Supports long-term, unusually ambitious projects in the humanities and related social sciences. The ultimate goal of the project should be a major piece of scholarly work by the applicant.
 
The Burkhardt program offers two sets of opportunities for recently tenured humanists. The first set of Burkhardt Fellowships support an academic year (nine months) of residence at any one of 12 participating residential research centers, and are open to faculty at any degree-granting academic institution in the United States. An additional set of Burkhardt Fellowships are designated specifically for liberal arts college faculty, and support an academic year of residence at a wider range of locations including campus humanities centers and university academic departments to be proposed by the applicant. (Liberal arts college faculty may apply for either of the Burkhardt awards and should select the fellowship opportunity that will best serve their project.)
 
Burkhardt Fellowships at a Participating Residential Research Center:  
intended to support an academic year (nine months) of residence at any one of the 12 residential research centers participating in the program. Such an environment, beyond providing free time, encourages exchanges across disciplinary lines that can help deepen and expand the significance of projects in the humanities and related social sciences. This year's successful applicants may take up the fellowship in 2020-21 or in either of the succeeding two academic years, but candidates must commit themselves firmly to their preferred year and residential center on their completed applications. Candidates must also commit themselves to relocating as needed in order to be in residence for the entire nine-month tenure of the fellowship.
 
Frederick Burkhardt Fellowships Designated Specifically for Liberal Arts College Faculty:
One of the strengths of American higher education is the diversity of institutions that interact but remain distinct. In this educational ecosystem, liberal arts colleges serve as strongholds of the humanities by placing those fields at the core of their curricula. To support recently tenured faculty at these institutions, ACLS has designated a set of Burkhardt Fellowships specifically for them, with awards designed to support ambitious research in the humanities and encourage intellectual networks across types of institutions.
 
These Burkhardt Fellowships support an academic year (nine months) of residence at a university academic department or university-based humanities center of the applicant’s choice. This year's successful applicants may take up the fellowship in 2020-21 or in either of the succeeding two academic years, but candidates must commit themselves firmly to their preferred year and residential location on their completed applications. Candidates must also commit themselves to relocating as needed in order to be in residence for the entire nine-month tenure of the fellowship.