# Funding ## expand\_more ![Student Even Vietorisz '20 in Cuba, partically funded by Artist Development Fellowship](/sites/g/files/omnuum4081/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/makeart/files/18adfblogevanvietorisz_7.jpg?itok=oh5DD955) ## Artist Development Fellowships **The Office for the Arts awards 10-15 artist development fellowships annually to promising** and/or accomplished student artists and creators who have an unusual opportunity for artistic growth and transformation. Fellowship applications are evaluated by the Council on the Arts, a standing committee of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. > [**Read** ***Acting Out*****,**](https://ofa.fas.harvard.edu/blog/acting-out) a Harvard Arts Blog post by ADF Fellow Enosa Ogbeide '20. This program supports projects across all arts disciplines, and their range is as varied as the student artists. Successful proposals might afford the student artist an opportunity to apprentice to a great artist or artistic company, to research and develop an unusually innovative idea, to finish a body of work, or to live and work in an environment that will feed the applicant’s creative development. In addition, in collaboration with the [Mignone Center for Career Success](https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/) (MCS), the program is able to support a number of summer international projects that are eight weeks or longer. To be eligible for MCS funding, students must be in good standing, complete the spring semester, must be returning in the fall after their summer experience and must not have previously received Harvard funding for an international experience of four weeks or longer. The [Artist Development Fellowship](/artist-development-fellowship "Artist Development Fellowship") program is jointly administered by the OFA, the Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships and the Mignone Center for Career Success. It is open to sophomores and juniors currently enrolled in Harvard College. Please read the [Harvard Summer Funding Policy](https://oue.fas.harvard.edu/experiential-learning/summer-funding/) before applying. **2025-2026 Academic Year:** **Deadline:** Closed **Application:** Available via [CARAT](https://carat.fas.harvard.edu/) end of day December 5, 2025 **Eligibility:** sophomores and juniors currently enrolled in the University. Below are listings of other art related opportunities for undergraduates. For further information on possible undergraduate funding sources please visit the following: [Mignone Center for Career Success](https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/) [Summer Funding Opportunities Office](https://summerfunding.college.harvard.edu/) [Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships](https://uraf.harvard.edu/) ## **Sydney M. Williams Traveling Fund** **2025-2026 Academic Year** **Deadline: Thursday, February 12, 2026** The [Sydney M. Williams Jr. Traveling Fund](https://summerfunding.college.harvard.edu/williams-traveling-fund) supports up to five students to make original works of visual art. Award recipients will use funds for travel outside the U.S. to support visual art projects. This opportunity is available to current Harvard College sophomores, juniors, or seniors who are not graduating in May 2026. Projects should be closely related to an ongoing or proposed creative project—they can include visiting museums and monuments, and can be any type of experience or research project provided that it does not involve taking formal classes. A faculty committee will be selecting awardees with an impressive portfolio of visual work. **Application Instructions** 1. Enroll in [direct deposit](https://sfs.harvard.edu/direct-deposit). 2. Apply in CARAT to “Sydney Williams Jr Traveling Fellowship SU26” by Thursday, February 12, 2026 with the following materials: 1. 400-word proposal 2. One-page resume, PDF format (we recommend using a MCS template) 3. Portfolio of your work (link to Google Drive or personal website) 4. Proof of Direct Deposit enrollment, PDF format. Submit a pdf screenshot from the “Student Accounts” section from my.harvard that shows you are enrolled in direct deposit (Download sample screenshot) This application process is coordinated by the Summer Funding Opportunities Office in collaboration with the Office for the Arts, the Department of Art, Film, and Visual Studies, and Harvard University Art Museums under the aegis of its Curator of Contemporary Art. **Details:** The project may vary in length from three to ten weeks. Funding will be based on location and length of the