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There are a number of residencies, awards, grants, and fellowship opportunities available to SMFA at Tufts students (and alumni) designed to bring public recognition to their work, exhibition opportunities, and often provide significant funding to enlarge the scope of their practice.

We encourage our artist-scholars to learn more about these opportunities below.

Artist Residencies

What is an artist residency? 
Artist residencies provide artists with time, space and resources to work, individually or collectively, on the development of their practice. Most offer room/board, access to studio facilities, and community engagement. Residencies help artists boost their body of work, build community and connections, and strengthen their CV. 

Funded Residencies

Leroy Neiman Fellowship Program at Ox-Bow School of Art & Artists' Residency

The Tufts Career Center has partnered with Ox-Bow School of School of Art & Artists’ Residency to offer this fully-funded experience which is offered bi-yearly.  

This residency-based fellowship program fully funds a 13-week opportunity for one student that offers the student time to focus on their work, meet with renowned artists, and grow as members of the Ox-Bow community. Fellows receive a dedicated studio space, weekly stipend, weekly studio visits, and exhibition opportunities in exchange for part-time work on campus. Room and board are provided and includes a private room with access to shared bathrooms and three meals per day. Application information will be sent to students via email during eligible years.

Eligibility

Applicants must:

  • Be undergraduate students in the junior/senior year or MFA students
  • Have a graduation date of December 2022 or later
  • Be at least 21 years old at the start of the fellowship
  • Have the ability to work in the United States or have a work visa
     
Workshop Scholarship at Ox-Bow School of Art & Artists’ Residency

The Tufts Career Center has partnered with Ox-Bow School of School of Art & Artists’ Residency to offer this fully-funded experience which is offered bi-yearly.

This Workshop Scholarship fully funds a student to enroll in a 2-week workshop at Ox-Bow. Any enrolled BFA, Combined Degree or MFA student is eligible for this opportunity and should apply to the Ox-Bow Merit Scholarship, via the Ox-Bow website. The Ox-Bow workshop scholarship includes room and board: a shared room with access to shared bathrooms and three meals per day. Application information will be sent to students via email during eligible years.

Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts

SMFA is excited to offer two fully funded fellowships to Arrowmont School of Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for the Summer of 2024. Applications are due in February. Application information will be sent to students via email.

Find Residencies Around the World

There are many helpful resources for exploring the world of artist residency programs. The directories below are helpful resources for exploring artist residency programs:

Awards, Grants, and Fellowships

For Current Students:

Dean's Research Fund (All Returning Degree Program Students)

The Dean's Research Fund (DRF) supports SMFA students working on extraordinary artistic projects whose costs exceed the norm. Students may apply to cover any costs related to producing new work, including research, materials, travel, and any other aspect of the related work. Awards may be used to fund any projects that are currently under way or have been completed during the present academic year. All current students can apply for any amount of funding up to $500 - $1,000.

Eligibility: Graduate and undergraduate students who will be enrolled in their degree program at SMFA in the next academic year are eligible. 

Submission Requirements: To apply for an award, you must submit an application via Slideroom form including:

  • A project description, not exceeding 500 words in length. You may wish to discuss the specific goals you have for the project and how it fits with your ongoing artistic practice.
  • Funding request with an itemized budget, demonstrating researched costs.
  • 5 - 10 sample images of your work.

Successful applications will:

  • Be submitted by the deadline specified in the call for proposals.
  • Provide a coherent, compelling, well-written description of the project to be funded.
  • Include all information listed above, including student information (full name, Tufts ID, Tufts e-mail, etc.)
  • Include images/videos of work that is relevant to your proposal and display obvious signs of promise/progress.
  • Offer a clear justification for the amount of funding being requested, including evidence that costs of budget items were researched.
Dana Pond Competition (All Students)

$3,000 each

This annual painting competition honors three students for exemplary work.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time students

Submission Requirements: Exactly 3 works in painting, very broadly defined (i.e. could be work in any medium).

Apply Here

Edward Cincotti Prize in Video (All Students)

$250

Awarded to a student who has shown outstanding achievements within the video area. Recipients of this prize will not only show interest and ability, but also reflect a growing talent at SMFA.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time students

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in video

Apply Here

Stella and Sumner Cooper Award (All Students)

$2,000

This prize is awarded annually for works in metals, glass, and/or ceramics.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time students

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in metals, glass, and/or ceramics

Apply Here

Museum Council Sculpture Prize (Undergraduate Students)

$500

Awarded annually for outstanding work in sculpture and/or performance.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time Undergraduate Student – BFA or Combined Degree

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in sculpture and/or performance

Apply Here

Julie Graham Prize (Undergraduate Students)

$2,000

Open to students in any medium, awarded biennially. It is preferred that the recipient use the prize to enrich their practice by exposing themselves to other cultures, which could include, but is not limited to attending the Venice Biennale. 

