A program of the Henry Luce Foundation and the American Council of Learned Societies, the Luce Foundation/ACLS Program in China Studies seeks to maintain the vitality of China studies in the United States through fellowships and grants (primarily) for scholars at an early stage in their careers.

The program offers three competitions:

1) Pre-Dissertation Summer Travel Grants for Research in China are designed to enable doctoral candidates to spend three to four months gaining familiarity with work under way in archives and field sites in China and to establish formal and informal relations with Chinese institutions and colleagues in preparation for subsequent full-time research in China. A working knowledge of Chinese is required. Applicants must be enrolled in a PhD program at a university in the U.S., and grants will provide $5,000 for costs associated with travel to and in China (air and ground transportation, visas, and living expenses).

2) Postdoctoral Fellowships provide support for scholars preparing their PhD dissertation research for publication or embarking on a new research project. Fellowship funding supports work based on the applicant’s research in China aimed at producing a scholarly text in English. Applicants must hold a PhD from an institution in the U.S. or be a U.S. citizen with a PhD from any institution. An applicant who is not a U.S. citizen must have an affiliation with a university or college in the U.S. In addition, the applicant’s PhD degree must have been conferred no more than eight years before the application deadline. A working knowledge of Chinese is required. Fellowships provide up to $50,000 for a maximum of one academic year and minimum of one semester. Stipends may be used for travel, living expenses, and research costs.

3) Collaborative Reading-Workshop Grants of up to $15,000 provide opportunities for scholars of different disciplines to share in-depth investigation of texts that are essential points of entry to Chinese periods, traditions, communities, or events in contemporary or historical times. Applications in all disciplines of the humanities and related social sciences are welcome. Awards may be used to support travel and lodging costs of participants, acquisition of materials, communications, and local arrangements. Workshops must bring together scholars who would not otherwise have the opportunity to work together. Each member of the organizing team must hold a PhD from an institution in the U.S. or be a U.S. citizen with a PhD from any institution.

See the American Council of Learned Societies website for complete program information and application procedures.