CMH Fellowships & Awards

In keeping with its mission, the Center of Military History seeks to stimulate interest in military history both in the Army and among the public by sponsoring a variety of professional appointments, fellowships, and awards.

Fellowship Programs: To encourage and support the production of dissertations in military history by qualified graduate students, the Center offers up to two Fellowships each academic year: the Dissertation Year Fellowship and the Charles Young Fellowship. These fellowships carry a $15,000 and $80,000 stipend, respectively.

The CMH Dissertation Fellowship: General Information

To support scholarly research and writing among qualified civilian graduate students preparing dissertations in the history of warfare, the Center offers two Dissertation Fellowships each year. They are designed to support dissertations that explore the material culture of the Army or the more general areas of military history in all its many aspects. Students specializing in history, archives, and museums are welcomed to apply. These fellowships carry a $15,000 stipend and access to the Center's facilities and technical expertise.

For purposes of this program, the history of war on land is broadly defined, including such areas as biography, military campaigns, military organization and administration, policy, strategy, tactics, weaponry, technology, training, logistics, and the evolution of civil-military relations. In the selection of proposals for funding, preference is given to topics on the history of the U.S. Army. Topics submitted should complement rather than duplicate the Center's existing projects.

Applicants must be civilian citizens of the United States unaffiliated with the U.S. government; that is, they must not be military personnel, not in federal service as civilian employees, and not under contract to the U.S. government. They must demonstrate their professional potential by submitting the following:

  1. Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate schools attended
  2. A proposed plan of research
  3. One letter of recommendation from their academic director that includes a statement approving the dissertation topic
  4. One letter of recommendation from an individual who can attest to their qualifications for the fellowship
  5. A writing sample of approximately 25 pages (please submit an entire piece rather than a fragment)
  6. Application Document (PDF download - 116KB)

IMPORTANT: Applicants must have completed by 1 September 2025 all requirements for the Ph.D. degree, except for the dissertation.

At the beginning of the Fellowship Year, Fellows will meet virtually with the Chief of Military History, the Chief Historian, and the Executive Secretary of the Dissertation Fellowship Program. During the Fellowship year, in consultation with the Center, the Fellow will present an oral presentation on their work in progress. The Fellow will also prepare a brief written report at the conclusion of their fellowship year. The Center requires deposit in its library of one copy of the complete bound dissertation.

The stipend of $15,000 for the fellowship is provided in one payment at the start of the academic year. From this sum, the recipient must meet travel and all other expenses in connection with the fellowship. The payment of the stipend is made directly to the Fellow upon receipt of certification from the parent academic institution that they are a candidate for the Ph.D. degree and authorized to become a Visiting Research Fellow.

The Center of Military History also undertakes to support the Fellow's scholarly activities in the Washington area by making its collections accessible and its specialists available, insofar as official duties permit. Fellows receive desk space at the U.S. Army Center of Military History, if available, and are assisted in gaining access to archival and library sources within the Washington area as well as at the U.S. Army Military History Institute, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. Review of the dissertation by the Center is at the discretion of the Center and the candidate's sponsoring institution, but responsibility for the control and approval of the dissertation remains with the academic institution and its faculty.

Questions concerning the application should be sent to: katelyn.k.tietzen-wisdom.civ@army.mil

Applications and all supporting documents for the Dissertation Fellowships must be postmarked no later than 18 March 2025. Late submissions will not be accepted. The applicant is responsible for ensuring that all required documentation is mailed before the closing date.

U.S. Army Center of Military History
c/o Dissertation Fellowship Committee
102 4th Avenue, Building 35
Fort McNair, DC 20319-5060

Completed applications can also be emailed to: katelyn.k.tietzen-wisdom.civ@army.mil

The Center of Military History conducts its evaluation of applicants on the basis of academic achievement, faculty recommendations, demonstrated writing ability, the relevance of the topic to U.S. Army history, and the nature and location of the proposed research. The awards are made on merit without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicapping condition, marital status, or political affiliation. The Center notifies all applicants of the competition's outcome by 25 April 2025.

The Charles Young Fellowship: General Information

This fellowship commemorates the service of Charles Young to the nation and the Army. Born to enslaved parents in 1864, he graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1889. During his career he led the military science program (a forerunner of ROTC) at Wilberforce College, was superintendent of a national park, served as military attaché to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and later, at the request of the State Department, to Liberia, and commanded cavalry squadrons in combat in the Philippines and during the 1916 Punitive Expedition against Poncho Villa in Mexico. He was a trailblazer, displaying exemplary academic and leadership skills as the first African American officer to achieve the ranks of major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel in the Regular Army. Through his selfless service Colonel Young demonstrated the value of opening military service to previously untapped segments of the population, which proved essential as the United States emerged as a global power. In 2021, Charles Young was honorably and posthumously promoted to the rank of brigadier general.

The U.S. Army Center of Military History (CMH) sponsors this fellowship to encourage new voices and perspectives amongst doctoral students working on a dissertation in military history to consider a career in the federal government as a professional military historian, museum professional, or archivist. This highly competitive fellowship is open to individuals who are citizens of the United States, have completed their general or comprehensive exams and are in the dissertation phase of a doctoral degree program in history at an accredited U.S. college or university at the beginning of the fellowship, are eligible for a secret security clearance, and desire a career in federal service. Ideal candidates are developing scholarship that will enhance the Army history program’s mission to educate, inspire and preserve the story of America’s Army and its Soldiers, will benefit from access to CMH’s archive and repositories, and explore innovations in digital history.

Fellows are presented a range of opportunities designed to build knowledge in the fields of U.S. Army history and general military history, provide firsthand experience and professional development in the federal government history community preparing them for future employment opportunities in the civil service. Fellows receive a stipend of $80,000 per year along with 11 paid federal holidays and have the opportunity to work full-time at CMH, located at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C., or other CMH facility for the duration of the fellowship. By mutual agreement, the fellowship may be extended for a second year.

Applications must be submitted by 18 March by email to usarmy.mcnair.cmh.mbx.opportunities@army.mil. A complete application package includes the following items in PDF format:
1) A cover letter from the applicant explaining why they are seeking the fellowship and how their specific area of study contributes to the profession. Letters should not exceed two single spaced pages.
2) A curriculum vitae or resume listing education completed or in progress, a brief description of the in-progress dissertation, recent employment history, publications, presentations at academic conferences, and awards or recognitions (highlighting those relevant to the field of history, museum science, or archival studies).
3) An unofficial transcript covering academic work at the masters (if applicable) and doctoral level.
4) Two letters recommendation from professors at the student's graduate school.
5) A writing sample of 15-25 pages in the form of a published article or a paper submitted for course credit.

Information regarding application process and deadline to follow.

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