Rome Prize 2027: A Fully Supported Fellowship at the American Academy in Rome With a $16,000 or $30,000 Stipend, Private Study, a Bedroom, and Meals for Artists and Scholars
The American Academy in Rome awards about 30 Rome Prizes each year, giving artists and scholars a half- or full-term residency in Rome with a $16,000 or $30,000 stipend, a bedroom with private bath, a workspace, and weekday meals.
Rome Prize 2027: A Fully Supported Fellowship at the American Academy in Rome With a $16,000 or $30,000 Stipend, Private Study, a Bedroom, and Meals for Artists and Scholars
Every year the American Academy in Rome hands roughly thirty artists and scholars a rare gift: uninterrupted time in one of the most storied cities in the world, with the money, the room, the meals, and the workspace to make the most of it. That gift is the Rome Prize. For the 2027 cycle, the application portal opens in August 2026, with deadlines in November 2026 and fellowships beginning in September 2027. If you are a composer with a piece you cannot finish while teaching four classes, an architect chasing an idea that needs distance from client deadlines, or a historian who needs to be near the archives and ruins you write about, this is one of the most generous residencies available to Americans in the arts and humanities.
This guide walks through exactly what the Rome Prize offers, who is eligible, how the competition works, what materials you need, and how to give yourself the best chance in a field that is genuinely competitive. All figures and dates below come from the American Academy in Rome’s official application pages.
Key Details at a Glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Program | Rome Prize |
| Awarding body | American Academy in Rome |
| Fellowships per year | Approximately 30 |
| Half-term stipend | $16,000 |
| Full-term stipend | $30,000 |
| Full-term length | Early September through the following June |
| Half-term length | Begins in September or February |
| Housing | Bedroom with private bathroom |
| Meals | Lunch and dinner Monday–Friday at no cost (Rome Sustainable Food Project) |
| Workspace | Private study or studio |
| 2027 portal opens | August 2026 |
| Early deadline | November 7 |
| Extended deadline | November 8–15 (higher fee) |
| Letters of recommendation due | November 30 |
| Application fee | $50–$90 depending on deadline and number of applications |
| Core eligibility | U.S. citizenship (with defined exceptions); grad students must be ABD |
| Official page | https://www.aarome.org/apply/rome-prize |
What the Rome Prize Actually Provides
The headline is the stipend, but the value of the Rome Prize is really the whole package. Winners of full-term fellowships receive a $30,000 stipend, and half-term winners receive $16,000. On top of the cash, the Academy provides a bedroom with a private bathroom and a private workspace — a studio for artists, a study for scholars — on its campus on the Janiculum Hill above Trastevere.
Fellows also eat well. Through the Academy’s celebrated Rome Sustainable Food Project, lunch and dinner are provided Monday through Friday at no cost. This is not an incidental perk. The shared table is where fellows from different disciplines meet, argue, and cross-pollinate; many former fellows describe the meals as the intellectual heart of the year. Board is provided at no charge, which meaningfully stretches the stipend.
The full-term fellowship runs from early September through the following June — close to eleven months of continuous residency. The half-term fellowship is shorter and can begin in either September or February. Half-term is designed for people who cannot step away for a full academic year but can still commit to a concentrated stretch of work in Rome.
Beyond the tangible support, fellows gain access to the Academy’s library, its network of visiting artists and scholars, lectures, concerts, and open studios, and a permanent place in the community of Rome Prize alumni — a group that includes some of the most recognized names in American arts and letters.
Who the Rome Prize Is For
The Rome Prize spans an unusually wide range of fields. For the current competition, eligible disciplines include:
- Ancient Studies
- Architecture
- Design
- East–West Intersections
- Environmental Arts & Humanities
- Historic Preservation and Conservation
- Landscape Architecture
- Literature
- Medieval Studies
- Modern Italian Studies
- Musical Composition
- Renaissance and Early Modern Studies
- Visual Arts
That mix tells you something important: the Academy is not looking only for classicists digging in Roman ruins. It funds contemporary composers, working visual artists, designers, landscape architects, and scholars whose projects have nothing to do with antiquity. What unites the disciplines is a project that will genuinely benefit from time in Rome and from the interdisciplinary community the Academy builds each year.
Applicants range from emerging artists and scholars near the start of independent careers to established figures with substantial bodies of work. Different disciplines weight career stage differently, and the discipline-specific guidelines spell out what each field expects. The common thread is a proposal of clear ambition and a track record — publications, exhibitions, performances, built work, or scholarship — strong enough to make the selection committee confident you will deliver.
Eligibility Requirements
The core rules, as stated by the Academy:
- U.S. citizenship is required for most categories. There are defined exceptions: the Environmental Arts & Humanities category and certain postdoctoral fellowships in the humanities are open beyond U.S. citizens. Foreign nationals may be eligible for specified categories if they have resided in the United States for the three years immediately prior to the application.
- Graduate students must be “all but dissertation” (ABD) — that is, finished with everything except the dissertation itself. Students earlier in their programs are not eligible in the scholarly categories.
- Undergraduate students are ineligible.
- Previous Rome Prize winners cannot reapply.
Because eligibility differs by discipline — especially around degrees, career stage, and citizenship exceptions — read the specific guidelines for your field carefully before you start. A proposal in the wrong category, or from an applicant who does not meet that category’s requirements, will not be considered no matter how strong the work is.
Stipend, Term Length, and What They Mean in Practice
Deciding between a half-term and a full-term fellowship is a real strategic choice, not a formality.
