Top 32 American Studies Scholarships in April 2024

Are you a 6th-8th grader with an interest in American history? If so, the Patriot's Pen Youth Essay Contest may be a great opportunity for you! Each year, the contest awards up to $5,000 to the 6th-8th grade students who submit the best 300-400-word essays "expressing their views based on a patriotic theme chosen by the VFW Commander-in-Chief." Bear in mind that applications must be submitted to your local VFW post by October 31st to be considered for the scholarship. If this scholarship sounds like a good opportunity for you, we encourage you to apply! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less

Discover the Willi Paul Adams Award, a prestigious biennial scholarship established to recognize non-English books that provide an impressive overlook of American history, and to award the authors of such books who submit the best 1-2-page essays about why their book "is a significant and original contribution to our understanding of American history." To be eligible, books should be concerned with the past (recent or distant) or with issues of continuity and change. It should also be substantially concerned with events or processes that began, developed, or ended in the American colonies and/or the United States. Comparative and international studies are also welcome. Bear in mind that eligible books must have been published between January 1st of the year two years prior to the deadline and December 31st of the year prior to the deadline. If you've authored a non-English book on American history, don't miss this opportunity to be recognized for your work! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less

The New England Regional Fellowship Consortium, a collaboration of 31 major cultural agencies, will offer at least two dozen awards in the current application cycle. Each grant will provide a stipend of $5,000 for a minimum of eight weeks of research at participating institutions. Awards are open to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals who hold the necessary U.S. government documents. Grants are designed to encourage projects that draw on the resources of several agencies. NERFC grants support work in a broad array of fields, including but not limited to: history, literature, art history, African American studies, American studies, women's and gender studies, anthropology, sociology, philosophy, religious studies, environmental studies, oceanography, and the histories of law, medicine, and technology. If you have an interest in conducting research in any of these fields, we encourage you to apply!Show Less

The We The Future Contest is an amazing opportunity for anyone from elementary school students, to college students, to graduate students, teachers, and even senior citizens to earn money for their knowledge about the Constitution. The Contest offers scholarships of varying amounts to students of different levels (from elementary to college/university level/category, and even graduate and senior adult levels). Depending on their category, applicants will have the choice to submit an essay, short film, social media video, song, PSA, or even a STEM project about the Constitution. To find out which you can submit for, we recommend checking out the different categories on Constituting America's website. If you have a passion for the U.S. Constitution, we encourage you to apply! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less

Are you a U.S. citizen aged 16 or older with an interest in U.S. History, and particularly in the Constitution? If so, the Constitutional Studies Scholarship may be a great opportunity for you! Each year, the scholarship awards two $10,000 scholarships, two $5,000 scholarships, and 35 $2,000 scholarships to the top 39 applicants who complete both the Introduction to the Constitution and the Constitution 101 course provided by Hillsdale College. The courses are free, and upon completing the courses, interested students must download and submit their Certificates of Completion along with a completed application in order to apply. If you'd like to learn about the U.S. Constitution and potentially earn money towards your education for it too, we encourage you to apply! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less

Are you a graduate student planning to teach American history, government, or civics at the secondary school level? If so, consider applying for the James Madison Graduate Fellowships! The fellowships are open to students currently pursuing graduate degrees who are or plan on teaching American history, government, or civics to grades 7-12. The fellowships honor James Madison’s legacy and principles with the hopes that teachers will transmit these values and knowledge about the Constitution to their students. Recipients may earn up to $12,000 per year of academic study. For each year of funding received under the fellowship, each Fellow must teach American history, American government, or civics in grades 7-12 for one full year. If you are passionate about becoming an American history, government, or civics teacher for secondary school students, we encourage you to apply!Show Less

The King Olav V Norwegian-American Heritage Scholarship aims to fund activities in which the American and Norwegian heritages are explored, studied, and shared by qualified scholarship recipients. Applicants may be any American citizen, age 17 or older, who has demonstrated a keen and sincere interest in Norwegian heritage and/or any Norwegian citizen, age 17 or older, who has demonstrated an interest in American heritage. American graduate or undergraduate students who can provide proof of enrollment in an accredited educational institution in Norway or a Scandinavian Studies program in the United States, as well as Norwegian graduate or undergraduate students who can provide proof of enrollment in an accredited educational institution in the United States, are eligible to apply. To apply, students must submit a short autobiography, in addition to an ~500-word essay.Show Less

The Mary McEwen Schimke Scholarship is a fantastic opportunity for those over 30 years old who are pursuing graduate study in literature and/or history. This supplemental award is meant to provide relief from household and childcare expenses, and is awarded based on scholarly expectations and identified need. American studies majors are given preference, and awards are typically given to those currently enrolled or applying to graduate school for the following academic year. If you haven't received this award before, you'll be given preference over those who have. Unfortunately, if you've previously received a Wellesley College Graduate Fellowship of $5,000 or more, you won't be eligible for additional funding. If you're eligible, don't miss out on this amazing opportunity!Show Less

Are you a middle or high schooler from the Midwest with an interest in U.S. history (and specifically the First Amendment)? If so, you may be eligible for the First Amendment Freedoms Art & Essay Contest! Each year, the contest awards $5,000 and $1,000 each, respectively, to the first- and second-place applicants who submit the best essay OR original piece of art that relates to the First Amendment. Applicants must be residing in one of a number of eligible Midwestern states to be considered, including Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Wisconsin. As the specific prompt may change every year, we recommend that interested applicants check out the official webpage for the scholarship on the ADL Midwest website before applying. If this sounds like a good opportunity for you, we encourage you to apply. Don't miss out on this chance to showcase your talents and win big!Show Less

This John Higham Research Fellowship is open to all graduate students writing doctoral dissertations for a Ph.D. in American history. Applicants pursuing research in those fields most congenial to the research and writing interests of John Higham will receive special consideration. These topics include U.S. social and intellectual history broadly considered, with preference given to research projects on American immigration and ethnic history as well as American historiography, and the cultural history of the nineteenth-century U.S. If you're a graduate student writing a doctoral dissertation related to American history, especially as it relates to the research of John Higham, we encourage you to apply! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less

The Fulbright Distinguished Chair in Applied Public Policy (Democratic Resilience) is funded by Flinders University and designed to increase awareness of the field of applied public policy in Australia. In addition, it's meant to promote comparative and collaborative research between Australia and the United States in the field of applied public policy, especially as it relates to enhancing democratic resilience. The scholarship committee is looking for research that contributes to an advancement in the understanding of the use and regulation of emerging technology for positive social impact. This may include the way that technological changes can shape policy, laws, and political behaviors to enhance national security, governance of society, and democracy. Alternatively, it may address the risks of such technological changes. For more information on how to apply, keep on reading!Show Less

The "Fulbright Postdoctoral Award in the Social Sciences" is open to Ph.D. and Terminal Degree holders interested in both conducting research and teaching courses in the social sciences at Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) in Paris, France. Cognitive science is also an eligible discipline. The selected recipient will serve as Chair for a duration of 9 to 12 months. To apply, interested individuals should contact the institution to receive a required letter of invitation. If you're a U.S. scholar interested in studying the social sciences or cognitive science at Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), we encourage you to apply! Keep on reading to learn more.Show Less