Fellowships at The Met are an opportunity for scholars from around the world to use the Museum as a place for exchange, research, and professional advancement. Fellows are fully integrated into the life of the Museum and are given unique access to the inner workings of The Met through a rich program of tours, roundtable discussions, and workshops.
All fellows must be in residence at the Metropolitan Museum during the fellowship period.
Fellowships are 12 months in length beginning on September 1 following the application deadline and ending August 31 of the following calendar year. All fellowships must take place within this period.
Recent master's graduates, PhD candidates, postdoctoral scholars, and senior scientists and researchers are eligible to apply.
Junior fellows are those applicants who have recently completed graduate-level training; senior fellows are well-established professionals with at least eight years of experience in the field and a proven publication record, or those who have their PhD in hand by the deadline date.
In the past, Conservation and Scientific Research Fellows have had a background in fields including, but not limited to:
Junior fellows work closely with Met staff to receive training on scientific research and conservation practices. Senior fellows work on a specific research project that makes use of the Museum's collection and/or resources.
Learn more about the Conservation and Scientific Research departments, including departmental research interests, staff, and publications.
See a list of the Department of Scientific Research's primary areas of research interest.
The number of fellowships awarded depends on funds and resources available.
The stipend amount for one year is $42,000 for junior fellows and $52,000 for senior fellows, with up to an additional $6,000 for travel (maximum of six weeks).
See a list of endowed scientific and conservation fellowships.
All applications must be submitted online and in English. We will not accept applications or related materials via email, postal mail, or in person.
The online application will require you to provide the following:
1. Documents as Microsoft Word or PDF files:
2. Contact information for three recommenders (at least one academic and one professional), none of whom may be current Metropolitan Museum of Art staff. Once you have submitted your recommenders' names, titles, and email addresses, they will automatically be emailed instructions for uploading their letters online. Please note that each letter must include the recommender's complete title and contact information. We encourage recommenders to submit letters in English.
Senior fellowships are intended for well-established professionals with at least eight years of experience in the field and a proven publication record, or those who have their PhD in hand by the deadline date.
We welcome preliminary inquiries from senior applicants regarding the suitability of the project proposal to the departmental areas of research.
The online application will require you to provide the following:
1. Documents as Microsoft Word or PDF files:
2. Contact information for three recommenders (at least one academic and one professional), none of whom may be current Metropolitan Museum of Art staff. Once you have submitted your recommenders' names, titles, and email addresses, they will automatically be emailed instructions for uploading their letters online. Please note that each letter must include the recommender's complete title and contact information. We encourage recommenders to submit letters in English.
The deadline for all application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is the first Friday in December, 5 pm (EST).
For more information about the application process, please read our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. If your question is not answered there, please contact us.
All applicants will be notified by the last Friday in February following the application deadline.
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