Research Fellowships & Programs
Conceived with the needs of humanists in mind, the National Humanities Center provides scholars with an environment and resources conducive to generating new knowledge and understanding of the human experience.
Explore the Options
The Center offers several fellowship opportunities designed to support scholars at different stages of research and writing. Explore the programs below to find the opportunity that best aligns with your work.
Research Fellowships & Programs
Residential Fellowships
The NHC Residential Fellowship is one of the most prestigious humanities fellowship programs in the world. Fellows enjoy a beautiful and serene space to write, unparalleled library and reference support, excellent dining services, and a stimulating and supportive intellectual community. Researchers are especially encouraged to apply when they expect to be able to benefit from and contribute actively to an in-person community of other humanities researchers.
Select Summer Residency
Scholars from NHC Institutional Sponsor universities are exclusively eligible to apply for a four-week residency program intended to assist in jump-starting or making substantial progress on a current project. Through this program, faculty from sponsoring institutions can experience a concentrated period of supported research and intellectual exchange at the Center, a hospitable setting customized for and highly conducive to humanities research and writing.
Scholarly Writing Institute
Piloted in 2025 with great success, the Center’s second annual Scholarly Writing Institute is scheduled for July 2–10, 2026. This intensive, nine-day workshop provides dedicated writing time, along with expert guidance in writing and publishing, to significantly advance scholarly projects. This program, like our summer residencies, is available exclusively for scholars from our Institutional Sponsor universities and colleges.
NHC Fellows
A Global Community of Scholars
Over the past five decades, the Center has been privileged to support the work of some of the world’s leading humanists, and to enlist their expertise on behalf of its programs for educators and public humanities work.
The Center supports Fellows long after their residency year, highlighting their research, publications, and ongoing work through the Forever Fellows program.
Life at the Center
The NHC Experience
The National Humanities Center provides scholars with the time, resources, and scholarly community needed to pursue ambitious research while engaging with colleagues from across disciplines.
A Place to Focus and Think
Scholars arrive at the National Humanities Center’s airy, glass-and-brick building each year and quickly make themselves at home in their individual studies overlooking a Carolina pine forest. These spacious offices provide an ideal setting to read, think, and write in quiet concentration.
When scholars want a change of scenery, the Center offers numerous indoor and outdoor spaces suited for working alone or gathering informally with other scholars.
Daily Meals and Hospitality
Breakfast and lunch are prepared each day by the Center’s attentive dining staff, who ensure scholars always have access to drinks and snacks while they are in the building.
Shared meals provide a natural opportunity for scholars to pause from their work, connect with colleagues, and exchange ideas.
Community and Collaboration
Throughout the year, Center staff host and facilitate opportunities for scholars to socialize, collaborate, workshop their projects, and participate in professional enrichment sessions.
These gatherings encourage intellectual exchange while preserving the independence scholars need to pursue their research.
Respect for Scholars’ Time
Aside from inviting scholars to enjoy lunch with their colleagues, the Center places minimal demands on scholars’ time, allowing them to focus deeply on their research and writing.
Our Culture and Values
We collectively foster a culture that is empowering, responsible, intentional, collaborative, and curious. Read more about our core values.
Fellow Perspectives
The NHC was everything I had always heard that it was: a nonpareil place full of great people, great books, great food, and great conversations. It is ideally suited to facilitate the deep thought and slow work needed to write.
Timothy Stinson
NHC Fellow, 2021–22
The major value of the fellowship lies in the freedom it gives to read, work and think independent of the usual pressure of academic life. This is immensely important for scholarship.
David Gilmartin
NHC Fellow, 2017–18
Research Support
Library Services
The Center is widely known for the exceptional support provided by its library staff, who work closely with scholars to procure research materials, provide in-depth reference assistance, and offer training on electronic research tools.
Librarians also host roundtables with on-site experts and guest speakers on topics such as scholarly communication and publishing in the humanities. Even before arriving, scholars can submit project bibliographies so librarians can gather materials and place them in their studies, and once in residence they can easily request additional resources—most arriving within 24 hours.
Location
The Research Triangle and the Raleigh-Durham Area
With 12 colleges and universities, a thriving research economy, and a dynamic creative community, North Carolina’s Research Triangle is consistently ranked among the best places to live and work in the United States. The region offers award-winning restaurants, museums and galleries, major sports and entertainment venues, and abundant parks and greenways for hiking and biking. After fellowships are awarded each spring, scholars receive information about housing, transportation, and local schools; while scholars arrange their own housing, Center staff are happy to offer suggestions and direct them to helpful resources.