The American Institute for Maghrib Studies (AIMS) announces its annual Grants Program for academic year 2025-2026 beginning in June 2025. The Grant Program offers grants to U.S. scholars to conduct research on North African topics in Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, or Tunisia. AIMS Overseas Research Centers in Oran, Tunis, and Tangier facilitate AIMS grants and support AIMS scholars. AIMS funds only primary research conducted in the Maghrib.

Short-Term Research Grants
AIMS awards short-term grants for one to three months for up to $6,500 (including airfare to/from the US for those not residing in the country/s of study). These awards may also be used in combination with grants from other sources for projects of longer duration.

Long-Term Research Grants
AIMS offers awards with a maximum of $15,500 (including airfare to/from the US for those not residing in the country/s of study) for projects longer than three months. In the event a grantee declines an AIMS award to accept another grant, AIMS may provide a small allowance for supplementary research expenses.

Eligibility
Graduate students currently enrolled in an M.A. or Ph.D. program, independent scholars, and faculty in all disciplines are eligible to apply. Applicants must be a current AIMS member and U.S. citizen at the time of application. Recipients of AIMS awards in either of the two previous funding cycles are ineligible to apply. Researchers who will need IRB approval must obtain IRB clearance before departure to North Africa.

Requirements
All AIMS grantees are required to present on their research at one of the AIMS Overseas Research Centers or affiliated centers: CEMA in Oran, Algeria; CEMAT in Tunis, Tunisia; TALIM in Tangier, Morocco; Dar Si-Hmad in Sidi Ifni and Agadir, Morocco. AIMS Grantees must also submit a written report to the AIMS Secretariat within one month of completion of their fieldwork.

Guidelines
Applicants may not accept multiple government grants concurrently for the same project; some privately funded grants are exempt from this rule. It is expected that the research period is a full-time effort. Funding does not support language (or other) classes nor teaching during the research period.

Applications must be submitted online and include the following (application link below): 

• Completed Applicant Information
• Proposal or research design of no more than 1,500 words
  The proposal should describe the research topic, significance of the topic for your field/s and North African studies and, as relevant, for advancing comparative, transnational, and/or global theory and methodology; research design (e.g. the design and its feasibility, together with contingency planning, given current and shifting political-landscapes, methodological problems that may arise, and/or inability to gain “access”, and secure your interlocutors safety), and how your research might contribute to the mission of AIMS and/or its overseas research centers.
• A proposed research itinerary with approximate dates
• Budget, including research grants for this project from all sources
• Vitae, including indication of language proficiency and institutional affiliation at home and if applicable, in the field
• One-page summary of the proposed research in either French or Arabic written by the applicant
• Letters of recommendation from two referees, including the candidate’s dissertation advisor, or in the case of applicants holding a Ph.D., the names of two persons who may be contacted for references.