Getty Scholars Program at the Villa

Since 1985, the Getty Scholars Program has hosted nearly 1,500 residential scholars from countries around the world to conduct research on topics related to the annual theme. Getty receives between 300 and 400 applications for various scholar programs annually and awards scholarships to about a dozen Villa Scholar applicants each year. At the Villa, recent projects have explored the arts, history, and cultural heritage of the Mediterranean region and the afterlife of antiquity up to the present. Seeking to approach the classical world in a global context, researchers have investigated its interconnections with the Near East, Africa, and Europe, spanning the periods from prehistory to Late Antiquity.

Intended to support scholars and individuals who have attained distinction in their fields, grant recipients pursue their own projects free from other obligations, make use of the Getty collections, and join colleagues in weekly lectures devoted to the annual research theme. A mix of established and emerging scholars as well as post-doctoral fellows are selected for the Scholars Program cohort. The three main grant categories are:

1. Scholar Grants for established researchers and professionals who have held PhDs for at least 5 years and/or possess strong records of publication and professional activity at the Getty Center or Getty Villa
2. Postdoctoral Fellowships for recently granted PhDs at the Getty Center or Getty Villa
3. Predoctoral Fellowships for PhD candidates at the Getty Center

This page provides information about Scholar Grants for established researchers and professionals residing at the Getty Villa.

The Classical World in Context: Religious Experience in Antiquity

A multitude of religions flourished in the Mediterranean and beyond from the second millennium BCE through the Late Roman era. Addressing the diversity of faiths and rituals, scholars will consider the consequences of contact between the Greek and Roman worlds and neighboring civilizations of transalpine Europe, the Near East, and Central Asia. The intersection of religions entailed continuity and coexistence as well as intolerance and conflict. Conquest, commerce, migration, and the foundation of “international” sanctuaries facilitated new forms of worship. These interactions, which both reflected and shaped religious experience, were widely manifested in art and material culture. Engaging systems of belief that range from state-sponsored religion and local cults to private devotion, researchers will investigate how communities reconciled the spiritually charged and socially fluid landscapes around them.

The Getty Scholars Program at the Villa focuses on the Classical World in Context, a multi-year initiative to explore the interconnectivity between the ancient Mediterranean region and the cultures of transalpine Europe, the Near East, and Central Asia. Priority will be given to research projects that apply interdisciplinary, comparative, transregional, and diachronic approaches to art, material culture, literature, and other sources for the study of antiquity.

Applications for 2026-27 grants are now open. The deadline to apply is October 1, 2025.

Applications are welcome from researchers of all nationalities who are working in the arts, humanities, or social sciences.

Applicants who received their degree after September 1, 2022 should apply for a postdoctoral fellowship. Postdoctoral fellowships will not be offered at the Getty Villa in 2026-27, but may be offered for other themes at the Getty Research Institute.

Current Getty staff and members of their immediate family are not eligible for Scholar Grants.

Individuals who have received a Getty Scholar award within the past six years are not eligible to re-apply. After a waiting period of 6 years, previous Getty Residential Grant recipients in any category are eligible to reapply for another grant in whichever category they are eligible for and interested in. See FAQs for more information.

Getty Villa Scholars may be in residence from three to six months:

• Three-month residency: September–December, January–March, or April–June: $21,500
• Six-month residency: September–March, or January–June: $43,000

The grant also includes an office at the Getty Villa, research assistance, a travel stipend for your relocation to Los Angeles, an apartment in the Getty scholar housing complex, and an available healthcare option. These terms apply as of July 2024 and are subject to future changes.

See the overview of the Getty Residential Scholar and Fellow Program for further details about stipends, housing, healthcare, and more.

Applications are submitted through the Getty Foundation Grant Portal. When the application is open, users can create or update their account and password, log in, and begin a new application. For the best user experience, we strongly recommend use of the Google Chrome browser. You may also use Firefox or Safari. The Internet Explorer (IE) browser is not compatible with our portal.

You may return to your work at any time by visiting the portal at the link above and logging into your account.

Please note: Once you have created and saved an application form, be sure to return to work on the same form by selecting the "Applications: In Progress" link to return to your saved application. Otherwise, you may inadvertently create multiple versions of the same application.

The project proposal should not exceed 5 pages typed and double-spaced. The proposal should include:

1. Project description
2. How the project addresses the annual theme
3. How the project meaningfully contributes to the applicant’s field of scholarship
4. Proposed plan for study and research
5. Benefits to the project from the resources at the Getty

The curriculum vitae (CV) is a record of all your professional activities.

Applicants are welcome to submit a single writing sample in support of their proposal. It should not exceed 20 double-spaced pages in length.

Applicants will be notified of their application outcome approximately six months after the deadline.