Princeton University Library (PUL) is delighted to announce the launch of the Friends of the Princeton University Library Research Grants Program for 2025-26. This program offers researchers from around the world access to Princeton University Library’s unique and rare collections.

Successful applicants receive a weekly stipend of $1,500, for up to four weeks, plus travel expenses. The length of the grant will depend on the applicant’s research proposal, but is ordinarily between two and four weeks. Grants can be used from May 2025 through April 2026.

Awarded to short-term research projects, the grants aim to promote scholarly use of archives, manuscripts, rare books, and other holdings of PUL Special Collections, including Mudd Manuscript Library, Marquand Library of Art and Archaeology, and the East Asian Library (Gest Collection).

Grants in 2024-25 were given to support research on topics including “Exploring Early Modern Age Metamorphoses Editions: Illustrations and Reception,” “Manuscript Sources for Islamic Intellectual History in Late Medieval Anatolia,” “Manchu Literacy and the Translation of China,” and “Answers to Unequal Pay: The David Morse Collection.” Awardees conducted research in the East Asian Collection, Manuscripts Division, Marquand Library of Art and Archaeology, Graphic Arts Collection, Cotsen Children’s Library, and Public Policy Papers – among others. 

The selection committee of University faculty, PUL staff, and members of the Friends awards the grants on the basis of the relevance of the proposal to unique holdings of PUL, the merits and significance of the project, and the applicant’s qualifications. The grants are designed to help defray the costs of traveling to and residing in Princeton to conduct research. Recipients are notified in April 2025.

Find out more about the program and how to apply. The deadline for applications is noon eastern time on January 15, 2025. Questions can be directed to [email protected].

Media Contact: Stephanie Oster, Library Publicity Manager