The full-term fellowship ($30,000, roughly eleven months) suits people whose projects need sustained immersion: a book manuscript, a major body of studio work, a large composition, or research that depends on being physically present in Rome across seasons and archives. If your work benefits from momentum that a shorter stay would interrupt, full-term is the better fit — and the larger stipend and longer housing period reflect that.
The half-term fellowship ($16,000) is built for those who cannot leave jobs, teaching, or family obligations for a full academic year but can commit to a focused block of months starting in September or February. It is a legitimate path, not a consolation prize, and for some projects a concentrated half-term is exactly right.
Remember that room and weekday board are provided at no cost in both cases, so the stipend is largely disposable income for travel within Italy, materials, weekend meals, and personal expenses rather than rent and food.
How to Apply: Timeline and Process
For the 2027 competition, the application portal opens in August 2026. Mark these dates:
- Early deadline: November 7 — the lowest application fee ($50 for a single application, $60 for multiple).
- Extended deadline: November 8–15 — a higher fee applies ($80 single, $90 multiple).
- Letters of recommendation: due November 30.
The application fee ranges from $50 to $90 depending on which deadline you meet and whether you submit one application or several. Applying by the early deadline saves money, and it also spares you the stress of a last-minute portal crush.
All application materials must be submitted in English. Applications are made through the Academy’s online portal, and each discipline has its own detailed guidelines that define required materials, work-sample formats, and evaluation criteria. Treat those discipline-specific guidelines as your primary instructions — they override any general summary, including this one.
Required Materials and How to Prepare Them
While the exact requirements vary by field, most applications include a project proposal, a record of accomplishment (CV, publication list, or portfolio), work samples, and letters of support or references.
- Letters of recommendation are due November 30, slightly after the application deadlines. For Literature, Musical Composition, and Visual Arts, the Academy asks for three references rather than traditional recommendation letters. Confirm which model applies to your discipline and line up your recommenders or references early — the single most common way strong applicants stumble is by asking too late.
- Work samples — scores and recordings for composers, images or a portfolio for visual artists and architects, writing samples for literature and scholarship — should be current, well-presented, and formatted exactly as the discipline guidelines specify.
- The project proposal is the center of gravity. It should make plain what you will do in Rome, why Rome specifically, and why now.
Give yourself weeks, not days, to assemble these. The portal opens in August, and the months between then and November are meant to be used.
What Reviewers Are Looking For
Selection committees are made up of distinguished practitioners and scholars in each discipline. They read for two things at once: the quality and originality of your past work, and the promise and clarity of the project you propose to pursue in Rome.
A persuasive proposal answers questions the committee will ask silently:
- Is the project ambitious but achievable within the fellowship term? Overreaching reads as naïveté; underreaching reads as a waste of the opportunity.
- Why Rome, and why the Academy? The strongest applications show that the residency is not interchangeable with any other quiet room — that proximity to Rome’s archives, monuments, landscapes, materials, or community genuinely changes what the work can be.
- Does the track record support the promise? Committees are betting that you will finish what you propose. Your portfolio, publications, or performances are the evidence.
- Will this person contribute to the community? The Academy is an ecosystem. Fellows who engage across disciplines make the year better for everyone, and reviewers value that.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Missing the recommendation deadline. References and letters are due November 30. Recommenders are busy; ask in September, remind them in October, and confirm in November.
- Applying in the wrong discipline or category. Read the eligibility rules for your specific field, especially the citizenship exceptions and the ABD requirement for graduate students.
- Ignoring discipline-specific formatting. Work samples submitted in the wrong format or exceeding limits can weaken an otherwise strong application.
- A vague “why Rome.” Generic proposals that could be executed anywhere lose to proposals rooted in what Rome and the Academy uniquely offer.
- Waiting for the extended deadline. The extension exists, but it costs more and invites the risk of technical problems in the final hours. Aim for the early deadline of November 7.
- Reapplying as a former winner. Previous Rome Prize recipients are not eligible.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does the 2027 application open and close? The portal opens in August 2026. The early deadline is November 7, the extended deadline runs November 8–15 (with a higher fee), and letters of recommendation are due November 30.
How much is the stipend? $30,000 for a full-term fellowship and $16,000 for a half-term fellowship, in addition to housing, a private workspace, and weekday meals at no cost.
How long are the fellowships? The full term runs from early September through the following June. The half term is shorter and can begin in September or February.
Do I have to be a U.S. citizen? U.S. citizenship is required for most categories. The Environmental Arts & Humanities category and certain postdoctoral humanities fellowships are open more broadly, and foreign nationals may qualify for specified categories after three years of U.S. residency. Check your discipline’s rules.
Can graduate students apply? Yes, but scholarly applicants who are students must be all but dissertation (ABD). Undergraduates are not eligible.
Is there an application fee? Yes — $50 to $90, depending on the deadline you meet and whether you submit one or multiple applications.
How many fellowships are awarded? Approximately 30 each year across all eligible disciplines.
Can previous winners apply again? No. Former Rome Prize recipients are not eligible to reapply.
Next Steps
If the Rome Prize fits your work, start now rather than in the fall. Read the guidelines for your specific discipline, sketch the project you would pursue in Rome and articulate why the city and the Academy matter to it, and identify the recommenders or references you will need. When the portal opens in August 2026, aim for the November 7 early deadline to save on fees and avoid last-minute problems, and make sure your recommenders know their materials are due November 30.
The complete, authoritative details — including discipline-specific guidelines, eligibility exceptions, and the application portal — are on the American Academy in Rome’s official page:
- Official Rome Prize page: https://www.aarome.org/apply/rome-prize
Always confirm current requirements, deadlines, and stipend figures directly on the Academy’s website before applying, as programs can update their terms between cycles.