Humanities Research Awards

• Faculty awards: $5,000
• Student awards: $2,000 
• Duration: Faculty: 2 years; Students: 1 year.

Please attach a Word or PDF document with the following sections:

1. Descriptive Narrative: a) Summary/Abstract, b) Background, c) Methodology/Activities, d) Expected Outcomes (2 pages)
2. Budget table & outcomes timeline. Examples of research expenses may include student stipends, travel, materials & supplies, outside experts, conferences, and publication fees. (1 page) 
3. Short CV (2 pages)
4. Previous awards received during time at UT Austin (e.g., HRAs, SRA/FRAs, external grants) and any other available research funding sources.
5. For grad students, please provide a letter from your advisor stating that you have advanced to doctoral candidacy.

Selection Criteria

• Relevance of project to current humanistic inquiry in the project's field(s)
• Quality of project regarding research questions, methods, etc.
• Likelihood of project producing desired outcomes, especially regarding publication, dissemination and engagement
• Overall contribution of the project to the UT humanities landscape

Eligibility:

• Tenured & tenure-track faculty whose most recent HRA award must have been received prior to 2022-23. Faculty must also be full-time and actively employed at UT to be eligible, and must have qualified for promotion if up for tenure prior to being awarded an HRA.
• Graduate students who have advanced to doctoral candidacy with humanities-focused projects and who have not previously won an HRA.
• All applicants must be in a home department within the College of Liberal Arts.
• All projects must be in any area of the humanities or humanistic social sciences.

• Status: Currently accepting applications. Applications for summer 2026 to spring 2028 are open for faculty proposals only. Preference will be given to early career scholars or faculty with limited funding support. Please contact Jeff Meserve (meserve@austin.utexas.edu) with any questions.
• Application Deadline: April 3, 2026.
• Decisions Communicated: May 2026.
• Program timeline: All awards must be spent within a 2-year timeframe (June 2026 -- May 2028).

 

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Not currently accepting applications. 

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• Award: Faculty awards are $5,000 for 2 years and student awards are $2,000 for 1 year. 
• Program requirements: All awards must be spent within a 2-year timeframe.
• Next Deadline: Spring semester
• Next Start Date: Fall semester

Proposal that includes the following sections:

1. Descriptive Narrative: a) Summary/Abstract, b) Background, c) Methodology/Activities, d) Expected Outcomes (2 pages)
2. Budget table & outcomes timeline. Examples of research expenses may include student stipends, travel, materials & supplies, outside experts, conferences, and publication fees. (1 page) 
3. Short CV (2 pages)
4. Previous awards received during time at UT Austin (e.g., HRAs, SRA/FRAs, external grants) and any other available research funding sources.
5. For grad students, please provide a letter from your advisor stating that you have advanced to doctoral candidacy.

Example Budget Table

Item	Cost per unit	Units	Total $
Undergraduate Research Assistant	$15/hour	140 hrs/semester	$2,100
Airfare	$1,000/flight	1 flight	$1,000
Per diem	$50/day	7 days	$350
Lodging	$50/night	7 nights	$350
Web hosting & development	$600/year	2 years	$1,200
Total			$5,000

Example Outcomes Timeline

August 2026	December 2026	August 2027	December 2027
Scoping interview questions, connecting with potential collaborators, preliminary secondary research.	Collection of preliminary data and interviews, progress report submitted, located/engaged with any primary sources.	2nd round of interviews, additional research or analysis completed, beginning to draft publication or platform.	Submission or dissemination of project, final report submitted.

 

Eligibility: All applicants must be in a home department within the College of Liberal Arts. All projects must be in any area of the humanities or humanistic social sciences.

• Tenured & tenure-track faculty whose most recent HRA award must have have been received 3 years prior. Faculty must also be full-time and actively employed at UT to be eligible, and must have qualified for promotion if up for tenure prior to being awarded an HRA.
• Graduate students who have advanced to doctoral candidacy with humanities-focused projects and who have not previously won an HRA.
• Relevance of project to current humanistic inquiry in the project's field(s); quality of project regarding research questions, methods, etc., and project efficacy in producing desired outcomes, especially regarding publication, dissemination and engagement.

 

I am required.

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