The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) is now accepting applications for the 2018-19 Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Program. The Novak Fellowship Program awards fellowships of $35,000 for working journalists and up to $75,000 for journalists who make their Novak project their full-time occupation for the year. Novak projects at both levels often become the basis for books or a path-breaking series of articles. Novak Fellows spend a year researching and writing on a topic of their choice that supports the principles of a free society. Print and electronic journalists with less than 10 years’ professional experience are eligible.
Apply for a Novak Fellowship
Since 1994, Novak Fellowships have supported young writers who have gone on to become leaders in their field as Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters, editors of national magazines and authors of best-selling books. Novak Fellows include Steve Hayes (AIPES 94, Novak 00) of The Weekly Standard and Fox News, Katherine Mangu-Ward (Novak 05) of Reason magazine, Mollie Hemingway (Novak 04) of Fox News and The Federalist and Tim Carney (Novak 03) of the Washington Examiner. For a full list of fellowship recipients, click here.
Six TFAS Novak Fellowships Awarded in 2017:
- Helen Andrews for “Eminent Boomers: The Worst Generation From Birth to Decadence”
- Madison Iszler for “What’s Killing Middle-Aged White Women – And What It Means for Society”
- Ryan Lovelace for “Hiding in Plain Sight: Criminal Illegal Immigration in America”
- Matthew Schmitz for “The Revolt Against Progress”
- Robby Soave for “You Can’t Say That: Censorship and the Selfie Generation”
- Jason Willick for “Not Your Parents’ Culture War: The New Battles Over Free Speech, Sex and Identity”
“Novak Fellows are featured every day in the nation’s leading newspapers, magazines and broadcast media,” said Daniel McCarthy, director of the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Program. “From The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times to The Weekly Standard and Reason magazine, current and former Novak Fellows are at the pinnacle of American journalism – and in 2018 we look forward to identifying the next generation of top-flight writers and reporters.” The fellowships are named for Robert D. Novak, longtime columnist, CNN broadcaster and reporter for the Associated Press and The Wall Street Journal.
For 2018, the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Program is seeking writing and reporting projects that are serious, original and publishable in book or essay form. Winners deliver their projects in six written installments over the year of the fellowship.
Alumni Fund Fellowships, supported by donations from current and former Novak Fellows, are also available and provide grants for winners to write a significant essay on their topic. Alumni Fund Fellowships are awarded to applicants to the Novak Program for projects of great promise, which the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Program is not able to support with a year-long fellowship.
Applicants for full and part-time fellowships are automatically considered for Alumni Fund Fellowships. No separate application process is required.
Applications must be postmarked or submitted electronically by Feb. 12, 2018. Winners will be announced in May. Fellowships begin Sept. 1, 2018. Applicants must be citizens of the United States.
Click below to apply, or contact program director Daniel McCarthy at dmccarthy@TFAS.org or 202.986.0384. For news about the program and updates on the Fellows’ activities, follow the Novak Fellowship Program on Twitter: @NovakFellows.
Apply for a Novak Fellowship