Date:
Email: chinastudies@acls.org
Website: https://www.acls.org/competitions/luce-acls-collaborative-grant-in-china-studies/
The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) invites applications for the Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies fellowships and grants.
The Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies seeks to advance outstanding scholarship on China and Chinese cultures, histories, and communities, as broadly conceived. Grants and fellowships support a wide range of scholarly approaches in China studies, including multi-method research, Sinophone studies, and Global China, while encouraging dynamic and responsive scholarship that deepens public understanding of China and its evolving role in the world. The Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies aims to build a broader, more equitable field by supporting emerging scholars and strengthening scholarly networks and collective resources across the field. In 2025-26, ACLS is offering the following fellowships and grants to support research, writing, and publicly engaged scholarship:
Awards are generously supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Application deadline: November 5, 2025, 9:00 PM EST
Flexible research fellowships will enable recent PhDs without tenure, within eight years of the PhD, and with heavy teaching and service responsibilities to carry out research and writing towards a scholarly product. These flexible awards do not require leave from university responsibilities and may be used for a range of needs, including conference participation and childcare or elder care.
Award Amount: $15,000 ($5,000 per month) for the equivalent of three months’ work accomplished over a twelve-month period. Flexible fellowships do not require the three months of work to run consecutively.
Long-term research fellowships will enable recent PhDs (without tenure and within eight years of the PhD) to take leave from university responsibilities for four to nine months to carry out research and writing towards a significant scholarly product. The fellowship requires leave from teaching and service responsibilities and must be taken in consecutive months.
Award Amount: Minimum $20,000, maximum $45,000 calculated as $5,000 per month for four to nine months’ work accomplished full time.
Travel grants will enable graduate students in a PhD program or non-tenure track faculty at any career stage to conduct basic research in China or conduct China studies-related research in databases, collections, and archives anywhere in the world.
Award Amount: $5,000 for travel at any time during a twelve-month period.
The next competition for the Luce/ACLS Collaborative Grant in China Studies will open in early 2026. The grant funds innovative pilot activities that initiate long-term transformative change in the field of China Studies.
The Luce/ACLS Program in China Studies promotes inclusion, equity, and diversity as integral components of merit that enhance the scholarly enterprise. It is a priority that every cohort of fellows and grantees be broadly inclusive of different backgrounds, cultures, and any aspects that make one unique. In China studies, we seek a wide range of educational backgrounds, unique personal experiences, and current university affiliations, as well as disciplinary approaches, topics, and historical periods studied. The program welcomes applications from all eligible individuals, and selection is made without regard to race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, disability, age, or any other aspect of identity.
Questions? Contact us at chinastudies@acls.org.
