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Established in 2007, the James W. Pruett Summer Research Fellowships offer graduate students the opportunity to spend up to two summer months in the Music Division of the Library of Congress, processing archival collections and conducting independent research. The Program is named after James W. Pruett (1932–2014), former chair of the UNC-Chapel Hill Music Department (1976–86), and Chief of the Music Division at the Library of Congress (1987–94).

These Fellowships are reserved for graduate students currently enrolled in the UNC graduate program in musicology (MA or Ph.D.) and in good standing. Preference is normally given to applicants who have not yet taken the First Ph.D. Oral Examination (the defense of the dissertation proposal). Fellows are expected to spend 16–20 hours per week processing collections identified by the Music Division, and working under its supervision. For the rest of their time, they are free to pursue their own research interests in the Library of Congress or elsewhere in the DC area.

Fellows are provided with an allowance of up to $4,500 to cover accommodation and subsistence expenses in DC. Fellows preserve their customary rights to health insurance and similar benefits through UNC.

  • For a list of previous Fellows, the collections they processed, and their individual programs, click here.
  • For more photos of previous Fellows, click here.
  • “Sleuthing in the Stacks”: The 2013 Pruett Fellows https://gradschool.unc.edu/fountain/spr_11/sleuthing.html
  • For more on James W. Pruett, click here.
  • To make a donation in support of the Pruett Summer Fellowships, click here.
  • For more information on the James W. Pruett Summer Research Fellowships, please contact Professor Tim Carter.