Awards & Prizes

The core of RSVP’s mission is the support of scholarship about the world’s first fully industrialized press — the magazines, newspapers, and other serial publications that collectively made up so much of what was printed and read during the long 19th century. This vast printed heritage remains largely unexplored even now, and primary-source research of many different kinds is essential to furthering our understanding of Victorian culture. As a Society, we are dedicated to assisting scholars in these exciting explorations.

Thanks to the generosity of the late Eileen Curran, one of the great pioneers in the field of 19th-century British media studies, RSVP has vastly expanded funding for research in recent years, alongside its longstanding awards for the best book of the year and the best graduate student essay. Currently, RSVP is the world’s leading funding body for the support of research on the Victorian period, a distinction of which we are very proud. If your own research plans appear likely to shed substantial light on the world of the 19th-century press in any of its myriad forms, please consider applying for one or more of these grants and fellowships.

Please note that Officers and Directors are not eligible for any RSVP grants, fellowships, or prizes. Important deadlines are updated annually on our Awards Calendar.