Linguistic Institute Fellowships
The LSA administers the biennial fellowship competition and provides dedicated funds to assist LSA Student Members in attending the Linguistic Institute. Join the LSA as a member today! Your dues help us make this possible!
Applications for the 2025 LSA Linguistic Institute Fellowships are now open and will be accepted until midnight of December 9, 2024 (anywhere on Earth). Please complete the application in advance to allow time for resolving any technical issues, such as internet connectivity problems. To access the application form, log into the Member Portal and click 'Access Membership Benefits'.
Are you thinking about applying for these fellowships but unsure where to start? Watch the information session below to obtain more insights on all fellowships available. Get some advice on how to prepare the best application to maximize your opportunities.
Linguistic Institute Fellowships offered in 2025
1. General Institute Fellowship – 12 awards of $2,500
Provides tuition support for LSA student members to attend the Institute.
2. Charles Fillmore Student Fellowship – one award of up to $2,500
Provides tuition support for a graduate student to attend the Institute. This fellowship is named in honor of the late Charles Fillmore, a former President of the LSA.
3. Yuki Kuroda Fellowship – one award of up to $4,500
Established in honor of an LSA member and pre-eminent scholar of Japanese linguistics, Yuki Kuroda, this student fellowship is reserved for linguistics students from Japan to attend the LSA's biennial summer Linguistic Institute.
4. Bernard and Julia Bloch Fellowship – one award of up to $3,500
Established from the Julia Bloch Memorial Fund, the Bernard and Julia Bloch fellowship was first awarded in the summer of 1970. This is the most prestigious award offered to graduate students planning to attend the institute, awarded to the "most promising applicant."
5. Ivan Sag Linguistic Institute Fellowship – one award of up to $2,500
Established in 2014 in honor of our late colleague Ivan Sag, by contributions from LSA members, colleagues, and friends, the Ivan Sag Linguistic Institute Fellowship provides tuition, room and board, and travel for a student at the Linguistic Institute. The Sag Fellowship was awarded for the first time at the 2015 Linguistic Institute. This fellowship is designed to recognize an exceptionally promising linguist who will go beyond regular institute participation, exhibiting the kind of inclusiveness, generosity, and energy that made Ivan Sag who he was.
6. James McCawley Fellowship – one award of up to $2,500
The James McCawley Fellowship is made possible through contributions to the James McCawley Memorial Fund, established in 1999. One Fellowship is available for either 1) a graduate from the University of Chicago, where McCawley attended, or 2) a graduate student from an Asian country.
7. Ken Hale Student Fellowship – one award of up to $3,200
The Ken Hale Student Fellowship will be awarded to a graduate student who is pursuing a course of study to document endangered languages and work with communities toward their preservation. The first Hale student fellowship was awarded at the 2017 Linguistic Institute at the University of Kentucky, Lexington.
8. Warren Cowgill Fellowship – one award of up to $2,500
The Warren Cowgill Fellowship is designed to support an underrepresented minority undergraduate to attend the Institute. The fellowship will be awarded to a student from a racial or ethnic background that has traditionally been under-represented in the field of linguistics, including African-Americans, Latinx/Hispanic, American Indian, Pacific Islanders and those of mixed heritage.