About

The AAR seeks donations from members to support other members.  These donations allow us to help members who have been unable to maintain their AAR membership due to adverse conditions. The grant is intended to assist lapsed members regain access to benefits such as discounted registration fees for the Annual Meetings, networking opportunities with colleagues around the world, and promotion of their work and achievements.

Grants may be awarded to those eligible (see below) on a first-come, first-serve basis, as long as funds are available based on prior donations.

The grant can be awarded only once to a member. The grant is non-transferable and recently paid memberships will not be reimbursed.

Criteria

To be eligible for the Membership Support Grant, applicants must meet all three of the the following requirements:

(1) No current AAR membership

(2) Applicant’s status is one of the following:

  • had previous AAR membership in past three years (2025, 2024, and 2023) and member category at most recent year of membership was Contingent, Applied Religious Studies, Independent Scholar or Student
  • new student in graduate school in religious studies or theology
  • requesting an exception

(3) Incurred loss of income or institutional support resulting in economic hardship

How to Apply

  • Eligible applicants may submit only one application.
  • Applications must be submitted via the online submission form. Emailed or hard copies will not be accepted.

AAR Membership Support Grant Application

To submit your application, fill out all of the required fields below. Your form cannot be edited once it is submitted to the system.

Your Contact Information

Name(Required)

Eligibility

To be eligible for the AAR’s Membership Support Grants, applicants must meet the following requirements:
(1) No current AAR membership. Must have previous AAR membership in the past 3 years or new to grad school or requesting an exception (2) Member category at the end of the most recent active membership period was Contingent, Applied Religious Studies, Independent Scholar or Student

(3) Incurred loss of a significant portion of income or institutional support due resulting in economic hardship. (4) Note: The grant can be awarded only once to a member.

To confirm eligibility, please answer the following questions below:

Have you been a member in the last three years?(Required)
What was your AAR Membership category when it lapsed?(Required)
Have you incurred loss of income or institutional support resulting in economic hardship?(Required)

Questions

Please contact us at membership@aarweb.org.

Submission Status

  • Now Accepting Applicants

Recognition Type

  • Grant

Award Amount

Cost of one-year membership dues