Collaborative Research

The Collaborative Research program aims to advance humanistic knowledge by supporting teams of scholars working on a joint endeavor leading to a manuscript for print publication or to a digital product. Teams may propose research in a single field of study or interdisciplinary work. NEH encourages projects that incorporate multiple points of view and pursue new avenues of inquiry.

Collaborators may come from one or more institutions. NEH encourages partnerships with researchers in the natural and social sciences, but projects must focus on humanistic content and employ humanistic methods. International collaboration is welcome, but scholars at U.S. institutions must contribute significantly to the project.

Proposed projects must aim to result in tangible and sustainable outcomes, such as a co-authored or multi-authored book; a themed issue of a peer-reviewed journal; a series of peer-reviewed articles; a born-digital publication; or an open-access website or other digital resource. All project outcomes must incorporate collaboration and interpretation to address significant humanities research questions.

The program includes four project categories: Planning International Collaboration, Convening, Manuscript Preparation, and Scholarly Digital Projects. The categories support different project types or stages and have different performance periods and award ceilings. Applicants must specify only one project category for support.

Note about Humanities Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence

This grant program is one of ten NEH programs that are part of NEH’s Humanities Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence initiative, which is encouraging research on the ethical, legal, and societal implications of AI. To learn more about the initiative, please see our page about the AI initiative.

What’s new for 2024:

• The page limit for the Narrative attachment has decreased from eleven pages to ten pages.
• An additional stipulation has been added for teams requesting the extra funding allowed for Manuscript Preparation and Scholarly Digital Projects applications from or including community colleges or certain Minority Serving Institutions.  These applications must allocate to the qualifying institution(s) funds totaling at least the amount of extra funds requested.
• You may submit an optional draft. You must use the draft template found under “Program Resources” (click “Application Instructions,” click “Step 1 review your application package,” and scroll down for “Program Resources”) and must submit it no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on September 18, 2024, to @email. Put “Collaborative Research Draft” in the subject line of the message. NEH staff will read only one draft per project per competition deadline.

Applicants to NEH for awards with expected issuance dates on or after October 1, 2024, should be aware of revisions to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR Part 200) effective from that date. All NEH awards issued on or after October 1, 2024, will be subject to the revised regulations. You may incorporate these changes into your applications now. Additional information is available at https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/2024-Revisions-to-2-CFR-200.

New Opportunities for International Collaboration with Greece and Israel:

Collaborative projects involving U.S.-based scholars working closely with scholars in Greece or Israel should read about new international collaboration opportunities that could provide additional funding.  More information about these Partnership Opportunity Notifications (PONs) can be found here. 

View the Collaborative Research Pre-Application Webinar here:

A live Q&A session was held Sept. 5, 2024. View it here: