USA Scholarships
AAUW Research Publication Grant 2027 - $8,000 Award
The AAUW Research Publication Grant 2027 exists for a specific and very familiar problem: the research is done, the manuscript is not, and there is no money in anyone's budget for the months of writing that stand between the two. AAUW, the American Association of University Women, pays $8,000 in a single tranche to close that gap. Its formal name is the American Short-Term Research Publication Grant, and the stated aim is to increase the number of women in research, development and academic leadership by funding the last mile to publication. Every field qualifies, though AAUW particularly encourages applicants in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and those researching gender issues. The money can go on drafting and editing, replicating research, responding to critical review, or simply on rent, food and dependent care while you write. You need a doctoral or terminal degree already conferred, US citizenship, national status or permanent residency, and you must be the sole author, first author or an author of equivalent significance. Applications open 17 August 2026 at 9am ET and close 30 September 2026 at 5pm ET, awards are announced in April 2027, and funds land between July and September 2027.
What is the AAUW Research Publication Grant 2027?
The AAUW Research Publication Grant 2027 funds the least glamorous and most neglected stage of research: writing the thing up. Its formal name is the American Short-Term Research Publication Grant, and the American Association of University Women pays $8,000 in one payment to women scholars whose work is finished but unpublished. AAUW has been funding women in higher education since 1881, and it frames this particular grant around a measurable goal, increasing the number of women in research, development and academic leadership while pushing gender equity across every corner of research. All fields are eligible. Applicants in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and anyone researching gender issues, are singled out for encouragement.
What makes the grant unusually useful is how loosely the money is tied. You can spend it on drafting, editing or reworking the manuscript, on replicating research so a result holds up, or on answering the objections a reviewer has raised. You can also spend it on rent, groceries and childcare, because AAUW recognises that the thing standing between a completed study and a published paper is usually unpaid time. That flexibility comes with a hard boundary on the other side: no field work, no equipment purchases, no research assistants, no institutional overhead, no tuition for dependants, and nothing already spent.
The eligibility rules are worth reading twice because several of them are absolute and none can be fixed in September. You have to identify as a woman, hold US citizenship, national status or permanent residency, and already have a qualifying degree conferred, not merely defended. AAUW's list of acceptable degrees is broad and reaches well past the PhD into the MFA, the JD, the MD, the DVM and the MPH. You must be the sole author, the first author, or an author of equivalent significance on the manuscript, which quietly rules out the middle-author positions common in large collaborations. You cannot be studying for a degree during the award year, you cannot be tenured, and you cannot have held a national AAUW fellowship or grant before. Community Action Grants and local branch awards are the only carve-out.
The calendar for the 2027 cycle is tight at the front and long at the back. Applications open 17 August 2026 at 9am Eastern and close 30 September 2026 at 5pm Eastern, which is about six weeks to assemble two recommendation letters, proof of your degree, an official transcript showing conferral, and certified English translations of anything not in English. Order the transcript first; registrars at the start of a semester are the usual reason a good application arrives incomplete. After that the pace changes completely, with notifications in April 2027, money between July and September 2027, a mid-year report in December 2027 and a final report on 31 July 2028. For related routes, the Horowitz Foundation Grant 2026 guide covers social science research funding at an earlier career stage, the GWI Scholars Program 2027 guide covers the international sister network supporting women in academia, and the Cornell Atkinson Postdoctoral Fellowship 2027 guide covers a funded research post for people at the same career point. The official page is AAUW's American Short-Term Research Publication Grants.
Eligibility
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✓You identify as a womanAAUW has funded women in higher education since 1881 and its fellowships and grants carry that restriction. The American Short-Term Research Publication Grant is open to applicants who identify as women, across every field of research.
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✓US citizenship, national status or permanent residencyYou must be a US citizen, US national or permanent resident. AAUW spells out that this covers the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands and other US territories. International applicants should look at AAUW International Fellowships instead.
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✓A qualifying degree already in handYou must hold the degree at the time of application, not be about to finish it. AAUW lists a PhD, DSc or ScD, EdD, DBA, DEng, MFA, SJD, JSD or JD, MD, DPH, DMD, DVM, DSW or MPH. An official transcript showing conferral is part of the application, so a defended but unconferred doctorate does not clear this gate.
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✓Sole, first or equivalent-significance authorshipThe grant funds your manuscript, not a project you contributed to. AAUW requires you to be the sole author, the first author, or an author of equivalent significance on the publication you are preparing. Middle-author positions on a collaborative paper do not qualify.
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✓Not pursuing a degree during the award yearGrantees are prohibited from working towards a degree during the award year. The grant buys writing time for someone who has finished training, which is also why it is not a route to fund the last year of a doctorate.
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✓Not tenured, and tenure ends the awardTenured professors cannot apply. AAUW goes further: if you accept a tenured position at any point during the grant period, you stop being eligible for support from the effective date of that tenure, and unused funds have to go back.
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✓No previous national AAUW fellowship or grantAnyone who has already received a national AAUW fellowship or grant is out. Community Action Grants and branch or local AAUW awards do not count against you, so a small local award earlier in your career is not a problem. A previous American Fellowship is.
