The Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education at the University of Southern Maine offers fellowships to assist researchers, artists, and educators in accessing our rich and varied collections, which include nearly half a million cartographic items that are global in scope and date back to 1475.
New in 2025, we are pleased to offer annual visiting fellowships in honor of Dr. Harold L. Osher and Mrs. Peggy L. Osher. These short-term visiting fellowships offer fellows the opportunity to visit the library and spend time with the collections.
The Osher Map Library is a proud member of the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium (NERFC), a collaboration of 30 major cultural agencies in New England who award 25+ $5000 research fellowships annually. Fellowship awards are open to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals who hold the necessary U.S. government documents. Grants are designed to encourage projects that draw on the resources of several agencies. For more information on fellowship requirements and to apply for a fellowship (applications due February 1, 2026), please visit the NERFC application website at the Massachusetts Historical Society.
The Dr. Harold L. Osher Research Fellowships are intended to provide time for research, writing, and thinking about maps and mapping as they relate to advanced research in the humanities, social sciences, and related disciplines. Projects that explore underrepresented narratives in history are especially encouraged. Fellows spend a total of two weeks at the Osher Map Library, immersing themselves in the cartographic and reference collections. They are invited to be active participants in the intellectual life and community of the Osher Map Library and the University of Southern Maine during their stay, including giving a brown-bag lunch talk during their second week on site.
The Short-Term Research Fellowships are open to scholars at any stage of their career. Students must be ABD, and in the dissertation stage of their program, or in the equivalent stage of another terminal academic degree (e.g., MFA).
Applicants selected for the Dr. Harold L. Osher Research Fellowship will be awarded $2,500 for a two-week fellowship to take place on site at the Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education in Portland, Maine. The two weeks do not have to be consecutive but must both take place between December 2025 and December 2026 for the 2025-2026 award cycle.
Fellows receive half of the stipend ($1,250) upon scheduling their fellowship visit/s and the other half ($1,250) upon successful completion of the fellowship and submission of a required 250-500 word report.
Applicants must fill out the Application Form online.
Applications for the Dr. Harold L. Osher Visiting Research Fellowships are due by Monday, December 1, 2025 (11:59pm EST). Applicants must include how they plan to use the collections and the season(s) they intend to be on site. In addition to the online application form, graduate student applicants must submit one brief letter of recommendation (250-500 words) from an advisor/mentor.
Please note that at this time, unfortunately, we cannot sponsor visas for fellowships.
We will award two Osher Visiting Research Fellowships for the 2025-2026 cycle. All applicants will be notified of their status by January 1, 2026.
Depending on availability and timing of the visits, housing at the University of Southern Maine’s Gorham Campus (in our Visiting Artist House) may be available [at no additional cost to the fellow]. The Gorham Campus is 25 minutes from the Osher Map Library on the Portland Campus, and can be accessed by city bus (every 30 minutes) or by car.
Questions about the Harold L. Osher Research Fellowship program can be directed to Louis Miller, Assistant Director for Research and Fellowship Programs: louis.miller@maine.edu
Beginning in 2024-2025, the Osher Map Library has hosted a visiting artist for a short-term fellowship established in honor of Peggy L. Osher. These short-term fellowships/residencies at the Osher Map Library (typically two weeks) are designed to further the artist’s visual or performing art through the study of cartography.
Currently visiting artist fellowships are by invitation only, and are offered to artists actively engaged in work with maps and mapping (broadly conceived) as part of their practice. Fellows received a $2500 stipend and assistance with housing while in residence, and generally give a public lecture or workshop as part of their residency. Visual and performing artists interested in being a Peggy L. Osher Visiting Artist at the Osher Map Library should contact our Executive Director, Dr. Libby Bischof, who coordinates this program: elizabeth.bischof@maine.edu
2024-2025 Peggy L. Osher Visiting Artist: Billy Gerard Frank
(painting/film/multimedia)
2025-2026 Peggy L. Osher Visiting Artist: Adrienne Ottenberg (illustration/cartography/textiles)
