ELIGIBILITY:

To be eligible, you must be a young faculty members from countries other than the United States and Canada with the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational opportunities for faculty development and enhancement that will result in acquisition of new knowledge and skills in surgical education and training. This knowledge and these skills will be useful in improving surgical education and training at the scholar’s home institution and country.

Applicants must be graduates of schools of medicine who have completed their surgical training.

Applicants must be a fully trained surgeon with a minimum of five years of experience after completion of certification as a surgeon, or equivalent, and no more than 20 years of experience. 

Applicants must submit their applications from their intended permanent location. 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 surgery, surgical teaching, and improving access to surgical care in their community.

Awardees of past ACS International Scholarships are not eligible. 

Applicants must submit all required fields. The application and accompanying materials must be submitted in English.

Preference will be given to applicants who have not already experienced training or surgical fellowships in the U.S. or Canada.

Applicants must submit independently prepared letters of recommendation from three (3) 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 surgery, surgical teaching, and improving access to surgical care locally. Letters of recommendation should be submitted by the persons making the recommendations.

The ISSURGED award must be used in the year for which they are designated. They 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 patients in the country.

Unsuccessful applicants may reapply only twice and only by completing and submitting a new application together with new supporting documentation.

BENEFIT:

Each scholarship provides a stipend of $10,000, supporting travel and per diem in the U.S., and the cost of courses undertaken at the Clinical Congress and at the center(s) to be visited. Clinical Congress registration will be provided gratis, and assistance in reserving thrifty housing in the Clinical Congress city will also be provided. In 2024, the Clinical Congress city is San Francisco, CA.