Benefits
- Grant amount $8,000
- Disbursement A single tranche at the beginning of the award term
- Award notification April 2027, by email
- When the money arrives Between July and September 2027
- Eligible fields All of them, with STEM and gender research encouraged
- Renewal None, the grant is short-term and one-off
- A second national AAUW award Not possible, previous recipients are ineligible
- Support after you take tenure Ends from the effective date, unused funds go back
- Drafting, editing and revising the manuscript Covered
- Replicating research Covered
- Responding to issues raised in critical review Covered
- Housing, food and dependent care Covered as living expenses while you write
- Field work Not covered
- Buying research equipment Not covered
- Research assistants Not covered
- Institutional overhead and dependent tuition Not covered
Document checklist
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✓The online applicationEverything runs through AAUW's application portal, which opens 17 August 2026 at 9am ET. Start the account early rather than at the end of September, because the supporting documents are the slow part and the portal closes at 5pm ET on 30 September with no extensions announced.
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✓Two letters of recommendationTwo letters, requested through the application. Give your recommenders the manuscript abstract and a plain account of what the eight thousand dollars will buy you, because a reference that describes your research career without mentioning the publication plan is weaker than it should be.
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✓Proof of your eligible degreeAAUW accepts a diploma, an official transcript, a letter from the institution, or a National Student Clearinghouse certificate. Any one of those will do to establish that you hold a qualifying degree, so use whichever your institution can produce fastest.
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✓Official transcript showing degree conferralSeparate from the general proof of degree, the transcript has to show the degree actually conferred. Order it in August. Registrar turnaround in the first weeks of a semester is the single most common reason an otherwise complete application misses a September deadline.
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✓Certified English translationsAny document not in English needs a certified English translation submitted alongside it. That applies to degree certificates and transcripts from institutions outside the United States, which many US citizens and permanent residents hold.
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✓Details of the manuscriptThe application is built around a specific publication, so you need the manuscript identified: what it is, where it stands, and your authorship position on it. The authorship requirement is a hard gate, so be precise about whether you are sole author, first author, or an author of equivalent significance.
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✓A spending plan inside the allowed costsAAUW is unusually specific about what the grant may and may not pay for. Work your budget against that list before you apply, since field work, equipment purchases, research assistants, institutional overhead and dependent tuition are all excluded and cannot be reclassified later.
How to apply
Deadline and timeline
FAQ
What is the AAUW Research Publication Grant?
Formally the American Short-Term Research Publication Grant, it is an $8,000 award from the American Association of University Women that pays women scholars to turn finished research into a published manuscript. AAUW describes the aim as increasing the number of women in research, development and academic leadership and promoting gender equity across research. Every field qualifies, with applicants in STEM and in gender research particularly encouraged.
How much is the AAUW Short-Term Research Publication Grant?
The grant is $8,000, disbursed in a single tranche at the beginning of the award term rather than paid out monthly. For the 2027 cycle that money arrives between July and September 2027, after an April 2027 notification. There is no second instalment and no renewal, which is what the short-term label is telling you.
When is the AAUW grant deadline for 2027?
Applications open 17 August 2026 at 9:00am Eastern and close 30 September 2026 at 5:00pm Eastern. Everything, including the two recommendation letters and your degree paperwork, has to be in by that closing time. Awards are announced in April 2027 and the grant term runs from mid-2027, with a mid-year report in December 2027 and a final report due 31 July 2028.
Who is eligible for AAUW Research Publication Grants?
Applicants who identify as women, who are US citizens, US nationals or permanent residents, and who already hold a qualifying degree at the time of application. AAUW lists PhD, DSc or ScD, EdD, DBA, DEng, MFA, SJD, JSD or JD, MD, DPH, DMD, DVM, DSW and MPH. You must also be the sole author, first author or an author of equivalent significance on the manuscript, and you cannot be pursuing a degree during the award year.
Can international scholars apply for an AAUW grant?
Not for this one. The American Short-Term Research Publication Grant is limited to US citizens, nationals and permanent residents, covering the 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands and other US territories. AAUW runs a separate International Fellowships programme for women who are not US citizens or permanent residents, and that is the right door for international applicants.
What can the AAUW $8,000 be spent on?
Drafting, editing or modifying the manuscript, replicating research, responding to issues raised through critical review, and other work that improves the odds of publication. AAUW also allows the money to defray living expenses including housing, food and dependent care while you write. What it will not cover is field work, buying research equipment, research assistants, expenditures already made, institutional overhead and tuition for dependants.
Can tenured professors apply for AAUW grants?
No. Tenured professors are explicitly disqualified from the American Short-Term Research Publication Grant. The rule follows you into the award too: if you accept a tenured position at any point during the grant period, you stop being eligible for support from the effective date of the tenure, and any unused funds must be returned to AAUW.
Can you receive an AAUW grant more than once?
No. Previous recipients of a national AAUW fellowship or grant are ineligible, so an earlier American Fellowship, International Fellowship, Career Development Grant or Selected Professions Fellowship rules you out. The exceptions are Community Action Grants and awards from an AAUW branch or local affiliate, which do not count against you.
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