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Fellowships

Opportunities for students and scholars

Graduate Student Curatorial Fellowship

The Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS) is pleased to announce a call for applications for the 2026–2027 Graduate Student Curatorial Fellowship, which aims to support emerging scholars seeking career opportunities in the cultural heritage sector. Through a nine-month placement at SIMS, the fellowship offers the chance to explore the curatorial profession up close in a special collections environment. 

Applications for the 2026–2027 fellowship are due September 11, 2026.

Learn more and apply

SIMS / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures Collaborative Fellowship

The Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS), in partnership with the Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures (CSMC) at the University of Hamburg, is pleased to announce a call for applications for a collaborative research fellowship. The SIMS-CSMC Fellowship will allow the recipient to take advantage of the expertise and manuscript resources at Penn Libraries and CSMC’s expertise in the Humanities, material analysis and/or Computer Science for manuscript research. 

Applications for the 2026–2027 fellowship year are now closed.

Learn more and apply

Visiting Research Fellowships

The SIMS Visiting Research Fellowships have been established to encourage research relating to the premodern manuscript collections at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, including the Lawrence J. Schoenberg Collection. Fellows will also be expected to present their research at Penn Libraries either during the term of the fellowship or on a selected date following the completion of the term. 

Applications for the 2026–2027 fellowship year are now closed.

Learn more and apply  Fellowship recipients

A scholar peers at a medieval document laying on a wooden table.

SIMS / Herbert D. Katz Center Distinguished Fellowship in Jewish Manuscript Studies

The fellowship, funded in part by the David Ruderman Distinguished Scholar fund, pairs a prominent scholar in any field of Jewish studies with a manuscript in one of our collections. Our goal is to bring distinguished scholars to the Penn Libraries to research the university’s rich holdings in Judaic manuscript material. Fellows will share their discoveries and expertise at a public lecture sponsored by the Jewish Studies Program at Penn and by offering a mini-course through edX.org (PennX-Datz1.1.x).

Fellowship recipients

SIMS / Italian Studies Fellow in Italian Manuscript Studies

This annual invited fellowship is sponsored by the Center for Italian Studies, the Italian Studies section of the Department of Romance Languages, and the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. The recipient spends one week at Penn working on manuscript material from the library’s collections of rare books and manuscripts, offering, in exchange, a graduate-student workshop and a lecture on the research conducted while in residence.

Fellowship recipients

Graduate Student Research Fellowship

Open to all graduate students attending universities in the greater Philadelphia. The fellowship has been established to encourage emerging scholars to engage with the rich physical and digital manuscript resources at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, including the Lawrence J. Schoenberg Collection and the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts. Working closely with SIMS staff members, the fellow will have the opportunity to develop a project and gain experience working in a collaborative, digital humanities environment.

Applications for the 2026–2027 fellowship year are now closed.

Learn more and apply   Fellowship recipients

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