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Fellowship Application And Instructions

Eligibility Requirements for Advancement to Fellowship

1. Membership in the American Geriatrics Society for at least three (3) years. Candidates must be in good standing.
   
   
2. Board certification, professional certification or licensure by one of the several member organizations of the American Board of Medical Specialties (including, but not necessarily limited to, Family Practice, General Surgery, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Preventive Medicine or Psychiatry) or a comparable specialty board in Canada or other foreign country.
   
   
3. At least five (5) years of post-residency or post degree professional activity predominantly in the field of geriatrics. This requirement can be met by time spent in geriatric (geriatric medicine or psychiatry) fellowship or by evidence of experience in clinical, educational, research or administrative roles, or by combinations of these activities.
   
   
4. Physicians who are not Board-certified and those from all healthcare disciplines will be considered for fellowship. In these instances, applications must provide evidence of substantial contributions to the field of aging. Applicants should have applied a major fraction of their time to scholarly and professional activities in geriatrics or gerontology, ordinarily in the areas of teaching, research, or administration.
   
   
5. Registration and attendance at three (3) or more annual national meetings of the AGS.
   
   
6. Evidence of a commitment to scholarship in the field of geriatrics. This may be evidenced by lectures, presentations, posters, exhibits, publications or any sort (papers, reviews, chapters, popular articles, letters-to-the-editor, editorials), audiovisual materials or other forms of communication. Publications may be in peer-reviewed or non-peer-reviewed journals, but must be on geriatric topics. Presentations may be at national, regional, or local meetings or conferences.
   
   Copies or lecture outlines, publications, posters, etc. (or written descriptions thereof sufficient for critical review) should be enclosed with the application.
   
   Alternatively, a scholarly commitment may be demonstrated by inclusion with the application of write-ups of three or more geriatric patients from the applicant's own experience, with discussion of pertinent literature and an analysis of interesting features of the patient's medical status. These should be three or four pages in length and need not be submitted for publication elsewhere.
   
   
7. A lapse in membership will result in the loss of Fellow status.

Instructions for Fellowship Application

1. Print or type all information.
   
   
2. Six copies of the application and all accompanying documentation must be submitted.
   
   
3. Attach to the application, a detailed curriculum vitae giving special emphasis to areas pertinent to geriatrics including the following information:
   1. medical school, internships, residencies, fellowships, other formal graduate work and other supervised training
   2. clinical positions or employment since completion of graduate work, description of current position
   3. medical specialty and subspecialty/area of practice
   4. clinical or office practice, hospital, long-term care, institution/nursing home, home care, and adult day care activities
   5. medical/professional organizations
   6. academic and/or research appointments
   7. teaching assignments
   8. listing of publications and presentations
   9. evidence of continued medical or professional education activities
   10. evidence of leadership in the field or geriatrics/gerontology
   11. certification in aging or an aging related concentration not linked to:
       • an officer in professional associations/societies
       • member of: editorial boards, review committees, site visit committees for granting agencies, state/ national task forces on aging
       • program director of geriatric training programs
       • chairperson of national or regional geriatric meetings
       • administrative head of state/national geriatric programs
       • consultative activities to state/national geriatric and gerontologic groups such as the NIA and VA
       • national recognition for excellence in aging research
       • successful completion of the Certification of Added Qualifications in Geriatric Medicine

4. List or describe active involvement in AGS activities such as presenting papers, participation in AGS continuing education programs, committee involvement, participation in AGS sponsored research activities such as research training courses, contributions to local and regional AGS activities, liaison between AGS and other recognized societies such as AAFP, ACP, AFAR, etc.

5. The candidate must be endorsed by two Members of the Society in good standing. Only Members of the Society for at least 3 years are eligible to endorse the candidate. Endorsement by at least one Fellow of the Society is encouraged. In addition to the information requested on the application, each endorser must submit a letter of recommendation supporting the applicant's advancement to Fellowship status.

6. If the candidate has had special training related to geriatric medicine, the training program director must complete the enclosed Fellowship Recommendation Form for Directors of Geriatric Training Programs.

7.  A letter from the applicant's respective specialty Board must accompany the fellowship application. The letter should state that the applicant is Board certified. A copy of the applicant's Board certificate will not meet this requirement.

8.  Fellowship applications will be reviewed by the committee twice a year in May and November. Application deadlines are February 15 and September 15 respectively. The application and all accompanying materials must be received in the AGS office by the above dates. Any applications received after February 15 or August 15 will be held for the next review period. Send the complete application with an accompanying fee of $50 to the:

American Geriatrics Society
Attn: Membership Department
The Empire State Building, 350 5th Avenue, Suite 801
New York, NY, 10118

The election process for Fellowship shall include the following:

1. Endorsement by two Fellows or Members of the Society in good standing.
2. Nomination by the Membership/Fellowship Committee.
3. Approval by the Board of Directors which bestows Fellowship status.

A member whose application or nomination for Fellowship is rejected/deferred at any stage may appeal by re-submitting additional information.

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Download the Advancement to Fellowship Application (86 KB .PDF file- requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)