The application portal for the next Rome Prize competition will open in August 2025. The deadline for applying will be November 1, 2025, with an extended deadline of November 15 for an additional fee. Please read on for more information about the competition.
Overview
Applicants for full-term Rome Prize Fellowships in musical composition must demonstrate professional commitment and be currently engaged in the discipline.
Required Application Materials
A completed online application form and the following documents, to be uploaded to your online application as separate digital files.
1. Current résumé/curriculum vitae, with a complete list of works (including composition, year, and instrumentation).
2. One-page proposal describing the project to be undertaken. Please be sure to address the following points/questions in your proposal:
- How will the proposed project and your own professional development will benefit from a residency within a multidisciplinary community in Rome?
- What guides or motivates your work?
- Rome is a modern city powerfully stamped by the material remains of the past. Is this past important to your present? If so, why?
- What, if any, resources in Rome or Italy will be significant to the completion of your proposed project?
- What kind of workspace do you need in Rome?
Your proposal should be 10- to 12-point typeface with one-inch margins.
3. Musical scores for at least two but not more than three compositions from within the past five years. If your work is unscorable, please provide lead sheets or other explanatory material. Handwritten scores should be scanned and uploaded.
4. Recordings of at least two but not more than three compositions from within the past five years. Recordings should be hosted online, either on SoundCloud or another file-hosting site. Links to the recordings should be included in the online application form. Please note if any performances are MIDI realizations.
Also needed are three references. Provide the names and contact information only for three professionals acquainted with you and your work. Letters of recommendation are not required for applicants in music composition.
Finally, you must submit an application fee paid by credit card through our online payment option or by check or money order made payable to American Academy in Rome. Send to:
American Academy in Rome
Attention: Musical Composition
535 West 22nd Street, Third Floor
New York, NY 10011