Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet all of the criteria listed below:

• Applicant must have been born outside the United States;
• Applicant must not be more than 38 years old as of December 31, 2019 (born on or after January 1, 1981);
• Applicant must: be a naturalized citizen or permanent resident (green card holder) of the United States; be a holder of an H1B or O-1 visa and have been living and working in the United States for at least 5 years; or have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA);
• Applicant must not be enrolled as a full-time student;
• Applicant must have published at least one full-length book (not self-published);
• Applicant must intend to pursue a professional career in the United States;
• Applicant must not be a past winner of the Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise.

Online Application

You will be required to:

• Provide personal information
• Upload a PDF of your CV
• Upload a PDF of proof of your immigration status
• Provide a PDF portfolio containing no more than twenty (20) pages of writing samples
• Upload a PDF of five (5) press clippings about your work
• Complete three short essay questions (1,000 words total)
• Provide contact information for two professional references
• Submit a completed application by 5:00pm EDT, June 10, 2019

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Selection Process

A panel of distinguished members of the literary community will evaluate the applications based on their excellence, innovation, and impact. The submitted work samples should illustrate the applicant’s technical excellence as a writer, while also demonstrating a larger purpose or vision to their work.

The prizewinners selected by the jury will be the candidates whose work best exemplifies the characteristics outlined above. Recommendations of the jury will be submitted to the Vilcek Foundation’s Board of Directors for final approval. The winners of the Creative Promise Prize in Literature will be notified in fall 2019 and will be invited to attend the Vilcek Foundation’s annual awards ceremony in New York City, in the spring of 2020. Travel expenses and accommodations will be covered by the foundation.