The 2027–28 Eccles Institute Visiting Fellowships

If your academic or creative project centres on the Americas and needs access to British Library collections, the 2027–28 Eccles Institute Visiting Fellowships are open to applications from Nigeria. The programme supports research in London, with applications closing at 16.00 GMT on Friday 18 December 2026.

The key distinction is between the fellowship period and your time in London: this is an 18-month fellowship with three to four weeks of research at the Library, not an 18-month funded residency. The £3,000 stipend for fellows travelling from Nigeria is financial support, not a promise to cover every expense.

Opportunity Summary

About the Opportunity

The Eccles Institute for the Americas and Oceania at the British Library supports projects that use the Library’s collections to investigate the Americas: Canada, the USA, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. Eligible work can contribute to a dissertation, scholarly publication or creative project, including fiction, poetry, music, theatre, dance, art or design. Oceania-only projects are not currently eligible.

The four research themes are Revolutions and Reactions in the Americas since the 1950s; Poems and Poets of the Americas; Mapping Modernity in the Americas; and Music and the Americas. An open submission category also accepts projects outside these themes, without a lesser chance of success. Do not force your proposal into a theme if the open category describes it more accurately.

Assessment focuses on projects that clearly benefit from access to the Library’s collections, while supporting a mix of projects across the cohort. Your application therefore needs to explain why particular materials matter to your question, rather than simply expressing enthusiasm for visiting London.

Funding and Benefits

• A £3,000 stipend applies to fellows travelling from Nigeria under the rest-of-world rate. It is intended to support at least three weeks of research, but is not stated to cover all costs.
• Support from the Library’s curatorial team and Reference Specialists to help you identify collection materials and develop your research or creative project.
• Where possible and appropriate, written documentation may be provided to support a visa application. The Institute cannot arrange or guarantee visas.
• Researchers of Latin America may also be considered for a joint fellowship with the Society for Latin American Studies and the Bulletin of Latin American Research. The joint fellow will be invited to publish a research-informed article in the Bulletin.

Who Can Apply?

• Applications are open worldwide, including to applicants in Nigeria. The introduction says applicants may be 18 and over, while the eligibility section says over 18. If you are exactly 18, clarify your eligibility with the Institute before applying.
• Your project must foreground the Americas or American experiences and make meaningful use of British Library collections. A project focused only on Oceania does not currently qualify.
• Past Eccles Institute Visiting Fellows may apply only if their previous fellowship took place before 2020 or they are proposing a completely new project.
• Recipients of the Institute’s major Fellowships or Awards, including the Eccles Hay Writer’s Award and the Fulbright-British Library Eccles Institute Scholar Award, are not eligible.

What Nigerian Applicants Should Know

• Citizenship and residence: the worldwide eligibility wording allows applicants in Nigeria to apply; no Nigerian nationality exclusion is stated. The stipend is based on where you travel from, so the £3,000 rate applies to travel from Nigeria rather than automatically to every Nigerian citizen.
• Location: there is no distance or remote-working version of this fellowship. You need to plan for research at the British Library in London.
• Travel permission: the Institute does not arrange or guarantee visas. Any written support is conditional on what is possible and appropriate. Check the relevant official UK requirements for your circumstances before booking travel.
• Work permission and professional recognition: the supplied details do not establish work-permission entitlements or professional recognition requirements. This is a research fellowship, not an advertised employment position; do not treat it as permission to undertake other work.

How to Apply

1. 1. Check your fit and any previous-award restrictions. Decide whether your project belongs under one of the four themes or the open submission category. Choose according to the substance of your research, not an assumption that a themed application receives preference.
2. 2. Search the British Library catalogues and identify at least five representative collection items. Record their reference numbers accurately. Select materials that help answer your research question, rather than assembling a list of generally related titles.
3. 3. Prepare the 400-word project description. Explain the topic or question you want to investigate during the fellowship and keep its scope realistic for three to four weeks of Library research.
4. 4. Specify the kinds of materials you intend to use, such as newspapers, books, periodicals, government documents, manuscripts or sound recordings. Include the required list of at least five representative items with reference numbers.
5. 5. Prepare the 300-word account of what you hope to learn from these materials and other Library resources. Explain the connection between the sources and your research question; avoid repeating only the project background.
6. 6. Prepare the 300-word account of your intended research outcomes. Possible outputs include a publication, performance, exhibition or thesis chapter. The Institute particularly welcomes suggestions for engaging non-specialists with the Americas and the British Library.
7. 7. Complete the official online application form, including questions about your disciplinary background and training. Only applications submitted through that form are accepted. Submit by 16.00 GMT on Friday 18 December 2026; late applications will not be considered.

Visit the official application page

Application Tips

Optional preparation advice: draft your responses before completing the online form. Give each response a separate purpose: the research description explains your question, the learning statement explains what the collections could reveal, and the outcomes statement explains what you will produce or share.

Hypothetical example: a project on Caribbean political poetry could connect a focused research question to relevant poetry volumes and periodicals, then explain how comparing them would inform an article or creative work. This illustrates an approach, not a preferred topic or an assurance of selection.

Prepare a realistic budget for travel, accommodation and living costs. Compare it with the £3,000 stipend rather than treating the award as fully funded. The supplied details do not specify payment timing, so verify this before making financial commitments.

Final submission check: confirm your eligibility, word counts, collection reference numbers and proposed outcomes. Check that the proposal foregrounds the Americas and explains why research in London is necessary. References and work samples are not required. Verify any additional form requirements on the official application page, and submit before the deadline rather than relying on a last-minute connection.

Information checked 9 November 2026.