ACR Fellow: What Does It Signify? How Is It Achieved?


Richard Morin, PhD, FACR, Mayo Clinic and James Morrison, MS, ACR Assistant Executive Director, Membership

Medical associations generally have a category of membership above general member known as fellow. While associations vary in how the designation of fellow is achieved, individuals qualify after having been a member in good standing for a set period (usually very short), being board certified, and being nominated by 2 or more current fellows in the association. In general, there are no requirements regarding professional accomplishments over and beyond simple membership and board certification.

In the American College of Radiology, the situation is very different. First and foremost, becoming a fellow of the American College of Radiology (FACR) is not merely a matter of being board certified and being nominated by 2 or more fellows. The distinction is only given to individuals who have made significant contributions to radiology through service to the profession, education, or research. ACR bylaws currently permit someone to become a fellow with as few as 5 years of ACR membership. However, because of the requirement for significant contributions noted above, individuals typically apply and are recognized much later in their careers. Because only the ACR, not other major radiology associations such as ARRS, ASTRO, or RSNA, confers fellowship, the award is considered a mark of distinction in diagnostic radiology, radiation oncology, nuclear medicine, and medical physics. In fact, the honor is held by only 10% of ACR members.

Fellowship Process

Is it difficult to become a fellow? While only a small percentage of members have achieved that distinction, applying for fellowship is encouraged. There is no cap, no annual limit on the number of people who can become fellows. Candidates are judged on their accomplishments. Fellowship is within the reach of any member who puts his or her mind to it. Table 1 contains a listing of typical accomplishments expected of candidates for fellowship.

TABLE 1:

Typical Accomplishments

The items in this section are general examples. Completing them does not guarantee that a nominee will be granted fellowship. The fewer the years of ACR membership, the more significant the accomplishment should be. In areas such as research and teaching, the focus should be on extraordinary accomplishments that exceed normal expectations for practicing radiologists.

Service to Organized Medicine

  • Positions held in the ACR, such as councilor or alternate councilor, chair of ACR committee or commission
  • Offices held in an ACR chapter such as chapter president, president-elect, vice president, treasurer, secretary, board of directors, or chair of a chapter committee
  • Participation in charitable medical services outside regular practice (ie, free clinic, health care to homeless, etc)
  • Patient education activities performed outside of practice, such as health fairs, cancer screenings, writings for lay publications, school health lectures, etc
  • Volunteer medical services performed (team physician, school clinics, STD clinic, etc)

Significant Scientific or Clinical Research in the Field of Radiology, or Significant Contributions to Its Literature

  • Awards for research
  • Presentations of nonpublished research given at an ACR-sponsored function (research and presentation must pertain to radiology)
  • Research grants received
  • Service as editor of a radiology publication
  • Radiology books or chapters authored or coauthored

Performance of Outstanding Service as a Teacher of Radiology

  • Awards for teaching
  • Lecturer at a national ACR meeting or chapter meeting
  • Service as a volunteer preceptor (for 4-week rotations) with medical students or residents in your practice

In addition to the accomplishments, there are administrative requirements. First, as noted earlier, a candidate must meet the years of consecutive membership in the ACR as stipulated in the bylaws. Time spent as a member-in-training is not counted toward that requirement. Second, a candidate must obtain letters from at least 2 current fellows supportive of the nomination. At least 1 of 2 letters must be from someone outside the practice. Next, completed nomination forms and letters must be submitted to the chapter fellowship chair. Members cannot submit nominations directly to the College. Nominations are first reviewed at the chapter level; the nominations that pass chapter review are then forwarded to the College. Incidentally, the ACR Fellowship Committee considers a chapter nomination to be stronger than nomination by 2 fellows.

The nomination form can be downloaded from the ACR's Web site at www.acr.org. Look for it in the ACR fellowship section under Membership Services. It is important to be as thorough as possible in completing the form. The committees at both the chapter and College that review nominations can only assess potential fellows on what they have in front of them. It is important to check with the chapter regarding submission deadlines. Since nominations are due to the College from the chapter by May 1 each year for award at the following Annual Meeting and Chapter Leadership Conference, the chapter's deadline will be earlier than May 1.

Every nominee is required to submit a curriculum vitae (CV). Because the nomination form states that the CV should address accomplishments in service, teaching, or research, some have interpreted that to mean that everyone has to have experience in all 3 areas. That is not true. The CV does not need to support evidence of significant accomplishments in all 3 categories. Although accomplishments in multiple categories are to the candidate's advantage, an individual can become a fellow with distinguishing accomplishments in a single area.

Assessing Fellowship Nominations

What kind of yardstick does the Fellowship Committee use to assess individual candidates? Table 1 lists typical accomplishments sought by the committee in reviewing nominations. However, they are not the sole factors that go into the approval decision. Therefore, achieving the items listed in these guidelines should not be interpreted as guaranteeing fellowship, but rather to provide direction and simplify the process. Among the accomplishments, special weight is generally given to service to the ACR at both the national and chapter levels.

The supporting letters from 2 fellows are very important to the committee's review. In most cases, the committee members do not know the candidate being nominated. The endorsements described in the nomination form, the CV, and the supporting letters are all the committee on fellowship credentials has to reach a decision. Unfortunately, many of those letters are too brief and merely inform the committee that the individual is a "good person and worthy of becoming a fellow." When writing a supporting letter, it is important to take the time to include details. It is useful to provide information about the individual's service, teaching, or research activities that substantiate the nomination. Many outstanding letters are only 1 to 2 pages. If a nominator does not feel strongly about a candidate, it is hard for the committee to be convinced. A guidance document with samples of letters that might be helpful can be found at www.acr.org under Membership Services, ACR Fellowship.

Although the nomination requires 2 letters of support for each candidate, the committee welcomes additional letters, especially from the state chapter. If the chapter believes strongly that an individual should be a fellow, the chapter should submit its own strong, detailed letter to support that nomination.

Hopefully, this article has helped clear up some of the mystery surrounding the fellowship in the ACR and will inspire many members to seek special recognition as fellows. Please send any comments or concerns about fellowship to James Morrison, ACR staff person for the Fellowship Committee, by e-mail at jimm@acr.org, fax (703) 262-9313, or phone (800) 227-5463, ext 4485.