Funding for Graduate Students

This page contains information about common funding sources for prospective and current graduate students in the Department of the Classics. Note that approximate deadlines are estimated from prior funding cycles. Check all official program and fellowship sites for current deadlines.

Program Funding from Harvard Griffin GSAS Financial Aid and Teaching Fellowships

Funding for the duration of graduate study is normally provided by outright fellowship grants in the first two years, by a dissertation completion fellowship in the final year, and by a combination of tuition grants and teaching fellowships in the intervening years. Candidates who have successfully completed their General Examinations are normally assigned teaching fellowships in undergraduate courses, which include elementary language courses, sophomore and junior tutorials, literature surveys, and courses taught in translation. Teaching is guaranteed in the third and fourth year. See the Harvard Griffin GSAS website for detailed information on PhD student support, and the Classics Satisfactory Progress guidelines for an outline of each year.

Funding Information for Prospective Students

Applicants are encouraged to apply for any outside funding sources that are available to help fund their graduate education.

Frank Knox Memorial Fellowship

Frank Knox Fellowships are awarded to citizens of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom for graduate study or research at Harvard University. Students from those countries are strongly encouraged to apply for Knox funding. Interested students must apply for consideration before entering the U.S. and prior to the start of their Harvard programs. Check deadlines on fellowship websites for each country. The fellowship pays tuition and health insurance fees plus a substantial living stipend, and is renewable for a second year for students in continuing degree programs. Approximately 15 new fellows are selected each year.

Fulbright Foreign Student Program

The Fulbright Foreign Student Program enables graduate students, young professionals, and artists from abroad to study and conduct research in the United States. Requirements and deadlines vary by country.

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Doctoral Fellowships

The SSHRC awards fellowships for doctoral study to Canadian citizens.

Classics Department Funding for Current Graduate Students

Charles P. Segal Fellowships for Research and Travel

Updated information about applying for Segal Fellowships is available on the page Study Abroad & Other Opportunities for Undergraduate and Graduate Students.

Conferences

The department will normally fund up to four conferences for each graduate student, as follows:

Society for Classical Studies/Archaeological Institute of America

The department will fund two trips to the Society for Classical Studies/Archaeological Institute of America annual conference: one conference at which a student is delivering a paper, and one conference at which a student is on the job market. Coverage for students giving papers will be for a maximum of three nights at the conference hotel, airfare, registration, and ground transportation. Coverage for job candidates will be for a maximum of three nights at the conference hotel, airfare, registration, and ground transportation.

Other Conferences

The department will fund attendance at two other conferences: one international (not to exceed $2,500), and one domestic (not to exceed $1,500). Coverage includes airfare, registration, accommodations, and ground transportation.

Note that these funds are technically not reimbursements and may be taxable. Reasonable exceptions and substitutions and may be approved in special circumstances. Contact Teresa Wu with questions.

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Funding

Please see the Harvard Griffin GSAS website for more details about all available funding sources and application details.

Dissertation Completion Fellowship

Eligible students in the humanities and social sciences are guaranteed one year-long Harvard Griffin GSAS Dissertation Completion Fellowship between the G4 and G7 years. (While there is no guarantee of a Dissertation Completion Fellowship beyond the G7 year, requests will be considered upon recommendation of the faculty advisor. See the Harvard Griffin GSAS website.) Students are required to meet all departmental requirements, submit an approved dissertation prospectus, and drafts of two dissertation chapters. Applications must be submitted through CARAT in early February.

Graduate Student Council (GSC) Conference Grants 

The GSC awards conference grants up to $750 to eligible Harvard Griffin GSAS students three times per year, and summer research grants up to $1,000 to eligible Harvard Griffin GSAS students once per year. See their website for more information.

Merit and Term Time Research Fellowships

The Merit and Term Time Research Fellowship allows outstanding Harvard Griffin GSAS students to focus their time on research, fieldwork, and writing. Students must have passed Generals and have an approved dissertation prospectus at the time of nomination, or no later than the beginning of the semester when the award is taken. The deadline is typically in early December, and there is a departmental deadline that precedes it by two weeks. Notification for this fellowship is typically mid-April.

Professional Development Fund

PhD students who entered Harvard Griffin GSAS between fall 2015 and fall 2019 and have begun or passed their third year of study may be eligible to apply for up to $2,500 from the Harvard Griffin GSAS Professional Development Fund. (Note that this fund will not be available for students entering after fall 2019.) This program is designed to help students develop skills and competencies that will enhance their competitiveness when on the job market and serve them in their professional careers. Students can review the list of approved professional development expenditures on the Harvard Griffin GSAS website. Note that there are three application periods each year. Students can contact the Graduate Coordinator, Alyson Lynch, with questions.

