Graduate Student Fellowships

The Virginia G. Piper Creative Summer Professional Development Fund provides funding of up to $1,500  for current MFA students in creative writing at Arizona State University (ASU) to support a professional development opportunity. Funding requested can cover travel, registration fees, application fees, and more.

Examples of qualifying opportunities may include:

• Presenting at a conference or festival 
• Participating in a competitive residency program, workshop, or other educational opportunity
• Other engagements that offer unique opportunities for professional and creative advancement
• Travel, technology, or other costs associated with participating in the aforementioned opportunities whether in-person or virtual

This fund is intended to provide support for:

• Competitive opportunities or other types of meaningful professional development experiences that take place on a local, national, or international level
• Support activities that foster artistic growth and professional development and help position students as changemakers in the field of literary arts

While we understand that timing can be a challenge, if applying for funding for a conference, festival, residency, or workshop, applications should, if possible,  demonstrate that the student has been selected or invited to participate. Travel costs may be included in your application. If funding is being sought for a virtual opportunity, funding for technology costs may also be considered. 

Questions?

If you have questions regarding whether an opportunity might qualify for the Summer Professional Development Fund, what documentation you need to provide, or require assistance with your application please contact the Piper Center’s Coordinator for Educational Programs, Joy Young, at [email protected] 

While our form allows you to save and return to your application later, we cannot guarantee your saved data will not time out or save properly.  We recommend, therefore, having all your documents ready before accessing the online form.

Fellowship Proposal (up to 1 page, single-spaced):

A summary of the opportunity and how it will enhance your practice as a writer or aid in your professional development. Include a one-paragraph statement on the professional and/or creative impact the opportunity will have on you as a writer.

Budget:

A detailed outline of all costs you are seeking to cover through this fund, with justification and supporting documentation for all listed costs. (Note: this documentation can include receipts, costs lists on a website, or a narrative that explains how you have arrived at your cost calculations.). Submitted budgets should be clear, detailed, and well-researched. Please include only costs requiring financial assistance and, as described above, do provide some form of  backup documentation. For example, if seeking funding to support conference registration, attach a PDF of the conference website page demonstrating the conference rates. If requesting funding for lodging and/or meals while traveling, please use this link to calculate the approved ASU per diem rates. You may request funds to pay for future events you have been accepted to participate in. If you are seeking reimbursement, receipts  should be provided. A sample budget template is provided here.  

If available, please provide an acceptance, invitation letter or receipt for contest submission fees as part of the supporting documentation for your funding request. Please compile all  documentation into a single PDF and attach it to your application. .

 Curriculum Vitae:

A professionally formatted CV including your creative and professional experiences and accomplishments.

If you run into issues submitting, have questions about the application, or need assistance, please contact Joy Young at [email protected].

Note: If you need funding for submission fees, book contests, or other reading fees, you can apply for up to $350 per academic year from the Submission and Reading Fee Fund. See below for more information.

Virginia G. Piper Submission and Reading Fees Fund

The Virginia G. Piper Creative Submission and Reading Fees Fund provides funding of up to $350 per year to current MFA students in creative writing at Arizona State University (ASU). The fund is designed to help ameliorate the costs associated with submission to magazines and journals as well as costs for book and other contests.   

Students may  be awarded up to $350 in each academic year  We offer three finding cycles with the following deadlines: September 30th, December 30th, and March 31st. Applications must be received by 5 pm Arizona time on the due date. However, students may apply once during any of our 3 cycles during an academic year. 

While our form allows you to save and return to your application later, we cannot guarantee your saved data will not time out or save properly.  We recommend, therefore, having all your documents ready before accessing the online form.

Application Checklist:

• Reimbursement request (Up to 1/2 page, single-spaced): A summary of the submissions or contests for which you are requesting reimbursement and their professional significance to you as a writer.
• Budget: A detailed outline of all costs for which you are seeking reimbursement through this fund with requisite documentation (primarily receipts). A template for the budget submission is provided here.
• Curriculum Vitae: A professionally formatted CV including your creative and professional experiences and accomplishments.

Apply here

If you run into issues submitting, have questions about the application or need further clarification, please contact Joy Young at [email protected]