How to Apply
All applications must be submitted online and in English. Academic and Professional Programs will not accept applications or related materials via email, postal mail, or in person.
Materials Required for All Applications
The following materials must be included with all applications (as .doc or .pdf files):
- Curriculum vitae of education, professional experience, honors, awards, and publications
- Three letters of recommendation, at least one academic and one professional, uploaded directly by the recommenders, none of whom may be current Met staff. Recommenders are encouraged to submit their letters in English.
- Project proposal or statement (see instructions for specific fellowships below)
- Official transcripts (undergraduate and graduate)—for predoctoral (junior) fellowship applicants only
Please read Fellowship-Specific Application Requirements below. Depending on the category of fellowship for which you are applying, additional materials may be required.
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 at Academic.Programs@metmuseum.org.
All applicants will be notified by the last Friday in February following the application deadline.
Program-Specific Application Requirements
The deadline for Fellowship in History of Art and Visual Culture application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, November 3.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts (junior applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A project proposal, not to exceed 1,000 words, specifying why The Met is uniquely suited to your fellowship objectives, what you wish to accomplish during the fellowship period, and how you can utilize the Museum's resources and collections to achieve your goals
- A brief schedule of work to be accomplished during the fellowship period (separate from project proposal)
- A brief schedule of travel required (maximum of six weeks) during the fellowship period
Due to limited resources and staff time in the Department of Scientific Research and the conservation departments, some proposed scientific analysis or conservation work components may not be able to be accommodated.
View an overview of the application (PDF).
The deadline for Conservation Fellowship and Scientific Research Fellowship application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, December 1.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts, and three letters of recommendation, junior fellowship applicants must also include:
- A statement of interest and intent, not to exceed 1,000 words, describing why The Met is uniquely suited to your fellowship objectives, what you expect to accomplish during the fellowship period, and how you will utilize the Museum's resources and collections to achieve your goal.
In addition to the CV and three letters of recommendation, senior fellowship applicants must include:
- A project proposal, not to exceed 1,000 words, describing why The Met is uniquely suited to your fellowship objectives, what you expect to accomplish during the fellowship period, and how you will utilize the Museum's resources and collections to achieve your objectives
- A brief schedule of work to be accomplished during the fellowship period and, if you are proposing a fellowship period shorter than one year, your proposed starting and ending dates (separate from project proposal)
In addition to the CV, official transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and statement or project proposal, Paper Conservation applicants (junior or senior) must include:
- Two treatment reports and associated documentation with explanations justifying the reason for treatment and decisions entering each stage of treatment (not to exceed 750 words per object)
View an overview of the application (PDF).
The deadline for Leonard A. Lauder Fellowship in Modern Art application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, November 3.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts (predoctoral applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also submit:
- A research proposal, not to exceed 1,000 words: Please describe your research rationale or arguments, the focus of your project, and what you wish to accomplish during the fellowship. You may wish to include discussion of the research methods of your project, including how the project will benefit from the resources of the Lauder Research Center at The Met (e.g., its departments, collection, and libraries).
- A critical bibliographic statement, not to exceed 500 words. It should describe the key literature (the state of the field and/or interpretive frameworks) that forms the context for your proposal or planned research. It should also demonstrate how your contribution is original or develops a new perspective.
- A personal statement, not to exceed 500 words. This is an opportunity for you to share information about you and your work that cannot be learned from a school transcript or CV.
- A brief schedule of work to be accomplished during the fellowship period. (Applicants for postdoctoral fellowships should indicate whether they are applying for a one- or two-year period.)
- A brief schedule of travel for research visits (maximum of six weeks) during the fellowship period. Note that if you do not need to travel to complete the research for your project, it will not negatively affect the assessment of your application.
View an overview of the application (PDF).
This fellowship is offered every other year; candidates may apply this year for the 2024–2026 fellowship program.
The deadline for Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellowship application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, November 3.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts (junior applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A cover letter addressing your interest in the fellowship position
- A statement, not to exceed 1,000 words, specifying your areas of research and their relationship to the Museum’s collection and activities. Include relevant experiences related to your chosen curatorial project area.
- A copy of a published paper or recent writing sample
Finalists for the Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellowship will be called for an interview. Please note: Applicants may apply for a History of Art and Visual Culture Fellowship as well as a Eugene V. Thaw Fellowship for Collections Cataloguing in the same application cycle.
