Call for
McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism
Application Deadline:
13 October 2025
About Organisation
The Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Center for Business Journalism is dedicated to advancing the quality and depth of business and economic news coverage. Established in January 2014 at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, City University of New York, it is funded by a $3 million grant from the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Family Foundation. The Center supports veteran business journalists and trains new reporters entering the field. Its flagship program, the McGraw Fellowships in Business Journalism, commissions impactful stories on significant economic and business issues. Fellows receive financial support and editorial guidance to produce investigative, analytical, or narrative journalism of high standard. The Center partners with established media outlets to publish the stories, which also appear on its website. The initiative emphasizes stories that deeply examine economic and financial topics, promote accountability, and shed light on under-covered issues or communities, both locally and globally. It also encourages diversity in applicants and approaches, fostering innovation in the coverage of complex business and policy matters.
About the Grant
The McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism offers experienced journalists the opportunity to produce deeply reported, high-impact stories with strong economic, business, or financial angles. Fellows can receive up to $15,000 in grants and editorial support over a period of up to three months. Projects may be investigative, analytical, or narrative in form and can address national, international, or local topics. While the grant focuses on business-oriented stories, applicants need not be specialist business reporters. Topics may range from corporate accountability to economic inequality or sector-specific issues like healthcare, education, or the environment. The program particularly welcomes proposals examining the implications of significant shifts in federal spending and policy priorities. Work can be in any media format—text, audio, photo, or short-form video—and multimedia approaches are encouraged. The fellowship supports both freelance and staff journalists, promoting coverage of under-reported communities and fostering diversity in perspectives.
Who can Apply?
The McGraw Fellowship is open to journalists with a minimum of five years of professional experience. Applicants can be freelance reporters or staff members at news organizations or journalism non-profits. Staff journalists may apply individually or on behalf of their organization. While prior experience in business journalism is not required, applicants should demonstrate a track record of producing high-quality, in-depth reporting. The fellowship encourages applications from those covering a wide range of beats, including healthcare, education, environment, corporate accountability, and economic inequality, as long as there is a strong economic or business focus. Journalists from diverse backgrounds, as well as those reporting on under-covered regions and communities, are strongly encouraged to apply. Proposals should present clear, feasible plans for deeply reported, original stories that will have significant public impact. Projects that combine multiple media formats are welcomed.
How to Apply?
Applicants must submit a proposal outlining their story idea, reporting plan, and its significance, along with their resume and relevant work samples. Both freelance and staff journalists are eligible to apply.
Application Deadline
The final date to submit your application is October 13, 2025. Proposals must be received before this deadline for consideration.
Last Date To Apply
October 13, 2025. Applications submitted after this date will not be accepted.
Grant Amount
Selected fellows receive up to $15,000, distributed as $5,000 per month for a maximum of three months, along with editorial support.
Last Date To Apply
For more information, please visit the grant website here.
