Applications open for SAJA Reporting Fellowship Program

The fellowships support in-depth news reports about issues that are often ignored or under-covered by the media. These can include stories that examine the continuing impact of natural disasters, accidents and scandals long after the breaking news cycles.

The SRF provides funding support to individual journalists who take the effort and time to conduct in-depth investigations, interviews, on-site visits and report on complex topics relating to South Asia which not covered well by the mainstream media.

The grants are intended to reimburse selected journalists for out-of-pocket expenses they incurred while traveling and reporting on the topic. The fellowship is open to both freelancers and staff journalists across all media formats.

Funding Information

• The fellowship is awarding up to $20,000 this year. Each project, however, is likely to receive between $3,000 and $7,000 at SAJA’s discretion.

Eligibility Criteria

• The SRF is open to all journalists, anywhere in the world, as long as the proposal is about South Asia or the South Asian Diaspora.
• The finished work must also be published, aired or posted online by a US or Canadian publication, broadcaster or Website.

Ineligibility Criteria

• SAJA board (present or past) members and members of their families are not eligible to apply.

Application Requirements

• Applications, which are accepted on a rolling basis, must include:
  • A proposed project description and a plan for publication in no more than 500 words
  • A preliminary budget estimate with a detailed breakdown of costs
  • Three samples of previously published work
  • Three professional references
  • One letter of interest from an editor or producer who could publish your proposed project
  • Resume
• Incomplete applications will not be considered.

For more information, visit IJNet.