Eligibility
The USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities is an interdisciplinary community of postdoctoral scholars and faculty members in the humanities and humanistic social sciences. Fellows meet regularly in formal and informal settings to present and discuss advanced scholarly research. Postdoctoral fellows are affiliated with the Society as well as with a USC department of their choice, and have faculty mentors in both. Postdoctoral fellows in the humanities engage with each other as well as humanities departments, institutes, and centers at USC and in the broader Los Angeles area.
The application for the 2024–2026 cycle is open. The portal will close on November 27, 2023 at 5pm PST.
- To apply for the 2024–2026 cohort, candidates must have a Ph.D. in the humanities or humanistic social sciences (conferred by the start of the fellowship) to be considered. Terminal graduate degrees are not eligible to apply.
- Candidates must have received their Ph.D. no earlier than August 1, 2020.
- We adhere to the characterization of the humanities and humanistic social sciences provided by the ACLS: The humanities and related social sciences include but are not limited to American studies; anthropology; archaeology; art history and architectural history; classics; economics; ethnic studies; film and media studies; gender studies; geography; history; languages and literatures; legal studies; linguistics; musicology; philosophy; political science; psychology; religious studies; rhetoric and communication; science and technology studies; sociology; and theater, dance, and performance studies. Not all listed departments or programs participate every year.
- Proposals in the social science fields listed above are eligible only if they employ predominantly humanistic approaches and qualitative/interpretive methodologies (e.g., economic history, law and literature, political philosophy, history of psychology). Proposals in interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary humanities and related social sciences are welcome, and most programs do not restrict the focus of research to any geographic region or to any cultural or linguistic group of study.
- Citizens from any country are eligible for this fellowship. Please note that some U.S. visa applications can take up to six months to process and require the applicant’s degree to be conferred prior to processing. Please visit USC Visa Services to learn more.
- Candidates with a Ph.D. granted by an institution outside the U.S. are eligible to apply.
- Scholars who have held or currently hold terminal postdoctoral positions are eligible to apply.
- Scholars who have received a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California are not eligible to apply.
- Scholars who are permanently employed in full-time, tenure-track positions are not eligible to apply.
- Candidates who applied previously and wish to be considered again must submit a new application.