AAS Humanities Fellowships

AAS Humanities Fellowships is sponsored by Association for Asian Studies. Fellowships supporting career development and research projects for underrepresented Asian Studies professionals, including Black scholars, contingent faculty, first-generation scholars, junior scholars, independent scholars, and Asia specialists outside academia.

Grants & Awards - Association for Asian Studies Grants Quarterly Newsletter Don’t miss out! Grants Quarterly Newsletter delivers crucial funding information directly to your inbox each quarter. Read the Q3 2026 Grants Quarterly Newsletter here !

AAS Annual Conference Travel Grant Recipients Astghik Hovhannisyan, Russian-Armenian University, AAS2026 Annual Conference Travel Grant Recipient Feng Guo, University of Edinburgh AAS2026 Annual Conference Travel Grant Recipient. Group photo of panel: Eco-Encounters: Reconsidering Flora and Fauna in Chinese Art and Material Culture. From left to right: Shing-Kwan Chan, Lisa Claypool, Anran Tu, Wilson Chan, Feng Guo, Fa-ti Fan.

A photo of Ngoi Hui Chien, AAS2026 Travel Grant Recipient and panelists . From left to right: Ngoi Hui Chien, Junlin Ma, Poon Soon Yi, and Wenxin Liang.

Jessie Tannenbaum, Virginia Tech, AAS2026 Annual Conference Travel Grant Recipient AAS Travel Grant recipients, including those awarded the AAS Annual Conference Travel Grant, Geiss Hsu Annual Conference Travel Grant, International Exchange Grant, Japan Studies Graduate Student Travel Grant, Korean Studies Graduate Student Travel Grant, and South Asia Council Conference Travel Award on Saturday, March 14, 2026.

Timothy Sim, University of Cambridge, AAS2026 Annual Conference Travel Grant Recipient Application Portal Opens August 1, 2026 Deadline to submit: October 1, 2026 5 PM Eastern Time Short-Term Research Grant in the History of Japanese Sexualities Annual Deadline: October 1 Awards of up to $3,500 will be available for early-career scholars to cover travel and research expenses on trips to Japan for research projects focused on the history of Japanese sexualities.

Established in Honor of Mark McLelland LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW→ AAS Northeast Asia Council (NEAC) Japan Studies Grants Annual Deadline: October 1 The Northeast Asia Council (NEAC) of the Association for Asian Studies, in conjunction with the Japan-US Friendship Commission, supports a variety of grant programs in Japanese studies designed to facilitate the research of individual scholars, to improve the quality of teaching about Japan on both the college and precollege levels, and to integrate the study of Japan into the major academic disciplines.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW → Grants with Rolling Application Deadlines Funds have been fully allocated and are no longer available for 2026 COC Outreach Grants . Applications will only be accepted for 2027 regional conference events. 2026 NEAC DSB applications are open.

Limited funds are available for Japan Speakers, and funds are available for Korea Speakers. Funds are available for SAC Conference Travel Awards in 2026 for a pplications for AAS-in-Asia 2026 and any upcoming AAS Regional Conference in 2026.

AAS Northeast Asia Council (NEAC) Distinguished Speakers Bureau The Northeast Asia Council of the Association for Asian Studies (NEAC) solicits applications from American colleges or universities (especially those without well-established programs on East Asia) to invite a distinguished scholar to give a public lecture on their campus, to meet with teachers and students, and possibly to visit classes.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW → AAS Council of Conferences (COC) Outreach Grants AAS Council of Conferences (COC) Outreach Grants of up to $3,000 are made available to encourage education in Asian Studies. 2026 funds are fully allocated; only applications for 2027 events will be considered at this time.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW → South Asia Council Conference Travel Award The South Asia Council is pleased to offer approximately thirty $150 – $200 awards to scholars who plan to present South Asia-related research at any AAS-affiliated conference in 2026, including the AAS Annual Conference, AAS-in-Asia, and AAS regional conferences.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW → Not Currently Accepting Applications Please note that all stated dates are subject to change. Annual Conference Travel Grant Annual Deadline: November preceding the AAS Annual Conference Thanks to generous support from our members, we are proud to offer the Annual Conference Travel Grant, which awards $500 to individuals to enable their AAS Annual Conference participation.

