Procedures for Application

Requests for ASTS accreditation of Abdominal Transplant Surgery Fellowships are expected to follow these instructions.

Complete the online application. 

Download, complete and submit the application invoice to the following address:

ASTS National Office
Attn:  Fellowship Training Program
2461 S. Clark Street, Suite 640
Arlington, VA 22202

The completed application will be reviewed by the Fellowship Training Committee Chair.  When the application has been accepted and ruled complete by the Chair, two members of the Fellowship Training Committee will be selected to review the application in detail.  The applicant institution will be notified of the names of the reviewers and are asked to cooperate with the reviewers' requests for additional information if necessary.

If the application is a renewal from an institution previously accredited, a site visit is not mandatory, and will be at the discretion of the reviewers.

If the application is from a program not previously accredited, or if the accreditation has lapsed, a site visit to the applicant institution must be arranged for the reviewers.  It will be the responsibility of the applicant institution to contact the reviewers and coordinate the site visit.  The applicant institution is expected to develop an itinerary that is mutually acceptable with the reviewers' goals and objectives.  Direct expenses associated with travel to the site visit are borne by the applicant institution.  The ASTS National Office will invoice the applicant institution after the site visit and payment is due within thirty days.

The reviewers will submit a detailed report to the Chair of the Fellowship Training Committee and recommend whether the program meets the requirements for approval, whether additional information is necessary or whether the application should be disapproved.  The Chair will submit the recommendations of the Committee to the ASTS Council who is charged with granting final approval or disapproval. 

The function of the Fellowship Training Committee is one of support to the ASTS Council and the committee will provide only recommendations.  The Council holds ultimate authority in all decision-making matters. 

If the program is granted approval by the Council, the Fellowship Training Committee will announce the decision directly to the applicant institution.  That communication will serve as documentation of the approval as well as the date approval was granted, the conditions under which approval is granted and the duration of the approval.  The process typically takes three to four months from the receipt of the application to final approval and notification.