The Certificate Program in Quilt Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) is a graduate program offered by the Department of Textiles, Merchandising & Fashion Design.  It allows graduate and post-baccalaureate students to gain scholarly credentials in Quilt Studies. The Quilt Studies Certificate strengthens credentials of curators, collection managers, appraisers, collectors and educators. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is an international leader in the field of quilt studies.

Visit the university’s website for more information.

Note: At this time, the International Quilt Museum is not offering domestic or international fellowships for the coming academic year.

Overview/Expectations/Eligibility
The International Quilt Museum invites academic, independent, and museum scholars and advanced graduate students to apply for residential or non-residential research fellowships. The fellowship recipient may represent any academic discipline including (but not limited to) art, art history, history, textile history, textile design or women's studies, as long as his/her research interests intersect with the mission of the International Quilt Museum.

Recipients are expected to produce one or more of the following:

• An essay for a forthcoming exhibition catalogue or gallery guide.
• A manuscript for publication in a scholarly journal or monograph.
• An essay for a planned comprehensive catalogue of the collections to be published by the University of Nebraska Press or the International Quilt Museum.
• A creative work or works for exhibition that reference a specific quilt or quilts in the museum's collections and whose nature expands on or amplifies the significance carried in the collections.

Non-residential Fellowships
The International Quilt Museum is especially interested in supporting research that will advance understanding of quiltmaking traditions internationally. The Geeta Khandelwal International Quilt Study Center Research Award was established specifically to support international research concerning quilts and quiltmaking traditions.

Residential Fellowships
Recipients of residential research fellowships are expected to be based on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus for a minimum of two weeks with additional research and writing completed at the individual's home institution. The UNL and IQM library collections are rich and diverse, and we welcome applications that offer fresh approaches to our resources. The recipient of a residential research fellowship is expected to interact with faculty and students in the textile history/quilt studies program and to provide a guest lecture, workshop, seminar and/or a critique once each week during his/her residency.

Award Information
Fellowships generally cover a one month period at a stipend of up to $2,500; occasionally a fellowship for a longer period is awarded, but rarely for more than three months. In addition to a stipend, the IQM will provide lodging or a housing allowance of up to $700; round-trip airfare is included in the award. If additional expenses, such as a driver, interpreter or visa are anticipated for non-residential fellowship proposals, they should be included in the budget required for non-residential fellowship applications. Recipients may begin their awards as early as August and as late as April of the academic year. The award period must be continuous, and award recipients must work full time on their projects. Recipients of residential research fellowships are expected to be based on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus for a minimum of two weeks with additional research and writing completed at the individual's home institution.

Eligibility
The Fellowships program accepts applications from scholars and artists regardless of their institutional affiliations.

Note: At this time, the International Quilt Museum is not offering domestic or international fellowships for the coming academic year.

Application
1. Prepare an application essay of no more than 1,500 words that opens with a concise overview of the project and then addresses the following questions.

• What ideas, questions or problems guide your project? If this is a new area of research, explain its significance.
• What is distinctive about your project? How does it complement, expand, or challenge prior study in the field? Please be specific about prior scholarship that informs your work.
• Where will the study be conducted and what research materials will be used? Provide a brief work plan. Clarify the part or stage of the project that will be supported by the fellowship.
• If you are applying for a residential fellowship:
  - What work do you plan to undertake at the International Quilt Museum?       
  - Why is a residence fellowship at the International Quilt Museum necessary for successful completion of your project? Provide a brief listing of the objects or resources from the museum collection that you plan to use.
• If your project requires travel and fieldwork, include a budget outlining expected expenses and a budget narrative explaining or justifying the proposed expenses. (For residential research fellowships, round-trip airfare and hotel for two weeks will be provided. No budget is needed.)
• Describe what will the final product be - an essay for a gallery guide or an exhibition catalog, a manuscript, creative work, other.

2. Provide a copy of your current vitae.

3. Email the completed application on or before March 31 to:
Leslie Levy ([email protected]) Ardis and Robert James Executive Director of Quilt House, International Quilt Museum University of Nebraska-Lincoln 1523 N. 33rd St. Lincoln, Nebraska 68583-0838

Selection Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of overall quality and feasibility of the project; qualifications of scholar; creativity; likely impact, including the project's potential contribution to knowledge and practice. The project's compatibility with the Museum's collections, facilities staff and programs will also be considered. 

Selection Process
A Selection Committee composed of Fellows of the International Quilt Museum will review the proposals, rank them, and make their recommendations. Applicants will be notified of the decision by May 15th of the prior academic year. In some cases, no fellowship will be selected during a calendar year.

Previous recipients of an International Quilt Study Center Research Fellowship include: Linda Baumgarten, Janet Berlo, Janice Frisch, Beverly Gordon, Virginia Gunn, Laurel Horton, Mary Anne Jordan, Bridget Long, Susan Marks, Lynn Setterington, Amanda Sikarskie, Janneken Smucker, Linda Welters,

Past Symposia: 

2021: Canceled due to COVID-19
2019: Uncovering Together, with the American Quilt Study Group
2017: Creation to Curation (joint symposium with Studio Art Quilt Associates) 
2015: Making & Mending: Quilts for Causes & Commemoration
2013: Quilts in Context: The Making of Meaning
2011: Quilted and Corded Needlework: International Perspectives
2009: The Global Quilt: Cultural Contexts
2007: Traditions and Trajectories: Education and the Quiltmaker
2005: Collectors, Collecting and Collections
2003: Wild by Design