Artpreneur Grants for Graduating College Students
Are you about to graduate from the UNCSA college program? Do you have an idea for a creative business or a creative project that you wish to develop and are seeking funding to help make your idea a reality? We invite you to apply for an Artpreneur Grant for Graduating College Students, and we’ll help you along the way with faculty mentors in your arts school and in the Division of Liberal Arts. Five grants are available for $2,500 each.
UNCSA defines an Artpreneur as an artist who reaches beyond existing disciplines, technologies, constructs and processes to effect change they wish to see in the world, through their creative practice.
Application Period Begins: Monday, January 17, 2022, 9 a.m. (ET)
Application Deadline: Wednesday, March 15, 2022, 9 a.m. (ET)
Requirements
- Applicants must be currently enrolled full-time in a UNCSA undergraduate, graduate or certificate program and have applied and are on track to graduate in May 2022.
- Complete five short Canvas webinars (see link to request access below)
- Complete online application (see link to application below)
- A basic budget with projected expenses and revenue (contributed/earned/in-kind)
- Two Letters of Recommendation from individuals familiar with the applicant’s artistic work. One letter must come from a UNCSA faculty or staff member; the other can be an external source.
Grant Awards
Artpreneur grant funding may be spent on expenses directly attributable to the development of a creative enterprise or project. Recipients will receive their funding shortly after graduation, and will have one year to get their creative enterprise or creative project up and running.
Examples of eligible expenses:
- Artist fees
- Venue costs
- Discipline-specific equipment or software
- Professional services
Examples of ineligible expenses:
- General expenses of transitioning from college to career
- Personal living expenses (rent, transportation, food)
- Career development expenses (headshots, classes, etc.)
- Student loan repayments
For more information, email Erin Edge at artpreneur@uncsa.edu.
Application Directions
Please do not submit an application before completing the Canvas webinar (request access).
Creative Project or Creative Enterprise?
- A creative project is a finite idea with a beginning, a middle, and an end that has a financial component and produces a work of art, a dance, a film, a piece of music, a play, etc.
- A creative enterprise is based on an ongoing business or nonprofit venture that impacts the creative industry (Examples: Professional photography studio, art-based clothing line, design studio, etc.).
Summary
In 100 words or fewer, summarize your creative project or creative enterprise. Please include:
- Title or Business Name
- Arts Discipline or Genre
- Purpose or Goal of Project
- Defined Audience or Customer
- Intended Impact
- Goals that the award will help you to accomplish
Example: [Title or Business Name] is a [creative project or enterprise] in [arts discipline or genre] that will [purpose] to benefit [what kind of audiences or customers] in order to [make this impact]. With Artpreneur funding I will be able to advance my [project or enterprise] by [accomplishing this goal] and [this goal] within the next 12 months.
Narrative
Your narrative should be between 200-400 words. Be sure to address each of these questions:
- What inspired you to start your creative project or enterprise?
- What have you done to date to advance this project?
- What challenge or problem does your creative project or creative enterprise address?
- What makes your project or enterprise uniquely valuable?
- What are your highest priority goals to advance your project in the next 12 months?
- What impact will your creative project or creative enterprise have
- Who is your target audience, and how will you reach them?
Biography
In 50-100 words, please tell the selection committee about yourself. Be sure to include your:
- Name
- Artistic title (Filmmaker, Playwright, Actress, Designer, Choreographer, etc. )
- UNCSA Affiliation
- Concentrations
- Artistic credits at UNCSA
- Promotion of your relationship to your idea (Remember, you are telling your story!)
- Academic and/or professional experiences that make you qualified to bring your idea to fruition
- Consideration of your audience and how they tie in to what you are trying to promote
Creative Team
If you have creative team members, please be sure to include:
- Their names
- Their UNCSA affiliation (if any)
- Your whole team’s connection to the idea
- An explanation of why you chose them for the team
- A description of why the team works well together
Timeline
Please estimate important milestone dates for your creative project or enterprise in order to complete them within a 12-month time frame.
Budget
Your budget should include a line item for each expense, along with a brief description of the item. Also indicate:
- The overall budget for this venture (including projected expenses and revenue)
- How you would use $2,500 to move your venture forward
Letters of Recommendation
Upload two Letters of Recommendation:
- One should be from a faculty member who knows your work
- One should be a personal recommendation.
2022 Application
Applications will be accepted beginning January 17, 2022.