The Catholic Biblical Association Logo

CBA Emerging Scholars Fellowship

  Application Form       Recommender Form 

  List of Fellows      Download Flyer

The CBA Office will begin accepting applications on December 1.

Application Deadline: January 15

The Catholic Biblical Association of America (CBA) invite applications for the annual CBA's Emerging Scholars Fellowship. This Fellowship is a doctoral student award given to four emerging scholars who show promise and appear likely to make significant contributions to the field of Biblical studies. The CBA is a scholarly organization devoted to supporting biblical scholars from all traditions. Researchers share their scholarship during the Association's Annual General Meeting and in its publications (Catholic Biblical Quarterly, the CBQ Monograph Series, CBQ Imprints, and Biblical Studies from the CBA).

The award enables Fellows to attend the CBA Annual General Meeting (AGM), to present their scholarship, and enjoy the company and conversation of scholars in the field.

CBA is grateful to Verbum for its support and contribution to this Fellowship.

Application Requirements

  • Applicants must be enrolled in a doctoral program in the Biblical field.
  • Applicants must not have the doctoral degree in hand as of the application deadline (January 15)
  • Applicants must be able to present at the forthcoming CBA Annual Meeting
  • Applicants must have two recommendations from faculty who are current faculty in the applicant’s doctoral program.
  • Doctoral students interested may submit applications both for the Emerging Scholars Fellowship and for a CBA Travel Grant if they fit the criteria for both. HOWEVER, applicants who are awarded Emerging Scholars Fellowships are ineligible for the Travel Grant in the same year. Check the box on the application forms if you are applying for both.

The award consists of:

  • up to $750 travel reimbursement* for travel to the CBA Annual General Meeting (AGM)
    (*the travel reimbursement is increased to a $1,500 limit to cover economy airfare from where foreign fellows are to the location of the AGM)
  • conference registration
  • room and board (onsite) at the conference provided at host institution
  • candidacy for membership in the CBA (one year of dues waived after vote during AGM Business Meeting), including subscription to The Catholic Biblical Quarterly.
  • honorarium of $220
  • two year subscription to Verbum Researcher Library

The award is contingent on attending and presenting at the CBA Annual General Meeting. At the meeting, fellows will present their papers and have the opportunity to encounter high-quality scholarship and a hospitable environment in which to develop relationships with other scholars in the discipline. Recipients are required to write and submit to cba-office@cua.edu a 1/2-1 page summary of their experience after the AGM.

Applicants must provide:

  1. Completed Application Form (Revised 2026)
  2. Text of an academic paper to be presented in a 30-minute time period.
    • The paper should include a 100 word abstract.
    • Paper presentation periods (Research Reports) at the AGM are 40 minutes, permitting 10 minutes of Q&A.
  3. A Curriculum Vitae (no more than two pages single-spaced).
  4. Official academic transcript of their doctoral work to date.
    • N.B. The Committee will accept a copy of an official transcript accompanied by a signed statement that the copy of the official transcript has not been altered by the applicant or others and that the copy of the official transcript accurately reflects the student's past record of academic study/achievement.
    • Scholars at institutions that do not have doctoral comprehensive exams / transcripts should request that their dissertation director so state in their reference letter and provide details regarding progress and timeline.
  5. Two recommendations 

PLEASE NOTE:

  • On or before January 15, completed applications must be submitted to
    cba-office@cua.edu with the subject "ESF Application" (recommender forms should be sent with the subject "[APPLICANT’S name] ESF Recommendation") 
  • All pages of application documents (other than the application form and transcripts) must be standard letter size (8.5x11 inches or A4), 12-pt. standard Roman font (e.g., New Times Roman). Citations (social science or humanities style) are included in page and word counts.
  • The committee will not consider incomplete or incorrectly formatted applications.

Application Process

  • Please note the following document naming protocol.
    • If possible, all documents should be pdfs.
    • Documents for the Doctoral Dissertation Stipend should be named as follows (including the number):
      1. APPLICANT'S LAST NAME-Application
      2. APPLICANT'S LAST NAME-Paper
      3. APPLICANT'S LAST NAME-CV
  • The two (3) completed application documents (application form, paper, & CV), and the official transcript must be submitted on or before JANUARY 15 to cba-office@cua.edu with the subject: ESF Application, in order to be considered (The Recommender Forms should be sent directly from the recommender attached to an e-mail to cba-office@cua.edu with the subject [Applicant's Name] ESF Recommendation).
  • N.B. if within a week of submitting your application (taking into consideration the Christmas holiday), you have not received from the CBA Office an email response confirming receipt of the application, please check your SPAM folder. In the event it is not there, call the office (202-319-5519) and leave a message stating your name and the date you submitted your Emerging Scholars Fellowship Application.
  • All applicants will be notified via e-mail on or before FEBRURARY 15 regarding the status of their application.

Selection Process

The CBA Committee on Emerging Scholars Support will assess applications based upon the following criteria

  • Fellowships will be awarded to those showing the potential to make a serious contribution in the Biblical field.
  • The Committee considers independently
    • the quality of the paper
    • transcript and CV
    • recommendation letters
  • The committee will not consider incomplete or incorrectly formatted applications.

Recipients

  • After the recipient has been notified on or before February 15th, the CBA Office will send instructions about 
    • sending a head shot photo for the announcement
    • booking travel and receiving reimbursement 
    • registering for the AGM (including promo code to waive fees)
  • Honoraria funds will be disbursed in the next CBA fiscal year (July - June). 
  • International Scholars 
    • Funds will be disbursed via wire-transfer, so you will need to provide the following information to the CBA Office cba-office@cua.edu:
         1. The name of the Bank, street, and city:
         2. IBAN:  
         3. BIC /SWIFT:
         4. Account number:
         5. Name of the account holder/beneficiary, street, and city:
    • You should request from the CBA Office (cba-office@cua.edu) a letter from the Executive Director to support your visa application. 
    • If, for some reason, you cannot obtain a visa you may present your paper virtually.
  • After the AGM, recipients are required to write and submit a 1/2-1 page summary of their experience to the CBA Committee on Emerging Scholars Support via an e-mail to cba-office@cua.edu.