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time Undergraduate Student – BFA or Combined Degree

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in any medium

Apply Here

Joyce McDaniel Prize for Excellence in Sculpture (Graduating Seniors)

$1000

Awarded annually for excellence in sculpture to 1 graduating senior.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Graduating Senior only

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in sculpture

Apply Here

Museum Council Sculpture Prize (Graduate Students)

$500

Awarded annually for outstanding work in sculpture and/or performance.

Submission Deadline: 3/29/24

Eligibility: Full-time Graduate Student 

Submission Requirements: 1-2 works in sculpture and/or performance

Apply Here

Montague Travel Grant (MFA Students Only)

MFA students may apply for a Montague Grant to travel to international locations prior to the completion of their degree. Applications are reviewed twice a year by a committee of two graduate advisors, the Associate Director of Graduate Programs, and the MFA Graduate Program Director.

Learn More about the Montague Travel Grant

Fellowships For Alumni:

Post-Graduate Teaching Fellowship for Recent MFA Grads

SMFA at Tufts values highly the role education can play in the discursive formation of contemporary art, and believes in affording emerging artists the opportunity to expand their pedagogical skills and inquiries into knowledge production while providing valuable hands-on experience. Each year, SMFA at Tufts offers recent Master of Fine Arts graduates the opportunity to continue their pursuits as arts educators in the form of Post-Graduate Teaching Fellowships (PGTFs). These highly competitive positions are one-year appointments, during which a small group of selected grads will each teach a course in any given department, usually both in the fall and spring semesters, while continuing to focus on their own studio production.

In addition to a generous stipend, PGTFs are supplied with a studio at the school in which they may continue their art practices.

Submission Deadline: Applications are due in the spring, with successful applicants beginning their teaching the following fall.

Eligibility: Recent Master of Fine Arts graduates

Submission Requirements: A call for PGTF applications and a list of courses offered are distributed each spring to MFA students.

Post-Graduate Exhibitions Fellow for a Recent MFA Grad

This position is designed for a student who wants to gain professional, hands-on training in exhibition, installation, and curatorial practices and to experience the inner workings of contemporary art galleries. The Exhibitions Fellowship is designed to deepen students’ understanding of the practical and intellectual tasks of exhibitions in a gallery and school setting. Working alongside gallery staff, the Fellow will be the primary conduit for organizing and implementing the school’s departmental Area exhibitions, which take place in the Atrium and Building A Gallery (BAG) and rotate in intervals of roughly one show per month. This role includes supporting faculty and students by coordinating submissions, generating checklists, assisting with artwork installation, handling label production, advising on exhibition design, and participating in installation/de-installation. As the chief gallery liaison for Area show faculty, the Fellow will also be responsible for managing communication around the Area shows, including internal faculty and staff communication and working with the galleries team to generate school-wide awareness of these programs. 
 
This Fellow will also have the opportunity to develop Atrium-based curatorial projects with other Post-Grad Fellows and students at the SMFA, in addition to activating other available spaces in the SMFA buildings. They will be involved with learning opportunities in the classroom in exhibition-making, including best practices for installation, media, labels and signage. 

During the SMFA Art Sale near the end of the fall semester, the Exhibitions Fellow will be involved in assisting the gallery and SMFA Development teams with art handling tasks (hanging, moving, and wrapping art) and registrarial duties. 
 
15 hours/week, hours are flexible to fellow’s personal schedule, in person. Some evenings required. Position is for both academic semesters.
 
This fellowship comes with a studio in Mission Hill for the duration of the academic year.

Submission Deadline: Applications are due in the spring, with successful applicants beginning their fellowship the following fall.

Eligibility:

  • Recent Master of Fine Arts graduate
  • Candidates should have a working knowledge of installation techniques and project management, basic skills in Adobe Illustrator and Microsoft Word, and be interested in facilitating engagement with the SMFA community. Gallery staff will be willing to train in-need skills, provided the applicant has enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Submission Requirements: A call for PGEF applications is distributed each spring to MFA students.

Traveling Fellowships

One of the largest endowed art school grant programs in the country – currently totaling $80,000 to $100,000 annually – the Traveling Fellowship program awards alumni grants of $10,000 to graduates of any SMFA program.

Learn More about Traveling Fellowships

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