FAQs about the Kundiman Retreat:
Retreat Costs
Q: How much does it cost to attend the Retreat?
A: The tuition fee for our Retreat is $375 (room and board are provided). We are proud to be able to offer these subsidized costs to all Fellows thanks to the support of grants and donations; without such grants and donations, the full cost of the Retreat for each Fellow would be $2,500.
Q. Are there any Retreat scholarships available?
A. All accepted Fellows receive free room and board and a heavily-subsidized tuition. Occasionally, additional scholarships are available; if any additional scholarship opportunities become available in 2026, we will communicate the details to Fellows upon acceptance.
Application DEADLINE, FEES, AND GUIDELINES
Deadline and Fees
Q: What is the deadline for applications?
A: Applications for the 2026 Kundiman Retreat will be open from December 15th, 2025 to January 15th, 2026 at 11:59 PM ET. The deadline is 11:59 PM ET on January 15th, 2026.
Q: May I submit my application after the deadline?
A: Unfortunately, we cannot accept any applications after the deadline. Please submit your application by 11:59 PM ET on January 15, 2026.
Q: What is the application fee? Are there any fee waivers available?
A: The application fee is $25. This fee allows us to provide a modest honorarium for our application readers as they dedicate their time and energy to careful consideration of each cover letter and writing sample. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide application fee waivers at this time.
Eligibility
Q: Who can apply for the Retreat?
A: Anyone who self-identifies as AAPI can apply to the Retreat.
Q: Can I apply if I live outside of the U.S.?
A: We welcome anyone who self-identifies as AAPI to apply.
Q: Are there any age restrictions to apply?
A: All applicants must be 18 and over.
Genres
Q: Can I apply in both genres?
A: Yes, you may apply in both poetry and fiction, but you must submit a separate application and application fee for each genre.
Q: I'm a creative nonfiction writer. Can I apply to the Retreat?
A: Kundiman's Retreat provides workshops in two genres — poetry and fiction — and does not currently include nonfiction. At the Retreat, in informal settings, you may encounter other writers who write creative nonfiction in addition to poetry and/or fiction. We are also considering ways to incorporate creative nonfiction in the future.
Q: I’m a cross-genre writer. Should I apply for poetry or fiction?
A: We deeply appreciate cross-genre, multi-genre, and hybrid work. However, the Kundiman Retreat currently provides workshops in two genres: poetry and fiction. Please apply in the genre that you feel will speak most strongly to your work.
Q: If I’m applying for fiction, may I submit screenplays?
A: While what you submit is up to you, the Retreat does not teach screenwriting, so submitting an excerpt from a screenplay might not be the best example of your work as a fiction Fellow.
Application Components & Writing Sample
Q: What does the application include?
A. The application consists of two parts: 1) a cover letter describing what you would like to find at the Kundiman Retreat, your interest in being part of such a space, and how you would hope to contribute to the community, and 2) a brief writing sample that showcases your work in your chosen genre. The writing sample is 5–7 pages of poetry or 5 pages (1250 words maximum) of prose. There are no minimum or maximum word counts for the cover letter, but we generally receive cover letters that are around three paragraphs long (around 250–350 words).
Q: May I submit previously published work as my writing sample?
A: Yes.
Q: Can I submit an excerpt of a longer piece of writing?
A: Yes. In your cover letter and/or at the start of the sample, you can include a note stating that your submission is an excerpt.
Q: For poetry samples, is it necessary for each poem to start on a new page?
A: Yes, a new poem should start a new page. Please stay within the 5–7 page limit with that in mind.
Q: Your Submittable instructions say to put in a title for the submission. Are there any rules or expectations for this field?
A: The title can be anything you would like, as long as it does not include your name or any other identifying information.
Q: Can you clarify what you mean about “identifying information”?
A: Before you submit your application, we ask that you do not include your name in your cover letter or writing sample. Please don’t include your name on your work sample files. Please double check your headers and footers to ensure your name does not appear there.
Q: Does the writing sample need to be double-spaced?
A: All fiction samples should be double-spaced. Poetry writing samples do not need to be double-spaced. How you lineate each poem in the sample is up to you, but please be sure to: 1) Start each new poem on a new page and 2) Limit the sample to 5–7 pages of poetry total.
Q: Does the cover letter need to be double-spaced?
A: No. Cover letters are not required to be double-spaced.
Q: How do I upload my cover letter?
A: Cover letters must be pasted into the provided text box in Submittable. Please do not upload your cover letter as a separate document.
Artificial Intelligence (“AI”)
Q: Can I use AI in my cover letter and/or writing sample?
A. We want to get to know you as a writer and artist. Therefore, we ask that you please do not use AI in any phase of creating your cover letter or writing sample (including brainstorming, generating, drafting, or editing).
Q: Will AI be used to evaluate my cover letter and/or writing sample?
A. Your cover letter and writing sample will be read and considered exclusively by human beings. We will not use AI to evaluate your application materials.
Evaluation
Q: How are applications evaluated?
A: All submissions are anonymized and evaluated by a group of readers that varies from year to year, and includes a range of ages, identities, lived experiences, and writing experience levels. We will not use AI to evaluate your work.
Q: Can I receive feedback on my application?
A: Unfortunately, we are unable to provide feedback on individual applications.
Other Application Questions
Q: I messed up my application. May I re-submit?
A: You may withdraw your application and resubmit before the deadline. Please note: If you resubmit your application, you will unfortunately be required to repay the application fee.
Q: I am a current or graduated Kundiman Fellow/alum. Can I return to Kundiman, but study under a different genre than the one I was accepted into?
A: In order to study in a different genre, returning Fellows will need to submit an application in the other genre.
The Retreat
Q: What is a typical day at the Retreat like?
A: The schedule includes meals, workshops, seminars, craft classes, salons, and mentorship meetings. Optional evening activities follow. Below is a typical Retreat day schedule.
8:00 – 9:00 am: Breakfast
10:00 am – 12:00 pm: Spark Writing Exercise
12:30 – 1:30 pm: Lunch
2:00 – 4:30 pm: Workshop
5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner
8:00 pm: Salon Reading and/or Evening Event
Q: Where is the Retreat held?
A. The 2026 Kundiman Retreat will be held on Pratt Institute’s Brooklyn Campus (200 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205).
Q. What are the Retreat dates?
A. The six-day, five-night 2026 Kundiman Retreat will be held from Monday, June 15th to Saturday, June 20th.
Q: Who are the Faculty for the 2026 Retreat?
A. The Faculty for the 2026 Retreat will be announced soon. We will have three Faculty members each in fiction and poetry, all renowned for their work in their respective genres. We aim to invite Faculty members who understand the unique challenges faced by emerging AAPI writers.
Q: Who can I contact about specific accessibility questions I have about attending the Retreat?
A. For questions about accessibility, please write to info@kundiman.org. We aim to do everything we can to work with our Retreat hosts to meet Retreat participants’ access needs (including the access needs of Kundiman Fellows, Retreat Faculty, and Retreat Staff).
If you have a question that was not answered on this page, please feel free to e-mail info@kundiman.org.