AAS Northeast Asia Council (NEAC) Korean Studies Grants Annual Deadline: February 1 The Northeast Asia Council of the Association for Asian Studies (NEAC), in conjunction with the Korea Foundation, offers a grant program in Korean studies designed to assist the research of individual scholars based in North America to improve the quality of teaching about Korea on both the college and precollege levels, and to integrate the study of Korea into the major academic disciplines.

Geiss Hsu Annual Conference Travel Grant Annual Deadline: November preceding the AAS Annual Conference Thanks to generous support from the Geiss Hsu Foundation, we are able to offer the Geiss Hsu Annual Conference Travel Grant, which will award up to $2,000 each in travel support to scholars specializing in studies of Ming China, as well as scholars who engage in research related to the Ming.

Applicants do not need to be a part of an organized session to receive the grant, nor do they need to be current AAS members.

Japan Studies Graduate Student Travel Grant Annual Deadline: December preceding the AAS Annual Conference Thanks to generous support from the Japan-US Friendship Commission, we are able to offer the Japan Studies Graduate Student travel grant, which awards $500 up to $1,000 to individuals to enable their AAS conference participation.

Korea Studies Graduate Student Travel Grant Annual Deadline: December preceding the AAS Annual Conference Thanks to generous support from the Korea Foundation, we are able to offer the Korea Studies Graduate Student travel grant, which awards $500 to individuals who are current Korean Studies graduate students to enable their AAS conference participation.

Chaplin Memorial Award for Excellence in Japanese Language Teaching The Hamako Ito Chaplin Award for Excellence in Japanese Language Teaching is an annual prize of $1,000 that will be awarded to either a current graduate student or a full-time instructor of Japanese for excellence in Japanese language teaching at the college level.

AAS East and Inner Asia Council (EIAC) Small Grants Application Portal Open: December 1, 2026 Annual Deadline: February 1 The East and Inner Asia Council of the AAS (EIAC) makes awards of up to $2,000. Dissertation-level graduate students and scholars with special interests in China, Taiwan, East or Inner Asia are invited to submit proposals.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY NOW → Annual Deadline: February 1 The fellowship provides US $55,000 of funding for postdoctoral research and writing, to be expended over 8-12 months while the recipient is in residence or otherwise based at an academic institution, in Southeast Asia or abroad, other than their home institution and the institution at which their doctorate was obtained.

The fellowship may be used in any discipline and for any country of Southeast Asia (i.e., Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam). Graduate Student Paper Prizes Annual Deadline in March, immediately after the AAS Annual Conference concludes Each year the Area Councils offers a best paper prize to graduate students presenting at the Annual Conference.

Submission requirements and prize amounts vary by area council. Cultivating the Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) Research Grants in South and Southeast Asia The application portal is closed.

Cultivating the Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) Research Grants are available for short- (up to 2 months), medium (2-6 months), and long-term (12 months) research projects that advance the fields of the humanities and social sciences in South and Southeast Asia. Junior faculty, graduate students, senior or independent scholars, women, and ethnic minority groups with South or Southeast Asian nationality are encouraged to apply.

The following grant programs have ended; information here is provided for reference only: Striving for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Asian Studies: Humanities Grants for Asian Studies Scholars First Book Subvention Program Click here for more information on prizes At the Association for Asian Studies, we are committed to partnering with grantees to achieve shared community impact.

Grant funding is contingent upon compliance with grant requirements and the approved use of funds. In cases where significant compliance, reporting, financial, or programmatic concerns arise, AAS reserves the right to modify, suspend, withdraw, or seek repayment of grant funds as necessary to ensure responsible stewardship of charitable resources. Thank you for your understanding.

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