Grants: Apply for a Grant: Individuals

Application guidelines are made available on the Arts Endowment's web site.

Staff checks whether the application met the deadline and, if so, assigns an application number and returns the completed Application Acknowledgment to the applicant. Applications are forwarded to Program staff.

Staff reviews applications for completeness and eligibility and may contact an applicant for clarification and additional information. Panel books with application materials are sent to panelists several weeks before the panel meeting. Work samples may be distributed in advance or may be held for review at the panel.

Panels generally meet from one to five days, depending on application load. Each panel is made up of experts with knowledge and experience in the area under review. Each application is discussed in depth and rated in accordance with the published review criteria.

The staff reconciles the panel recommendations with available funds and forwards them to the National Council on the Arts, where they are reviewed in open session. The Council makes the final determination on applications to reject and sends forward to the Chairman those applications it recommends for funding. Fast-Track Review Grants undergo an expedited review. Following panel and staff review, recommendations are forwarded to the Endowment Chairman.

A letter is sent to applicants not recommended for funding. Applicants recommended for Standard Review grants may be contacted first for revisions to the project. Fast-Track Grant applicants will receive a preliminary letter of notification. Grantees later receive an official grant award notification with information about legal and reporting requirements.

Literature Fellowships: Translation Projects
Through fellowships to published translators of exceptional talent, the Arts Endowment supports projects that involve the specific translation of prose, poetry, or drama from other languages into English. (Deadline: January 10, 2005)
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Literature Fellowships: Creative Writing Fellowships
Creative Writing Fellowships enable recipients to set aside time for writing, research, travel, and general career advancement. Non-matching grants are for $20,000. This program operates on a two-year cycle with fellowships in prose available one year and fellowships in poetry available the next. The FY 2006 application deadline is March 1, 2005, for prose fellowships in fiction and creative nonfiction; the FY 2007 application deadline for poetry fellowships is March 1, 2006. The guidelines should be available in January 2005.

Please note: Congress has prohibited the Arts Endowment from making direct grants to individuals except for Literature Fellowships, NEA Jazz Masters Fellowships, and NEA National Heritage Fellowships in the Folk & Traditional Arts.