The Bibliographical Society of America’s New Scholars Program seeks to promote the work of scholars who are new to the field of bibliography, broadly defined to include any research that deals with the creation, production, publication, distribution, reception, transmission, and subsequent history of all textual artifacts (manuscript, print, digital, from clay and stone to laptops and iPads). 

Each year, the New Scholars Program invites three scholars in the early stages of their careers to present fifteen-minute talks on their current, unpublished research in the field of bibliography as members of a panel at the annual meeting of the Society, which takes place in January. Those selected for the panel will receive an honorarium of $1,000, and will be invited to present their work as part of BSA’s 2021 annual meeting. (Please note that, in 2021, BSA will hold its annual meeting online, and that New Scholars will be asked to present their work virtually rather than in person.) Expanded versions of papers presented by the BSA New Scholars will be submitted to the editor of The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America (PBSA) for publication, subject to peer review. Applicants should, therefore, submit new work that has not been accepted for publication elsewhere either in the form of a book chapter (or portion thereof) or article.

In keeping with the values of the Society, the New Scholars selection committee welcomes bibliographical scholarship pursuing new methods and new approaches, including applications from candidates applying bibliographical theory and principles to diverse materials and media. In addition, the committee welcomes scholarly submissions that embrace diverse, multicultural perspectives. The committee particularly encourages applications from those who have not previously published, lectured, or taught on bibliographical subjects.