Hanna Holborn Gray Research Fellowship

To those of you in the Class of ’25 and Class of ’26 who are planning to apply for the Hanna Holborn Gray research program, please remember that the application deadline is Mon., Feb. 5, 2024, at 12 noon. Faculty letters of recommendation should be submitted by the Feb. 5 deadline as well.

At this time, the College has not made a decision regarding whether in-person work or travel for student research will be permitted in Summer 2024. Applicants should keep this in mind when designing their projects. If a proposal involves in-person research and/or travel, applicants must provide a back-up plan in case health and safety restrictions remain in place.


Deadline: Monday, February 5, 2024, by noon.


Fellowships supporting undergraduate research in the humanities and the humanistic social sciences.

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has given Bryn Mawr College a grant in honor of Bryn Mawr alumna Hanna Holborn Gray 50 who served as Chair of the foundation's Board of Trustees. These funds are used to support undergraduate research in the humanities and the humanistic social sciences.​

Awards

Up to 12 students are selected each summer and have the opportunity to spend the summer conducting independent research. Students receive fellowships of $4,500 while they do research that can either be the beginning of the senior thesis or a project that stands alone, but is relevant to their intellectual interests.

Eligibility

Rising seniors and juniors with GPA’s of 3.3* or greater are eligible to apply.

  • Students with a GPA below 3.3 may apply but will be required to include in their application an additional statement regarding their academic preparation to undertake their proposed research project.

Haverford students majoring at Bryn Mawr are eligible to apply.

Program Structure

HHG Seminar in May

There will be a three-day seminar starting the Monday after the May Commencement ceremony for all the HHG Fellows. The seminar will focus on the challenges and rewards of long-term research. Fellows are required to attend unless they will be away from campus due to study abroad.

Workshop Meetings

Starting in late May or early June, there will be eight weekly workshop meetings for the HHG cohort led by two graduate student mentors to discuss work-in-progress. Fellows working on campus or in the Philadelphia area are required to attend. Fellows pursuing their research at a distance will be expected to participate by Skyping into the meetings if time differences allow. These workshop meetings are complemented by online Moodle discussions. All Fellows are required to participate regularly on the Moodle discussion board.

Presentations

The program will conclude with presentations in the fall during which each Fellow will be required to give a brief talk about their research for the campus community.

Selection Criteria

A student’s overall academic record will be an important consideration in the selection process. A strong application will be one that includes an original, well-defined proposal and strong faculty recommendations.

Applicants who are selected to be interviewed will be interviewed in February and March by the HHG Selection Committee. The committee will make their final decisions based on written materials and the interview. In the case of students spending the entire year or the second semester of their junior year abroad or away, interviews will generally be conducted by Skype.

Payment Details

This award is treated as a Fellowship. Please see the Payment Procedures page for more information.

Important Notices

International Students must contact International Advising regarding authorization before engaging in any off-campus activity. 

Students proposing projects that involve research on human subjects should acquaint themselves with the procedures of the Institutional Review Board and discuss the process with their faculty advisor. Any research involving questionnaires, interviews, observational data, or any other method by which data is collected from human subjects must be approved by the IRB.

To receive the fellowship, fellows must have their projects approved by the IRB. The approval process takes place in the spring prior to the summer of research. This can be a lengthy and involved process, so be sure to begin discussing requirements for the IRB process with your faculty advisor as you develop your application.

Research Conducted Abroad

Research projects cannot take place in a country on either the U.S. State Department Warning or Travel Alert lists, or Treasury "embargo" lists, except when an embargo is specifically directed toward a narrow set of individuals or circumstances in a country. Travel warnings and alerts can be accessed at:  www.travel.state.gov.

flowers

Contact Us

The Career & Civic Engagement Center

Phone: 610-526-5174