The Guggenheim Fellowship is an annual project grant from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation for established artists, writers, scholars, and scientists. It supports individual creative or scholarly work across the arts, humanities, sciences, social sciences, and interdisciplinary fields.
Applicants pursue their own proposed work rather than relocate to a common program site. The Foundation assesses an applicant’s record of achievement alongside the promise, merit, and originality of the proposed next project.
Benefits & funding
- Each Fellow receives an individual project grant; the Foundation does not publish a standard amount or promise to cover the full project cost.
- The amount reflects the Foundation’s fixed annual budget, the Fellow’s other resources, and the purpose and scope of the proposed work.
- Funds may generally support project-related living costs, materials, travel, equipment, and similar needs.
- The Fellowship term may last from six months to one year, although the project need not be completed during that term.
- Roughly 200 Fellows are selected each year.
Eligibility
- An applicant must be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States or Canada at the time of application.
- Applicants should be established, mid-career individuals with notable prior achievement and strong promise for future work.
- Undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate students are not eligible.
- Previous Guggenheim Fellows may not receive another Fellowship.
- Individuals and joint applicants consisting of two equal collaborators may apply; organizations, institutions, groups, and group-authored projects are not eligible.
- The Foundation supports eligible scholarly and creative projects but excludes the project categories and forms listed in its application guidance.
Can you apply?
Check who can apply
No nationality, residency, education, experience, gender or age limit is listed. The other conditions are under Eligibility.
Circlebreaker is a free database of global fellowships, scholarships and programs — every one decoded like this.
We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.
Application process
- 1Wait for the next competition to open and confirm its cycle-specific guide and deadline on the official application page.
- 2Create or access an account in the Foundation’s online application portal.
- 3Complete the portal sections and upload the required career narrative, list of significant work, and statement of plans as PDFs.
- 4Submit the complete application by the published cycle deadline.
- 5If contacted, arrange for references and submit the requested work examples under the Foundation’s instructions.
Program timeline
Application deadline for the 2027 competition.
Sep 15, 2026
Work samples due or postmarked, when applicable to the applicant’s field.
Sep 29, 2026
Reference letters due.
Oct 13, 2026
Advisers and the Committee of Selection review completed applications.
January to April 2027
New Fellows are typically announced.
April 2027
Next opening
The Foundation has not published an exact date for the next competition.