275,000 bound volumes, 250,000 images, thousands of hours of audio tape, and 3,360 three-dimensional artifacts and fine art objects. It is home to four research centers: the Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR), which has worked with over 80 Native American and Indigenous communities since 2014; the Center for Digital Scholarship, which interprets and expands access to APS collections through digital projects and open source data; the David Center for the American Revolution, a partnership with the David Library of the American Revolution that formed a new research center for the study of the American Revolution at the APS; and the Center for the History of Science, which supports research in Society's science collections that run the gamut from A to Z—astronomy to zoology—and many fields in between.
Comprehensive, searchable guides and finding aids to our collections are available online at https://www.amphilsoc.org/library/search-collections and http://amphilsoc.pastperfectonline.com/
A stipend of $3,000 per month is awarded for a minimum of one month and a maximum of three months. The stipend is paid after the awardee arrives at the APS's Library & Museum to begin their fellowship. The duration of award is requested by the candidate, but the final decision is made by the fellowship committee. The purpose of the stipend is to defray the costs of researching in Philadelphia. Awards are taxable income, but the Society is not required to report payments. It is understood that recipients will discuss their reporting obligations with their tax advisors.
Fellowships may be taken starting any day no earlier than June 1, 2026 and must be completed by May 31, 2027. Fellows are required to be in residence for 4 to 12 consecutive weeks, depending upon the length of the award. Fellows do not have to decide on the dates of their fellowship right away.
The American Philosophical Society is committed to maintaining the highest standards of scholarly excellence while supporting a working and intellectual environment that fosters an inclusive atmosphere for learning, prizes diverse origins and points of view, advances equal opportunities to learn and communicate, and encourages the widest possible access to its collections. The APS has titled these goals the APS IDEA (Inclusivity, Diversity, Equality, and Access) for its enduring institutional commitment to these values.
Deadline: March 2, 2026 Notifications will be sent in May 2026.
Applicants may be:
All Applicants must submit:
Applicants: Use Interfolio's help desk for any issues pertaining to the online application process.
The American Philosophical Society is an equal opportunity employer, dedicated to a policy of nondiscrimination in employment on any basis including race, creed, color, age, sex, gender, religion or national origin. The APS values diversity and inclusion and encourages diverse applicants to apply. Successful applicants will be asked to show proof that they can legally work in the U.S.
Founded by Benjamin Franklin and others in 1743, the American Philosophical Society is the country's oldest learned society. Election to the Society connotes recognition of highly distinguished achievement in all academic disciplines. The Library of the American Philosophical Society houses material of research interest in the fields of early American history; history of medicine, science and technology, and Native American studies, ethno-history and linguistics. The APS is also home to a dynamic grants, fellowships and research division; a museum on Independence mall; a scholarly publications division; and a programs of member Meetings that dates to Franklin's own vision for the Society.