project. **Questions:** Contact the Summer Funding Opportunities Office (SFO) team at . This application process is coordinated by the Summer Funding Opportunities Office in collaboration with the Office for the Arts, the Department of Art, Film, and Visual Studies, and Harvard University Art Museums under the aegis of its Curator of Contemporary Art. ## **Music Lesson Subsidies** The [Music Lesson Subsidy Program](https://hwpi.harvard.edu/makeart/music-lesson-subsidy-program) provides scholarship support to full-time Harvard undergraduates. Recipients are selected on the basis of financial need and demonstrated musical ability and/or potential. In 2024-25 91 students were awarded subsidies to study with music instructors from all over the Boston area, including affiliates of [Berklee College of Music](https://www.berklee.edu/introductionoverview/plan-your-schedule/private-instructors), Boston Conservatory, [New England Conservatory](http://necmusic.edu/ce/private-lessons) and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. For the following Opportunities please visit the [Harvardwood website ](https://www.harvardwood.org/fellowships)for the most up to date information on timelines and application requirements. ## **Mia and David Alpert Harvardwood Artist Launch Fellowship** This fellowship supports graduating seniors or recent Harvard alumni working or seeking to work in the arts, media, and entertainment fields. The multiyear gift, generously donated by Harvardwood Co-Founder Mia Riverton Alpert ’99 and her husband, producer and media entrepreneur David Alpert ‘97, includes a $24,000 grant, awarded annually, to support one recent graduate from the College for one year as they pursue their artistic projects. Each Alpert Harvardwood Fellow will also be paired with a mentor in their field of interest to help guide their creative endeavors and will receive additional assistance through Harvardwood. ## Ruth Mulan Chu Chao Harvardwood AAPI Artist Fellowship **NOTE:** Harvardwood has temporarily paused this fellowship offering in the wake of Angel Chao's unexpected passing. Harvardwood is pleased to announce the inaugural **Ruth Mulan Chu Chao Harvardwood AAPI Artist Fellowship** for artists who are Harvard University alumni (or students expecting their degree in May 2023) and identify as Asian American Pacific Islander. The purpose of the Fellowship is to develop, elevate and amplify AAPI voices and stories. The gift, generously donated by Angela Chao (AB ‘95, MBA ‘01) in honor of her mother, Ruth Mulan Chu Chao, will support one or more artists as they pursue their creative projects over the course of a year. [Mrs. Ruth Mulan Chu Chao](https://www.library.hbs.edu/hc/chaofamily/wife-and-mother/ruths-story/) was a philanthropist, mother of six daughters, and lifelong advocate for equitable education. Like her namesake, Chinese folk heroine Hua Mulan, Mrs. Chao faced adversity with extraordinary grace, courage, and determination. In 2016 she became the first woman and Asian American to have a building named in her honor at Harvard University. For more information visit: [https://archive.harvardwood.org/chao\_fellowship](https://archive.harvardwood.org/chao_fellowship) ## **Jonathan Sethna Harvardwood LGBTQ+ Fellowship** Harvardwood is excited to announce the inaugural [Jonathan Sethna Harvardwood LGBTQ+ Fellowship ](https://www.harvardwood.org/lgbtq-fellowship)for projects that elevate LGBTQ+ characters, themes, and stories by creatives and screenwriters who are Harvard University alumni. The purpose of the Fellowship is to polish, develop, elevate, and amplify projects for the screen with LGBTQIA+ characters, themes, and stories. The gift, generously donated by Jonathan Sethna (HGSE ’03), will support at least two projects. The minimum amount of grant funding is $5,000. In addition to grant funds, Fellows will receive one-on-one guidance and mentorship from Harvard Alumni that want to empower artists to make the world a better place through their stories. Applicants may be at any stage of their career, and their chosen project must be a project for the screen (fiction or nonfiction, film or television). However, applicants can hold any relation to the work: writer, director, producer, etc. Each Fellow will receive additional guidance and assistance through Harvardwood via programs, resources, and access to the wider Harvardwood network during their fellowship year. The Fellowship selection committee is comprised of Harvardwood board members, other industry professionals, and/or Harvard University staff with expertise in various artistic disciplines.