Update
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the American College of Surgeons (ACS) leadership has decided to defer this scholarship until the year 2021. New applications will not be reviewed for 2021. This page will be updated and new applicants will be considered for 2022 as soon as more information is available.
Purpose
The American College of Surgeons offers International Guest Scholarships to young surgeons from countries other than the United States or Canada who have demonstrated strong interests in teaching and research. The scholarships, in the amount of $10,000 each, provide the scholars with an opportunity to visit clinical, teaching, and research activities in the U.S. and Canada and to attend and participate fully in the educational opportunities and activities of the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress.
This scholarship endowment was originally provided through the legacy left to the College by Paul R. Hawley, MD (FACS Hon), former College Director. More recently, gifts from the family of Abdol Islami, MD (FACS), the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and others to the International Guest Scholarship endowment have enabled the College to expand the number of scholarship awards.
Basic Requirements
- Applicants must be graduates of
schools of medicine who have
completed their surgical training.
- Applicants must be at least 35 years
old, but under 50, on the date that the
completed application is filed.
- 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 have demonstrated a commitment
to teaching and/or research in accordance with
the standards of the applicant’s country.
- Early careerists are deemed more
suitable than those who are serving in
senior academic appointments.
- Applicants must submit a fully completed
application form provided by the
College on its website. The application
and accompanying materials must be
submitted in English. Submission of a
curriculum vitae only is not acceptable.
- Applicants must provide a list of all of their
publications and must submit, in addition,
three complete publications (reprints or
manuscripts) of their choice from that list.
- Preference may 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 of their
colleagues. One letter must be from the chair of
the department in which they hold an academic
appointment or a Fellow of the American College
of Surgeons residing in their country. The chair’s or
the Fellow’s letter is to include a specific statement
detailing the nature and extent of the teaching
and other academic involvement of the applicant.
Letters of recommendation should be submitted
by the person making the recommendation.
- The online application form is structured
to assist the Scholarship Selection
Subcommittee and assists the applicant in
submitting a structured curriculum vitae.
- The International Guest Scholarships must
be used in the year for which they are
designated. They cannot be postponed.
- Applicants who are awarded scholarships
will provide a full written report of the
experiences provided through the scholarships
upon completion of their tours.
- An unsuccessful applicant may reapply
only twice and only by completing and
submitting a new application together
with new supporting documentation.
Financial Support
The scholarships provide successful applicants with
the privilege of participating in the College’s annual
Clinical Congress held in Chicago, IL, October 4–8,
2020, with public recognition of their presence. They
will receive gratis admission to selected postgraduate
courses plus admission to all lectures, demonstrations,
and exhibits, which are an integral part of the
Clinical Congress. Assistance will be provided in
arranging visits, following the Clinical Congress, to
various clinics and universities of their choice.
Apply Online
Completed applications
for the International
Guest Scholarships for the
year 2020 and all of the
supporting documentation
must be received online
prior to July 1, 2019, in
order for an applicant to
receive consideration by
the selection committee.
All applicants will be
notified of the selection
committee’s decision in
November 2019. Applicants
are urged to submit their
completed applications
and supporting documents
as early as possible in
order to provide sufficient
time for processing.
Questions about and application materials for this scholarship should be sent to kmccann@facs.org.
Requirements and overview
Apply online
International Guest Scholarship Award Recipients 1968–2018
Past Scholar Reports