Grants & Fellowships
The Institute offers several competitively awarded grants and fellowships:
- An annual Mellon Fellowship in medieval studies that allows a junior faculty member to spend a year at Notre Dame working on his or her own research
- An annual Byzantine Studies Postdoctoral Fellowship
- A two-year Public Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship
- Stipends to consult the Institute’s Ambrosiana microfilm or photographic collection
- Notre Dame Rome Medieval Studies Planning Grant
Our lists of current research visitors, past Mellon Fellows, and past Byzantine Fellows note some of the scholars who have enriched the Institute by their presence.
Should the MI not offer a fellowship that meets your interests or needs, we invite you to consider fellowships offered by Notre Dame's Institute for Advanced Study.
A. W. Mellon Junior Faculty Fellowship in Medieval Studies
The Medieval Institute offers a fellowship for a junior faculty scholar in Medieval Studies, made possible through the generous response of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to a challenge grant awarded to Notre Dame by the National Endowment for the Humanities. This Fellowship is designed for junior faculty who currently hold a position in a United States university as an assistant professor. It is open to qualified applicants in all fields of Medieval Studies. The fellowship holder will pursue research in residence at Notre Dame's famed Medieval Institute during the academic year (this is a nine-month position that begins mid-August).
The intent of this Fellowship is to enable its holders to complete research and writing on a book manuscript in advance of tenure. The Fellowship carries no teaching responsibilities, but holders are expected to participate in the multidisciplinary intellectual life of the Institute and to reside in South Bend. The Fellow will be provided with a private carrel in the Medieval Institute, enjoy full library and computer privileges, and have access to all the Institute’s research tools.
In addition, towards the conclusion of their residency the Fellow’s work will be at the center of a half-day conference. Three senior scholars, chosen in cooperation with the Medieval Institute, will be invited to campus for a half-day public seminar treating the subject matter of the Fellow’s research. The senior scholars will also read and discuss a draft version of the Fellow’s work in an extended private session, a one-to-one conversation following a close reading of the draft, with a view to improving the manuscript before its submission to a press.
Eligibility: Mellon scholars must hold a tenure-track appointment at a U.S. institution, obviously with a completed Ph.D., and should not be more than six years beyond receiving their Ph.D. at the time of the application.
Stipend: $50,000 (paid directly to the Fellow’s home institution)
Application deadline: February 1, for the upcoming academic year. Applications are accepted, and the button below active, from November 1 through February 1.
Application procedure: Upload a letter of application, a project proposal of no more than 2500 words, a current c.v., and three letters of recommendation. If you encounter issues with Interfolio, please contact their customer support.
Address questions to the Director of the Medieval Institute, Prof. Tom Burman, at tburman@nd.edu.
See the list of our past fellows
Byzantine Studies Postdoctoral Fellowship
Following substantial investment in the area of Byzantine Studies at the University of Notre Dame, including the acquisition of the Milton V. Anastos Library of Byzantine Civilization and generous support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Medieval Institute at the University of Notre Dame is delighted to invite applicants for a nine-month Postdoctoral Fellowship in Byzantine Studies. This fellowship is designed for junior scholars with a completed doctorate whose research deals with some aspect of the Byzantine world. The fellow is expected to pursue promising research towards scholarly publication and/or the development of new subject areas. This Fellowship is open to qualified applicants in all fields and sub-disciplines of Byzantine Studies, such as history (including its auxiliary disciplines), archaeology, art history, literature, theology, and liturgical studies, as well as the study of Byzantium’s interactions with neighboring cultures. The fellowship holder will pursue research in residence at the University of Notre Dame’s famed Medieval Institute during the academic year (the position begins mid-August).
The intent of this Fellowship is to enable its holder to do innovative research drawing on the rich resources held in the Milton V. Anastos Collection, the Medieval Institute, and the Hesburgh Library more broadly. This may include the completion of book manuscripts and articles, work on text editions, or the development of new trajectories of research in one of the aforementioned fields. The Fellowship carries no teaching responsibilities, but the fellow will have the opportunity to participate in the multidisciplinary activities of Notre Dame faculty related to Byzantium, Eastern Christianity, and the history of the Levant. The Fellow will be provided with a private workspace in the Medieval Institute, enjoy full library and computer privileges, and have access to all the Institute’s research tools.
In addition, towards the conclusion of the fellowship period the fellow’s work will be at the center of a workshop organized within the framework of the Byzantine Studies Seminar. Senior scholars, chosen in cooperation with the Medieval Institute, will be invited for this event treating the fellow’s subject matter. The senior scholars will discuss draft versions of the fellow’s book manuscript or articles or discuss the further development of ongoing research projects.
Eligibility: Byzantine Studies fellows must hold a Ph.D. from an internationally recognized institution. The Ph.D. must be in hand by the beginning of the fellowship term.
