YFA Annual Mentor Program

Mentorship relationships provide a key role in advancement in one’s professional and personal goals. It is known than having more than one more effective. The American College of Surgeons Young Fellows Association (ACS YFA) has created a mentoring program to better address the needs of young surgeons.

Who Is Part of the Mentoring Team?

Mentoring triads are made up of three Fellows:

Early career surgeon – an Associate Fellow (an ACS member out of training, but not yet FACS) or a young fellow in practice less than five years, who traditionally will serve as a mentee in this triad relationship.
Mid-level career surgeon – a Young Fellow (an ACS Fellow under the age of 45) who might serve as a mentor to the early career surgeon and a mentee alongside an advanced professional.
Advanced professional – an ACS Fellow who holds leadership within the ACS or an ACS fellow who has been practicing for over ten years.

Mentee

An advantage of membership in the ACS is interacting with leaders outside of your home institution who have had an impact on the field of surgery. By becoming more involved in the ACS and joining its leadership ranks you can have a greater impact in your field. The YFA Mentoring Program formalizes these connections by:

Helping you define how you want to lead
Accelerate your surgery career
Build a stronger network
Gain a resource for life

Application Eligibility & Guidelines

This is an opportunity to develop a mentorship relationship with ACS Leaders. Applicants should be:

Early career surgeon – an Associate Fellow (an ACS member out of training, but not yet FACS) or a young fellow in practice less than five years, who traditionally will serve as a mentee in this triad relationship.
Mid-level career surgeon – a Young Fellow (an ACS Fellow under the age of 45) who might serve as a mentor to the early career surgeon and a mentee alongside an advanced professional.

The application will require:

Contact information and identification on areas of compatibility with mentor
A brief personal statement outlining what the mentee is looking to gain from this program
Abbreviated CV (not more than 2 pages)

Areas of Mentorship

Career development
Research
Work-life balance
Practice development
Transition to practice
Leadership development

Mentee Responsibilities

Create an action plan with a schedule with your mentors
Initiate an introductory call with your mentor(s)
Commit to connecting with your mentors on a minimum of a quarterly basis

If you are selected for the program and successfully complete it, you will receive first notice on leadership positions within the ACS.

Apply to Be a Mentee

Mentor

Applicants must be an ACS Fellow who holds leadership within the College or an ACS Fellow who has been practicing for more than ten years.

Mentor responsibilities include:

Participate in an introductory call with your mentees
Commit to connecting with your mentees on a minimum of a quarterly basis
Assist the mentees in honing their mentorship goals, and help them identify specific steps to create an action plan
Complete an evaluation form at the conclusion of the program

The application will require your contact information and areas of compatibility with mentee.

Apply to Be a Mentor YFA Mentor Guide

Questions

If you have any questions, please contact Anita Johnson at anita.johnson@facs.org.