Summer Fellowships

Harvard Griffin GSAS offers two summer fellowships to assist with language study or preliminary research or fieldwork. Students are only eligible to receive one of the following awards during their time as graduate students. Applications for these two opportunities can be found in CARAT

Graduate Society Summer Predissertation Fellowships

Harvard Griffin GSAS offers Summer Predissertation Fellowships for outstanding graduate students conducting summer language study and/or preliminary dissertation research or fieldwork. Ordinarily for students in the summer following the G1, G2, or G3 year, this merit-based fellowship is intended for the early stage of dissertation development prior to having an approved prospectus. Notification for this fellowship is typically mid-April. The deadline is typically in early February, and there is a departmental deadline that precedes it by two weeks.

Summer School Tuition Fellowships

Harvard Griffin GSAS provides Summer School Tuition Fellowships for doctoral students to engage in language study at Harvard Summer School to prepare for department foreign language exams or for language needs related to the dissertation. This opportunity ordinarily is for use in the summer following the G1, G2, or G3 year, but under special circumstances students in later years may apply. The deadline is typically in early February.

American Academy in Rome: the Stocker Fund

This Harvard Griffin GSAS-administered fund is for work and study at the American Academy in Rome. Once accepted to the summer program or as an affiliate, students may submit a budget of anticipated expenses. Submit the budget to the Department Administrator, Teresa Wu, who will liaise with Financial Aid. Check the American Academy website for deadlines. Summer School deadlines are typically in December

Other Harvard Funding

American School of Classical Studies at Athens (ASCSA): the Charles Norton Fund

This University-administered fund is restricted to use at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. Students must apply to the American School and be accepted before they can apply for Norton funds. Funding is provided for the Summer Session, Summer Seminars, or Regular Membership. Funding is also available for associate members of the American School. Contact the Department Administrator, Teresa Wu, for more information about funding. Deadlines vary by program, so check the ASCSA website carefully. 

Center for Hellenic Studies

Museum of Cycladic Art Summer Internship

The Center for Hellenic Studies runs an internship at the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens, Greece; Harvard students at the undergraduate and graduate level are eligible to apply. Travel, housing, and a small stipend are provided. Applications are typically due in early March.

Winter Session in Washington, DC

The Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, DC offers the opportunity for five Harvard students to utilize the Center’s library collection for research in January. The CHS will provide housing in shared apartments on the CHS campus for one week, 24-hour access to the library, and lunch on weekdays. Additionally, the CHS will cover round trip transportation costs up to $500. Applications are typically due in early December.

Dumbarton Oaks

Bliss Symposium Awards

Dumbarton Oaks is proud to offer Bliss Symposium Awards, designed to engage advanced students in Dumbarton Oaks' three areas of specialization through supported attendance of annual symposia in Byzantine, Pre-Columbian, and Garden and Landscape Studies. Up to six awards will be made for each symposium. Up to three awards will be offered to students of Harvard University, with which Dumbarton Oaks is affiliated, and up to three awards will be offered to students from other US and international institutions. Each symposium has a different application deadline; applications for the Byzantine Studies symposium are due in late January.

Summer Internships

The Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection also offers paid internships with housing for undergraduate and graduate students that involve work on a variety of institutional projects, in areas such as library and archival acquisitions and cataloguing; exhibition development; scholarly publications; social media and communications; museum education and public programs; and the digital humanities. Applications are typically due in early February.

William R. Tyler Fellowships

Dumbarton Oaks offers two-year William R. Tyler Fellowships for Harvard graduate students in art history, archaeology, history, and literature of the Pre-Columbian/early Colonial or Mediterranean/Byzantine worlds; or in Garden and Landscape history. A stipend is provided, and travel funds are available. Applications are typically due in early November.

Prizes

Information about all prizes may be found on the website of the Prize Office. There are two endowed prize competitions for composition in Greek and Latin called the Bowdoin Prizes. All submissions must be made under a pseudonym, and only the pseudonym should appear on the translation. Your name should be submitted in a sealed envelope with the pseudonym written on the outside. Submissions should be delivered in person to Boylston 204 by 5 p.m. on the last day of classes in spring semester (Wednesday, April 27th, 2020).

Graduate Composition in Greek

An annual prize of $10,000 is offered for an original essay in Classical Greek. The essay may be on any subject chosen by the competitor, and must contain at least 1,000 words. Essays previously presented for other prizes, or for academic recognition elsewhere than in Harvard University, or already published, are not admissible. Dissertations offered for the degree of Ph.D. in Harvard University are admissible. If a thesis chapter is submitted, it must be so modified that it stands alone as a complete essay.

Graduate Composition in Latin

An annual prize of $10,000 is offered for an original essay in Classical Latin. The essay may be on any subject chosen by the competitor, and must contain at least 1,000 words. Essays previously presented for other prizes, or for academic recognition elsewhere than in Harvard University, or already published, are not admissible. Dissertations offered for the degree of Ph.D. in Harvard University are admissible. If a thesis chapter is submitted, it must be so modified that it stands alone as a complete essay.

Other Fellowships

Many of these have previously been awarded to students of the department.

Other Sources to Explore

CARAT Funding Database (Harvard)

Medium's list of Funding Opportunities for Graduate Students of Classical Philology, Ancient History, and Classical Archaeology

Pivot Database

SCS Resources