Fellowships and scholarships

Explore opportunities

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National Library of Australia Fellowships

Financial and research support for experienced researchers in various fields and disciplines.

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Creative Arts Fellowship

For creative writers researching a new body of work inspired or informed by the Libary's collections.

Five people standing in front of the Main Reading Room

National Library of Australia Scholarships

For PhD students who require access to our collections to assist their postgraduate research.

Group of men and women, standing and sitting together on the National Library podium

National Library Fellows and Scholars, March 2024

Fellowships and Scholarships FAQs

Answers to frequently asked questions about Fellowships and Scholarships.

Our purpose

We support innovative research and artistic endeavours by helping researchers immerse themselves in our unique collections. Our programs aim to stimulate scholarly, literary, and artistic endeavours while fostering community engagement.

How you benefit

As a scholar or fellow, you will have time and space to explore our collections. You will also receive expert staff support, financial assistance, and have unique opportunities to share your work.

Who should apply

Our programs support researchers, artists, writers and PhD students across diverse disciplines, backgrounds, and career stages. We welcome applications from culturally and linguistically diverse people, people with a disability and First Nations people.

Latest news and blogs

Rima Febriani sitting on an armchair in the Main Reading Room

Rima Febriani, 2025 National Library of Australia Asia Study Grant Scholar

The archive of desires: Tracing sexual knowledge in Indonesia

Learn about National Library of Australia Asia Study Grant Scholar Rima Febriani’s research exploring how ideas about sexuality developed in postcolonial Indonesia.

A woman with red hair and glasses holding a book with the fold out pages

Caitlin Hughes, 2025 National Library of Australia Scholar

Regional identity and contemporary expression in Eastern Indonesian arts

Learn about 2025 National Library of Australia Scholar Caitlin Hughes’ research into interdisciplinary art in Indonesia.

A man in a blue shirt leaning over a desk with papers and books

Dr Matthew Lamb, 2026 National Library of Australia Fellow

A ramble through the mind of an adolescent

Learn about National Library of Australia Fellow Dr Matthew Lamb’s research into the life and juvenilia of legendary Australian writer Frank Moorhouse.

Find more blogs

Research presentations

A woman with brown hair is seated at a table in a well-lit indoor setting, looking directly at the camera. In front of her are some documents and a white electronic device.

Dr Joy McCann

Dr Isobel Bennett and the secrets of Australia's seashores

Dr Joy McCann presents her recent Fellowship research, focusing on Dr Isobel Bennett’s experiences as a trail-blazing female scientist in the mid-20th century.

A sepia photograph of a man opening a drawer in a caravan

Caravans for the polio immunisation campaign. Health, Australia: photographs collected by the National Library of Australia. Box 57, Health – Polio, nla.cat-vn6185856

Experiences of polio in 1950s Australia

Prof Catharine Coleborne presented her recent Fellowship research, focussed on her discoveries about the health and illness experiences of poliomyelitis (polio) in regional Australia across the 20th century.

A man with glasses wearing a black button-down shirt in the National Library of Australia's Special Collections Reading Room

Dr Matthew Lamb

The 'archival imagination' of Frank Moorhouse

Dr Matthew Lamb presented his recent Fellowship research on Frank Moorhouse’s ‘archival imagination’, exploring how his methods shaped his work and identity.

Browse more from our Fellows

2023. Madeleine Pugin, National Library of Australia 2022 Scholarship recipient, standing behind the Boab100 work by artists from Waringarri Aboriginal Arts.

Support curious minds to create new knowledge

Our Fellowship and Scholarship programs enables outstanding academic researchers, younger scholars, and creative practitioners to immerse themselves in our unique collections.

These opportunities depend entirely on donors like you.

Find out more