A key element of SVS’ recruitment campaign is the Vascular Annual Meeting® Medical Student and General Surgery Travel Scholarship Program. The program began in 2005 and is credited as the influencing factor for 131 scholarship recipients to enroll in or complete a vascular surgery training program. SVS expects this number to steadily increase over the next several years.
For the last three years, the SVS Resident and Student Outreach Committee, with input from the SVS Medical Student Section and the SVS General Surgery Resident Section, have developed the Vascular Annual Meeting Medical Student and General Surgery Travel Scholarship Program, and introduced several new components including an Open and Endovascular Simulation Training Workshop, a Surgical Skills Competition, and a Jeopardy Competition. The educational program consistently receives favorable reviews from scholarship recipients: “Thank you so much for allowing me to participate in the SVS Vascular Annual Meeting. It was one of the best educational experiences throughout medical school and has made me secure in my decision to pursue vascular surgery as a career” to “This was a wonderful meeting which was absolutely invaluable. I do not think I could have networked with so many wonderful people nor learned so much through any other avenue.”
The committee will introduce additional activities for the new scholarship program at 2012 Vascular Annual Meeting that include: Introduction to Research Principles, a residency fair, and a minority medical student scholarship program.
SVS members are encouraged to promote these activities to students and residents. There are scholarship applications and a detailed 2012 resident/student program agenda online.