Stipend: the corresponding NIH postdoctoral rate (following the policy established by the University of Notre Dame), plus benefits
Application deadline: February 1, for the upcoming academic year. Applications are accepted, and the button below active, from November 1 through February 1.
Application procedure: Upload a letter of application, a project proposal of no more than 2500 words, a current c.v., and three letters of recommendation. If you encounter issues with Interfolio, please contact their customer support.
Address questions to Prof. Alexis Torrance, Chair of the Byzantine Studies Committee, at atorran1@nd.edu.
See the list of our past fellows
Public Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship
The Medieval Institute at the University of Notre Dame invites applications for a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in public humanities, supported by a previous endowment grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to the Institute. The fellow will devote the majority of the fellowship time to working closely with the Institute’s staff, especially its director of undergraduate studies and engagement, in the Institute’s outreach and engagement efforts directed at local schools as well as potential donors, alumni, and undergraduate majors and minors. The fellow will also work with the Assistant Director to prepare public humanities marketing and communications materials. The remainder of the fellow’s time may be devoted to research and/or teaching.
The fellow will be provided with a workspace in the Medieval Institute, enjoy full library and computer privileges, and have access to all the Institute's research tools.
Eligibility: Applicants must hold a Ph.D. (or equivalent) in some area of the humanistic study of the Middle Ages, or have it in hand by the beginning of the fellowship term. Applicants must have relevant experience in public engagement in the humanities, highly effective people skills, and multimedia digital literacy. Experience with digital humanities is highly desirable.
Salary: $49,440 per year, plus benefits
Application deadline: Every other February 1 for the upcoming academic year, starting in 2021. Applications are accepted, and the button below active, from November 1 through February 1 of those alternate years.
Application procedure: Upload a letter of application that includes reflection on how this postdoctoral position would fit into your broader career goals, a current c.v., and three confidential letters of recommendation. You may also upload a digital portfolio and similar supporting materials. If you encounter issues with Interfolio, please contact their customer support.
Address questions to the Director of the Medieval Institute, Prof. Tom Burman, at tburman@nd.edu.
Stipends for Ambrosiana Microfilms Collection Research
The Medieval Institute offers three modest stipends each year in the amount of $750 to scholars who wish to visit Notre Dame and consult its extensive collection of microfilms and other materials that reproduce the holdings of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan. All grants are made at the discretion of the director of the Medieval Institute and awarded on the basis of the research project description and how consultation of the Ambrosiana Archive will advance the work of the applicant. Stipends may be used to help defray the cost of travel, accommodations, microfilm reproduction, photoduplication, or other expenses associated with research at the Institute.
Eligibility: Advanced graduate students as well as postdoctoral and established scholars are eligible. Scholars may reapply for stipends each year but successful applicants will be awarded a maximum of one stipend per year.
Stipend: $750
Application deadline: Applications are due May 1 for visits during the coming academic year (August 16–May 15) and February 1 for visits in the coming summer (May 16–August 15).
Application procedure:
- Upload a current c.v. as well as a letter of application explaining both the nature of your research project and how use of the Ambrosiana Collection will advance your work. Applicants are asked to review our visitor's page.
- Receive a decision regarding your application.
- If accepted, submit the proposed dates of your visit (via our Submittable form) at least four weeks in advance of your visit.
- Receive a confirmation from us for those dates before traveling here.
Address questions to Dr. Julia Schneider, Medieval Studies Librarian, at jschneid@nd.edu.
Notre Dame Rome Medieval Studies Planning Grant
The Medieval Institute, in collaboration with the Center for Italian Studies and Notre Dame’s Rome Global Gateway, invites Fellows of the MI to submit proposals for three planning grants of up to $20,000 per award to support collaborative research in Rome.
The awards are designed to foster the development of research networks which engage Notre Dame faculty (and potentially also graduate students) with researchers working in Italy, and especially in national, international and pontifical academies, universities, libraries, museums, and archives based in Rome.
Awards are available to support the organization of scholarly research outputs in the form of ongoing collaborations between Notre Dame and local Roman institutions, including of conferences, seminars, and research publications in any field of Medieval studies.
It is expected that these seed grants will lead to research publications and/or further funding proposals designed to foster the continued research activity of collaborative research networks based in Rome in view of increasing Notre Dame’s institutional presence in the city as an international center for Medieval Studies, broadly conceived.
Meetings in Rome might involve as few as three or as many as ten to fifteen researchers (including local scholars based in Rome and graduate students) to take place any time during the next three academic years.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted until March 15, 2023, via Submittable.
Application Procedure: A simple proposal of not more than 500 words, including details about research partners both institutional and individuals, and a simple budget are all that is required. Three grants will be awarded.