ACS/AAST International Scholarship

The scholarship of $5,000 provides the scholar with an opportunity to attend the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) annual meeting. As well as a visit to one or two Level I Trauma Centers to learn about the standards for a trauma program and the importance of multidisciplinary acute care surgery care.

The awardee will receive complimentary registration to the annual meeting of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma and to one available postgraduate course at the meeting. Assistance will be provided to obtain preferential housing in economical hotels in the AAST meeting and Trauma Center/TQIP cities. Hotel and travel expenses will be the responsibility of the awardee, to be funded from the scholarship award.

To qualify for this award by the selection committee, all requirements must be fulfilled.

Basic Requirements

Applicants must be graduates of schools of medicine who have completed their surgical training and are practicing attending surgeons. Applicants must be members in good standing of the American College of Surgeons (Associate Fellow or Fellow) and one of the societies listed at aast.org/international scholar- scholarship.
Applicants must be at least 30 years old, but under 50, on the date that the complete application is filed.
Applications will be accepted for processing only when the applicants have been in surgical practice, teaching, or research for a minimum of one year at their intended permanent location, following completion of all formal training (including fellowships and scholarships).
Applicants must show evidence of commitment to high-quality acute care surgery, to surgical teaching, and to improving access to surgical care in their community.
Applicants must submit a fully completed application form, located on the ACS website, facs.org. The application and accompanying materials must be prepared using a computer and submitted in English. Submission of a curriculum vitae only is not acceptable.
Preference will be given to applicants who have not already experienced training or surgical fellowships in the U.S. or Canada.
Unsuccessful applicants may reapply only twice and only by completing and submitting a current application form provided by the College together with new supporting documentation.
Applicants must submit independently prepared letters of recommendation from three of their colleagues. One letter must be from the chair of the department in which they hold a clinical or academic appointment or from a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons residing in their country. The Chair’s or the Fellow’s letter is to directly address the applicant’s commitment to high-quality acute care surgery, surgical teaching, and improving access to acute care surgery locally. The other two letters of recommendation should be from colleagues who can address the applicant’s acute care surgical, clinical, and teaching abilities and practice. Letters of recommendation should be submitted by the individuals making the recommendation.
The scholarship must be used in the year for which it is designated. It cannot be postponed. Awardees are expected to provide a written report upon their return home, specifically focusing on the value of the visit to the awardee and the potential beneficial effect to the acute care surgical patients in the country of origin.

Additional documents and questions are to be directed to the Scholarships Administrator: scholarships@facs.org or Scholarships Administrator, American College of Surgeons, 633 N. Saint Clair St., Chicago, IL 60611-3295.