AMS Dissertation Fellowships

Application Deadline: 11:59pm ET, 2 February 2026

OVERVIEW & ELIGIBILITY

There are 2 dissertation fellowships offered by the AMS:

Alvin H. Johnson AMS 50 Dissertation Fellowship:

The Society makes available three funded AMS 50 dissertation-year fellowships each year. Any student registered in good standing for a doctorate at a North American* university who has completed all formal degree requirements except the dissertation at the time of full application is eligible to apply. The fellowships are not intended for support of the early stages of research: it is expected that a Fellow's dissertation will be completed within the fellowship year.

Any submission for a doctoral degree in which the emphasis is on musical scholarship will be eligible.

Holmes/D'Accone Dissertation Fellowship in Opera Studies:

The Holmes/D’Accone Fellowship for dissertation research recognizes academic achievement and future promise in the study of opera. Any full-time graduate student registered in good standing for a doctorate at a North American* university who has had a dissertation proposal in the subfield of opera studies approved at the time of the application is eligible to apply, regardless of the stage of dissertation work.

*includes all 23 countries in the North American continent

The AMS also offers the Howard Mayer Brown Fellowship for students from historically underrepresented groups, which is a separate form. 

COMPETITION AND APPLICATION PROCEDURES

To apply for the Alvin H. Johnson AMS 50 Dissertation Fellowship and/or the Holmes/D'Accone Fellowship, the following materials are required:

  1. A brief (1,000 character) dissertation project description.
  2. A current dissertation proposal of 2,000-4,000 words, double-spaced, in 12-point font. The proposal should include a detailed rationale of the project (supported by, but not limited to, an assessment of relevant secondary literature) and an overview of each chapter. It should be a sourced document with footnotes, endnotes, and/or bibliography. Word count does not include footnotes, endnotes, or bibliography. This document should include the name of your project, but omit personally identifying information, such as your name and institution.
  3. A timeline (1-2 pages) for completion of the dissertation, including information about progress to date. The timeline should indicate all milestones (completion of exams, proposal approval, etc.) that are relevant for your program/institution. This document should include the name of your project, but omit personally identifying information, such as your name and institution.
  4. A sample chapter or excerpt (preferably not an introductory chapter reviewing the literature). This chapter or excerpt should be one that clearly represents or bolsters your overall thesis, and should not exceed 60 double-spaced pages in length. This document should include the name of your project, but omit personally identifying information, such as your name and institution.
  5. You must also arrange for a letter from the registrar or departmental Director of Graduate Studies, attesting to ABD (all-but-dissertation) status. This must be requested using the reference request feature included in the application form, so have your attestor's name and email handy when filling in the form. You may send this letter request at any time, even before you are ready to submit the application.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

  1. For AMS 50 and Holmes/D'Accone Fellowships, Applicants must submit items 1-4, above, in an anonymous form, i.e., without name or evidence of institutional affiliation in any document (including text, headers, footers, footnotes, and document properties). Please be particularly careful not to name university-based sources of funding or other institutional information in the prospectus and timeline.
  2. Start your application process early. You may save an incomplete form and continue later.  
  3. You MUST click the 'Submit' button at the end of the form to submit your application. Applications not submitted by the deadline cannot be considered.
  4. Upon submission of your application form you will receive an email confirmation. You may also check the status of your application by signing into your Submittable account and clicking "My Submissions". 
  5. If you have any questions about your application, please contact the AMS office at ams@amsmusicology.org. For technical questions about Submittable, please visit submittable.com/contact.

AWARDS

All AMS fellows receive a twelve-month stipend, currently set at $25,000. AHJ AMS 50 Fellowships and Holmes/D'Accone Fellowships are awarded solely on the basis of academic merit, and AMS 50 and Holmes/D'Accone fellows are expected to focus on completing their dissertations and not to undertake more than twenty (20) hours each week of paid or unpaid employment during the fellowship term. 

Recipients of all AMS fellowships may elect to accept the award on a non-stipendiary basis (thus freeing scarce resources for others). Fellowships are intended for full-time study. An equivalent major award from another source may not be held concurrently or consecutively unless the AMS award is accepted without a stipend. Fellowships are not deferable or renewable. There are no provisions for the payment of tuition: it is hoped that graduate schools will provide tuition fellowships or waivers.

Fellows are selected in the spring and announced in the summer.

Application Deadline: 11:59pm ET, 2 February 2026

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