Funding packages for doctoral students in the humanities are typically designed to last about five years. In practice, however, completing a doctorate takes an average of six to eight years, and often longer, depending on circumstances.
Why the Fellowship Exists
The Chancellor Jackman Graduate Fellowship was developed to address the period of unfunded time many doctoral students face while writing their dissertations.
- By providing an office and a community of supportive colleagues, the fellowship supports the writing process with focus and intellectual nourishment.
- By covering tuition, providing an income, and removing the obligation to teach as a TA or CI, the fellowship helps accelerate the writing process.
The Fellowship Experience
Each year, the JHI selects up to three graduate fellows from the humanities and humanistic social sciences. In the cheerful, relaxed environment of the Institute, they join a convivial group of faculty members, postdocs, visitors, and undergraduate fellows to share a weekly lunch and a year-long, research-driven conversation about the annual theme.
Graduate fellows receive an award of $40,000 plus tuition (domestic or international, as applicable). This funding replaces all teaching activity during the Fall and Winter terms.
The Role of the Annual Theme
As with all JHI fellowships, graduate fellows are selected on the basis of both merit and the relevance of their project to the annual theme. The theme provides a shared framework that makes interdisciplinary discussion possible. As fellows present their work to the group, the conversation grows more rich and engaged: serendipitous discoveries, shared references, new ideas, resources and methodologies and complex interconnections develop between fellows and their projects. The annual theme for 2026-27 is Doubles, Doppelgangers.
Selection Process
Graduate fellows are selected through a two-stage competitive process:
- All eligible applicants must first secure a nomination from their home unit.
- Nominated applicants then submit two chapters of their dissertation (however drafty) as part of their application package.
This nomination process helps ensure a diverse applicant pool, representing a wide range of disciplines and balancing differences between large and small programs.
Outcomes and Impact
Since its inception in 2008, the JHI has hosted 59 graduate fellows. Of these, 69% graduated within two years of their fellowship year, with an overall average time to graduation of 1.3 years. In the past five years, the average time from fellowship to graduation has dropped to just over three months!
Among alumni, 32% now hold tenured or tenure-track academic positions, securing their first permanent academic role after an average of 2.8 years. Another 37% are: still studying (17%), in postdoctoral fellowships (12%), or in non-tenure-track roles (8%). The remaining 32% are: externally employed (17%), self-employed (7%), or working in alt-ac roles (5%).
JHI alumni emerge with confidence, an interdisciplinary circle of friends, and the ability to talk about their ideas. The fellowship is demonstrably effective in accelerating completion and as a boost on the subsequent job market.
Applying
Interested in this year’s competition? Speak with your unit’s Graduate Chair about getting nominated. Applications are open now, with a deadline of Tuesday, March 10, 2026.
For questions or further information, please contact Dr. Kimberley Yates, JHI Associate Director.