Scholarships and Grants

Scholarships

Through its scholarship programs, SAA works to increase diversity in the field of archaeology, support the future of the field, and help today’s students become tomorrow’s archaeologists.

Undergraduate and Graduate

Native American Scholarships
Opens for applications on October 1. The application deadline is January 31. 

The Native American Scholarships Fund (NASF) is an endowment established to foster a sense of shared purpose and positive interaction between archaeologists and Native Americans. Scholarships are open to all Native peoples from anywhere in the Americas, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Indigenous Pacific Islanders. It supports the Arthur C. Parker Scholarship for Archaeological Training for Native Americans and the SAA Native American Undergraduate and Graduate Archaeology Scholarships. (Employees of tribal cultural preservation programs are eligible to apply for Arthur C. Parker and National Science Foundation Scholarships.) 

Student Excellence in Archaeology Scholarship (SEAS)
Opens for applications on October 1. The application deadline is January 31. 

The SAA Student Excellence in Archaeology Scholarship (SEAS) (helps increase the number of under-represented minorities obtaining degrees in archaeology. It provides funding to minority archaeology students, helping them enhance their education and successfully prepare for a variety of careers in archaeology and heritage management.  

Cheryl L. Wase Memorial Scholarship for the Study of Archaeology 
Opens for applications on October 1. The application deadline is January 31. 

Cheryl L. Wase Memorial Scholarship for the Study of Archaeology provides funding for an undergraduate or graduate education in archaeology. It is awarded to women who are residents of New Mexico and pursuing a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Anthropology with a specialization in archaeology from a fully accredited university in the state of New Mexico (Eastern New Mexico University, New Mexico State University, New Mexico Highlands University, or University of New Mexico).    

Graduate Only

Matthew Tobin Cappetta Archaeological Scholarship Endowment
Opens for applications on October 1. The application deadline is January 31. 

Patricia and Les Cappetta have established the Matthew Tobin Cappetta Archaeological Scholarship Endowment with a gift of $100,000 and it is their hope that others will be inspired to contribute to the endowment.

Donations to this endowment support a scholarship that covers tuition, required fees, and books or course materials for one or more graduate students (Master's or Ph.D) to help them complete a graduate degree in archaeology or anthropology in memory of Matthew Tobin Cappetta.

The Ofer Bar-Yosef Scholarship for Advanced Doctoral Students in Old World Prehistory
Opens for applications on October 1. The application deadline is January 31. 

The Bar-Yosef family created the Ofer Bar-Yosef Scholarship to honor and celebrate the life and remarkable archaeological career of Professor Ofer Bar-Yosef. Professor Bar-Yosef's research made foundational contributions to our understanding of human evolution and cultural development from the Lower Paleolithic to the development of Neolithic farming economies and sedentary villages, and geographically spanned the entire Old World from Western Europe to China. 

The Ofer Bar-Yosef Scholarship acknowledges and supports excellence among advanced graduate students pursuing a doctoral degree on some facet of prehistoric archaeology in the Old World. The scholarship is intended for students who have already completed their coursework and all other requirements for the doctoral degree except the dissertation itself (research and/or writing). The Ofer Bar-Yosef Scholarship is given specifically to facilitate completion of the applicant's doctoral degree. The scholarship is open to students whose research focuses on Paleolithic, Mesolithic, or Neolithic archaeology (or their broadly equivalent temporal or cultural manifestations) in Europe, Asia, Africa, or Australia. The goal is to help promising advanced students to produce superlative dissertations in these fields.

 

Grants

H. and T. King Grants for Archaeology of the Ancient Americas
Not currently accepting proposals.

The H. and T. King Grant for Archaeology of the Ancient Americas, administered by the Society for American Archaeology, supports archaeological projects across Latin America (exclusive of the US) that show promise for transformative contributions to the understanding of the indigenous cultures from Mesoamerica, Central and South America, and the Caribbean.



Prior to any award recommendation being finalized and publicly announced, anyone recommended for an award, scholarship, or grant will be required to certify the following:

(a)  I am not and have not ever been the subject of a discrimination or harassment lawsuit or related administrative complaint that resulted in an adverse finding; and

(b)  I do not have and have not had a current or pending disciplinary action such as suspension or termination of registration, resulting from a Register of Professional Archaeologists’ grievance investigation.