The Virginia G. Piper
Creative Engagement Fellowship
The Virginia G. Piper Creative Engagement Fellowship is a merit-based fellowship that is awarded to current Master of Fine Arts students in Creative Writing at Arizona State University, who are applying to and/or have been accepted to present at or participate in a creative writing opportunity requiring financial support. Travel funds are acceptable.
Examples of qualifying opportunities may include:
- Submitting to journals or book contests
- 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
Resources
For more information about the Virginia G. Piper Professional Creative Engagement Fellowship or assistance with the application process please reach out to the Coordinator for Educational Programs, Joy Young, at joyyoung@asu.edu.
To schedule an appointment with Joy to address any questions you may have, sign up at this link.
The Budget Template for student use is available here and shown below.
About the Creative Engagement Fellowship
The Virginia G. Piper Creative Engagement Fellowship is a merit-based fellowship that is awarded to full-time Master of Fine Arts students in Creative Writing at Arizona State University, who are applying to and/or have been accepted to present at or participate in a creative writing opportunity requiring financial support. This fellowship award is intended to provide support for competitive opportunities that take place on a local, national, or international level, and that position students as leaders in their field or in their communities. Examples include but are not limited to:
- Submitting to journals or book contests
- Being featured as a presenter or speaker at a creative writing conference, festival, or literary series, etc.
- Being included as part of a select group of creative writers for an advanced learning opportunity, such as a virtual writing residency, seminar, or workshop, etc.
If applying for funding for a conference, festival, residency, or workshop, applications must demonstrate that the student has been selected or invited to participate as a presenter or featured artist (either within the application or before funds are dispersed if an application is still pending); this award is not intended to fund attendance at a conference or festival where the student is not also presenting or being featured in some capacity.
If applying for funding for submission fees, book contests, or other opportunities similar to these categories eligible for funding through the Creative Engagement Fellowship, students must provide documentation of the costs such as receipts (if the student has already applied), links to journal websites that outline costs of submitting, screenshots of the application fees, or email documentation.
Students may only be awarded this fellowship once in an academic year. However, students may apply for financial support for participating in multiple events occurring throughout the year so long as the student can supply evidence of acceptance to the events if requesting funding for anything other than submission fees. If you have questions regarding whether an opportunity might qualify for this fellowship, 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 joyyoung@asu.edu
Creative Engagement Fellowship Amount
The Creative Engagement Fellowship provides financial assistance for submission fees and pursuing competitive creative and professional opportunities alongside their studies. Award amounts will be determined based on an application’s submitted budget, and may be funded in full or in partial fulfillment. Awards are determined by the proposal and budget’s merits and by the amount of award funds available. The applicant’s CV and other measures of merit within the application will also be considered. Total award funding varies each year based on availability. On average, the center awards this fellowship to 10 students each year.
Submitted budgets should be clear, detailed, and well-researched. Please include only costs requiring financial assistance and provide backup documentation. For example, if seeking funding to support conference registration, attach a PDF of the conference website page demonstrating the conference rates. You may request funds to pay for future events you have been accepted to participate in. If you are seeking reimbursement, evidence of payment should be provided. Travel funds are acceptable.
All funding requests for the year should be listed in a single budget per application. Any costs that exceed the fellowship award will be at the student’s expense. A budget template is available for use as needed and shown below.
Creative Engagement Fellowship Eligibility
Current ASU MFA Creative Writing students are eligible to apply and may be in their 1st, 2nd, or 3rd year as a student. Applicants must be currently enrolled in the ASU MFA program and in good academic standing at the time of the application deadline. Students may only submit one application for consideration during each academic year.
Creative Research Fellowship Application
Submit documentation via the online portal (link above) no later than 11:59 PM on desired deadline. Applications are taken three times throughout the year. Files should be titled “LastName Engagement Fellowship Descriptor” (ex: Doe Engagement Fellowship
Proposal.pdf).
Application Checklist:
- Fellowship Proposal (Up to 1 page, single-spaced):
- Budget:
- Acceptance or Invitation Letter or Contest Submission Description:
A summary of the opportunity and how you will be featured or participate. Include a statement on the professional and/or creative impact it will have on you as a writer.
A detailed outline of all costs you are seeking through this fellowship, with justification and other documentation to provide clarity. Submitted budgets should be clear, detailed, and well-researched. Please include only costs requiring financial assistance and provide backup documentation. For example, if seeking funding to support conference registration, attach a PDF of the conference website page demonstrating the conference rates. You may request funds to pay for future events you have been accepted to participate in. If you are seeking reimbursement, evidence of payment should be provided. Travel funds are acceptable. An example budget template is available for you here.
A PDF of your invitation(s), acceptance(s), receipt(s) to participate in the opportunity or other supporting documentation.
Deadlines:
Applications will be accepted 3 times per year during the academic year. Submissions should be in by 5:00 PM on the following deadlines September 30th, December 30th, and March 31st. Applications will be reviewed after each application deadline but may support opportunities occurring within the academic year. For example, an application awarded from the September 31st 2022 deadline may support an opportunity occurring any time between August 1st, 2022 to July 31st 2023.
Judging:
The Piper Center reserves the right to judge the applications via an internal committee or to use judges external to ASU, depending on the funding amount and number of applications received. Awards will be announced within one month of each deadline.
Please Note:
The Piper Center is currently looking into building free courses to teach critical skills needed for the creation of competitive fellowship applications. Please subscribe to our newsletter, regularly check our website, and/or follow us on social media to keep up with our most current offerings. The Coordinator for Educational Programs is also available to assist students as needed. Contact joyyoung@asu.edu for support.
More Information:
For more information about the Virginia G. Piper Professional Creative Engagement Fellowship or assistance with the application process please reach out Coordinator for Educational Programs, Joy Young, at joyyoung@asu.edu
More Information
For more information about the Virginia G. Piper Professional Creative Engagement Fellowship or assistance with the application process please reach out to the Coordinator for Educational Programs, Joy Young, at joyyoung@asu.edu