Project Descriptions:
Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Having profound impacts on acquisition policy and on the art market more broadly, provenance research is emerging as an essential skill for curatorial practice. It is also one of the most quickly changing spheres of research—with new data bases, claims, and legal thresholds put forward each year. As part of the Museum’s commitment to the study of the provenance of works in The Met collection, the Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow will dedicate the greater part of their two-year position to the history of specific objects under the supervision of curators and other provenance researchers in the Museum. With the principle aim of producing original scholarly and provenance research on the Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts’ (ESDA) collection, which includes more than 50,000 objects from Western Europe from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century, the Mellon Fellow will contribute to ongoing efforts to produce new, and synthesize existing, scholarship for various audiences within and outside The Met.
Some of the primary responsibilities will include conducting original research on selected target areas of the ESDA Department’s collections in coordination with the supervising curator/s by consulting and checking archives, monographs, exhibition catalogues, periodicals, sales catalogues, and other literature; thoroughly documenting one’s research and sources in The Met’s collection management system (TMS) by entering and updating data according to Museum-wide standards, and conducting research on the constituents and constituencies that objects in the collection passed through, including collectors, commercial galleries, auction houses, and dealers.
Robert Lehman Collection
The Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellowship will provide significant curatorial training for a scholar in the field of early Italian art. Through in-depth scholarly research and the cataloguing of the Robert Lehman Collection’s fourteenth- and fifteenth-century Italian paintings, the Mellon Fellow will develop advanced research skills fundamental to curatorial work and acquire knowledge of all facets of collection cataloguing.
Over the course of the two-year fellowship, the Mellon Fellow will be responsible for conducting research, compiling up-to-date bibliographies, writing short descriptions (web labels) and longer catalogue entries on a selection of Italian paintings in the collection. The small size of the Lehman Collection’s curatorial staff will enable the fellow to play an especially vital role in curatorial projects and be integrated into the fabric of the department as a whole. The Mellon Fellow will make a significant contribution to the department’s ongoing endeavor to update scholarship in this area of the collection and make it accessible to a broad public.
Since the fellowship period will dovetail with a project to re-install several fifteenth-century Venetian and northern Italian paintings, the fellow will also have the opportunity contribute to permanent collection installations.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts (junior applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A cover letter addressing your interest in the fellowship position
- A statement, not to exceed 1,000 words, specifying your areas of research and their relationship to the Museum’s collection and activities. Include relevant experiences related to your chosen curatorial project area.
- A copy of a published paper or recent writing sample
View an overview of the application (PDF).
The deadline for Eugene V. Thaw Fellowship for Collections Cataloguing application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, November 3.
In addition to the CV, official transcripts, and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A statement of interest, not to exceed 1,000 words, specifying your areas of research and their relationship to the European Paintings collection and activities. Include relevant experiences related to your chosen curatorial area
- A copy of a published paper or recent writing sample, not to exceed 5,000 words
Finalists for the Eugene V. Thaw Fellowship for Collections Cataloguing will be called for an interview.
The deadline for Research Scholarship in Photograph Conservation application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, December 1.
This fellowship is offered every other year. The next application deadline is November 2023 (for the 2024–2026 fellowship program).
In addition to the CV, official transcripts (junior applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A project proposal, not to exceed 1,000 words, specifying why The Met is uniquely suited to your fellowship objectives, what you expect to accomplish during the fellowship period, and how you can utilize the Museum's resources and collections to achieve your objectives
- A brief schedule of work to be accomplished during the fellowship period (separate from project proposal)
View an overview of the application (PDF).
The deadline for Interdisciplinary Fellowship application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, is 5 pm (EST) on Friday, November 3.
In addition to the CV/resume, official transcripts (junior applicants only), and three letters of recommendation, please also include:
- A statement of interest and project proposal, not to exceed 1,000 words, which addresses the following questions: 1) Why is this fellowship important or integral to your career or current practice? 2) How will you utilize the Museum's resources and collections to achieve your objectives? 3) What will be the concrete result(s) of your fellowship project?
- A brief schedule of work to be accomplished during the fellowship period (separate from project proposal)
- A brief schedule of travel required (maximum of six weeks) during the fellowship period
View an overview of the application (PDF).