The MacArthur Fellowship

Your proposal must have a unifying theme for the year. You can volunteer, engage in research, study a language, intern with nonprofits and businesses, develop artistic abilities, travel/adventure, etc. The canvas is truly wide open. One type of endeavor is not preferred over another. Your proposal will be evaluated based on its feasibility and its alignment with your educational and personal goals. Moreover, in the interview process, the selection committee will try to ascertain whether the candidate has the skillset, maturity, and resourcefulness to execute the proposed plan.

Yes, and you are encouraged (expected) to do so.  Almost all colleges allow students to defer admissions for a year to embark on a gap year. Therefore, apply to college and the fellowship, and if you are selected as a Fellow, you have until mid-April to decide to accept it and defer college for a year.

No. Fellowship applicants can apply ED, EA, REA, and RD. Selected Fellows are not expected to accept the Fellowship until after all of their college decisions have been received.

No, but we expect applicants for the Fellowship to have a genuine interest in taking a gap year, and we expect selected Fellows to give the offer serious consideration.

We advise that you do not because you may not be awarded a Fellowship. Moreover, by not sharing potential gap year plans, you are not being dishonest or misleading, as colleges know that many students consider gap years, and they expect to entertain gap year requests in the spring after they make their admissions decisions.

Yes, most colleges allow students to defer for a year. Fellowship decisions will be made by mid to late March; students should inform colleges of their gap year plans by May 1. Fellows should consult their college’s website and speak with their college advisor about the process of deferring. In most cases, colleges will ask students to provide a short description of their Fellowship year plans. Many schools have deadlines for these requests, so students need to consult with their college (after gaining admission) and their college advisor.

No. Colleges do not make waiting list offers, if any, until after May 1. Students who accept the Fellowship by mid-April are expected to inform any waiting list schools that they no longer wish to remain on a waiting list. The Fellowship intends to have a few “alternates” in case any selected students decline the Fellowship. If we allowed selected Fellows to pursue waiting lists, there is a danger that the alternates would have made different plans for the year by then.

Whether or not a student takes a gap year, they apply for financial aid (via FAFSA and CSS) every year. Therefore, Fellows would need to reapply for financial aid during their gap year (check your colleges deadlines and policies). Unless a Fellow and his or her parents have a significant change in their financial situation and compensation, they should expect minimal changes in the amount of the financial award in the subsequent year.

Please note that MacArthur Fellowship grant is considered income for tax purposes. When Fellows apply for financial aid in the year that the grant income is reflected on the FAFSA and CSS profile, they should write to the financial aid offices at their colleges to explain the Fellowship, the purpose of the grant, and that the grant was given to cover the Fellows living expenses. In this correspondence, Fellows should note that unused grant funds were returned to reinforce the idea that the grant was only intended to cover a restricted purpose and that the funds were not available for general expenses and use. Fellows should read the Fellowship Guidebook for more details about the tax implications of the grant.

Yes, in most cases. Students should consult with their dean of students and the registrar at their college or university.

No. Fellows should decline any other outside sources to supplement their stipends, such as private savings, trust funds, lavish gifts from family and friends, etc. Fellows must also refrain from the sale of products (writings, photographs, artifacts, etc.) during their Fellowship year.

Fellows must remain outside the United States throughout the Fellowship year. If the student’s country of permanent residence is not the United States, they are expected to remain outside both the U.S. and that country. They must also remain outside any additional countries that will be included on an individual list of “No Return” countries, which will be based on each Fellow’s previous travel experience.

Yes, family members may visit you, but we request that those visits are no longer than a week. Moreover, their visit should not alter how you fulfill your proposal. For example, we prefer that you remain in your Fellowship country and location during their visit, and while we support spending time with your family, the visit should disrupt your proposal plan/execution significantly.

Fellows may not enter countries that are under U.S. Treasury Sanctions, CDC, or U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory Level 3 or 4 (and must adhere to restrictions for countries within Levels 1 and 2) for project related work or transit. One exception is that students may travel to Level 3 and Level 4 countries if such designation is solely for reasons of COVID-19, provided they complete the safety procedures detailed in the agreement that they signed at the time of award acceptance.

Fellows must attend the pre-departure webinar hosted by the Hotchkiss International Fellowship Office and must depart the U.S. by a mutually-agreed departure date. At the end of the Fellowship, Fellows must attend the Returning Fellows Conference at Hotchkiss. If Fellows will need a visa to return to the U.S. for the Returning Fellows Conference, they must allow sufficient time to travel to their home country to obtain a visa. For some countries, this may require more than a month. It is up to individual Fellows to determine how long this will take and to make appropriate allowances in their schedule.

• Fellows should discuss any major evolution or changes in their project’s focus with the Fellowship Office before making radical departures from the original project proposal. We know that international travel and work will present some unforeseen obstacles necessitating a change in plans, but please clear those changes with the Fellowship.
• Fellows should maintain their independence throughout the year, refraining from fixed employment or any volunteer engagements that could cause a loss of control or oversight of their project agenda.
• Fellows will be asked to submit summary reports, two to three pages in length, at the end of the third, sixth, and ninth months. These quarterly reports should briefly detail all activities, describe the development of the project, and reflect on any shortcomings and successes. 

No, the proposal does not. The proposal must have a unifying theme that is the thread through the year's worth of travel to various places, but it does not need to be related to those goals. For example, a chemical engineering major who plans to work in the auto industry can have a proposal related to pro-democracy movements in developing countries with absolutely no connection to engineering.