Opportunity

Asian Cultural Council Fellowships and Grants

The Asian Cultural Council fellowships and grants pay for cultural exchange between the United States and Asia, and within Asia.[1] For the 2027 cycle, the council gives them to artists, scholars, arts professionals and arts organizations, and Cambodia is one of the countries whose citizens and permanent residents can apply.[1] As of 2026, the council has awarded more than $100 million since 1963 for nearly 6,000 exchanges, with grantees from 26 countries and regions.[1] People from Cambodia have held its grants since at least 1970.[2]

Sponsorship

The Asian Cultural Council is based in New York and has offices in Hong Kong, Japan, the Philippines and Taiwan.[1] For the 2027 cycle, its grants go to activities in the United States and in 25 countries, territories and regions of Asia, among them Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.[1]

Award and support

For the 2027 cycle, applicants may apply to only one of four programs.[1]

  • New York Fellowship: a $38,000 grant for six months in New York with a group of fellows from across Asia. Visa, insurance and housing costs come out of the grant, and fellows can expect $10,000 to $31,100 after they arrive. Fellows travel on a J-1 visa sponsored by the council. Americans and people with U.S. green cards cannot apply.[1]
  • Individual Fellowship: up to $35,000 for one to six months of research and cultural exchange in a country new or less familiar to the fellow. Up to three people may apply together. Fellows may not travel to the country where they live.[1]
  • Graduate Fellowship: $15,000 for one academic year of graduate study in the United States in a field that is not offered or is rare at home, which the council may renew for a second year. It pays for travel and living costs, not tuition. U.S. citizens and permanent residents cannot apply.[1]
  • Organization Grant: up to $50,000 for an arts or cultural organization to send its staff or collaborators abroad, or to host them, for one to six months.[1]

For the 2027 cycle, funded travel and activities take place between August 1, 2027 and December 31, 2028.[1]

Eligibility

Each applicant has to hold citizenship or permanent residency in one of the 26 eligible countries, territories or regions (Cambodia is one), or be an organization registered in one.[1] They also need five or more years of work in one of 16 arts and culture disciplines, which run from architecture, archaeology and museum work to crafts, dance, film, literature, music, theater and visual art.[1] Graduate Fellowship applicants do not need the five years.[1] New York and Individual Fellowship applicants must be at least 21 years old when the fellowship starts.[1]

The council does not fund production or promotion, such as filming a documentary, researching a planned book or staging an exhibition or concert series.[1] Past grantees who received a grant in the last two calendar years cannot apply.[1]

Application

The 2027 cycle accepts applications from October 1 to November 10, 2026, at 9:59 a.m. Eastern Time, through the council's online portal, GoApply; applications by email are not accepted.[1] Letters of recommendation are due November 16, 2026.[1] Each application starts with an eligibility quiz.[1] Selection runs from November 2026 to April 2027, with short-listed applicants interviewed online, and applicants hear the results in mid-May 2027.[1]

Recipients

Recipients from Cambodia include:

  • Chinary Ung, doctoral study in music at Columbia University (1970), and grants for the teaching of Western music in Cambodia (2002) and for planning a composers institute there (2012)[2]
  • Som Salis, graduate study of interior architecture and design in the United States (1974)[3]
  • Royal University of Fine Arts, the Cambodian Artists Mentorship Program (1997 to 2008)[4]
  • Him Sophy, a residency at the University of California, San Diego (2001)[5]
  • Ly Daravuth, a four-month fellowship in the United States (2002)[6]
  • Hun Pen, several grants from 2002 to 2008, including study for a master's degree in Southeast Asian studies[7]
  • Khmer Arts Academy, U.S. tours (2005, 2007 and 2010)[8]
  • Center for Khmer Studies, archaeology with Vietnamese, Lao and Cambodian researchers (2008) and research by Cambodian and Lao specialists on bronze casting in the Angkor period (2014)[9]
  • Amrita Performing Arts, dance workshops and exchanges (2009 to 2015)[10]
  • Chey Chankethya, study for a master of fine arts in dance at the University of California, Los Angeles (2011 to 2013)[11]
  • Cambodian Living Arts, exchanges for Cambodian artists and arts administrators, including Season of Cambodia, a festival in New York in spring 2013 (grants in 2012 and 2013), and a program in Myanmar (2015)[12]
  • Nget Rady, the International Choreographers Residency at the American Dance Festival (2015)[13]
  • Keo Sophy, a six-month fellowship to study composition with composer Chinary Ung at the University of California, San Diego (2017)[14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 Asian Cultural Council, Grant Opportunities (2027 cycle)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Ung Chinary (undated)
  3. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Som Salis (undated)
  4. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Royal University of Fine Arts (RUFA) (undated)
  5. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Him Sophy (undated)
  6. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Ly Daravuth (undated)
  7. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Hun Pen (undated)
  8. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Khmer Arts Academy (undated)
  9. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Center for Khmer Studies (undated)
  10. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Amrita Performing Arts (undated)
  11. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Chey Chankethya (undated)
  12. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Cambodian Living Arts (undated)
  13. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Nget Rady (undated)
  14. ↑ Asian Cultural Council, Grantee Database: Keo Sophy (undated)
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This page was last edited on 11 October 2026, at 02:51.