The Austrian-Swiss-German (ASG) Traveling Fellowship tour promotes international travel for the exchange of medical ideas. This tour is three-to-four weeks.

  • Even Years: two American and one British orthopaedic surgeons tour orthopaedic centers in Austria, Switzerland, and Germany.
  • Odd Years: one Austrian, one Swiss, and two German orthopaedic surgeons tour orthopaedic centers in North America.

Upcoming Tour Information

Applications for the 2026 AOA Austrian-Swiss-German Traveling Fellowship are now closed.

Eligibility and Criteria

Applicant Criteria

To be considered for selection, ASG applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Less than or equal to 16 years in practice
  • Certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery
  • Qualified to practice orthopaedic surgery in the United States
    • must be a United States citizen, or
    • a Permanent Resident with a full-time position at a hospital/institution in the United States
  • Able to tour in the spring of 2026
  • Able to attend the 2027 AOA Annual Leadership Meeting.
  • Must be an active AOA Member or Emerging Leader

Note: Lengthy episodes of time away from practice (>6 months) may be noted by applicants and will be reviewed and given consideration by the selection committee on a case by case basis. This includes but is not exhaustive of illness, family/medical leave, maternity/paternity leave, military deployment, etc.

Ineligible

Alumni of the American-British-Canadian (ABC) Traveling Fellowship are ineligible for consideration.

Hosting Information

ASG hosts use their creativity to plan a unique and exciting experience that will allow the ASG Traveling Fellows to grow in their leadership skills, research, and career goals. Hosts may also take advantage of any unique environments that they may have either academically or historically.

Host Responsibilities

Hosts will be asked to:

  • Identify a key contact person at the host institution to liaise with the AOA Headquarters.
  • Coordinate academic, leadership, and social programs.
  • Send the AOA a finalized, detailed itinerary six weeks prior to the tour.
  • Meet the ASG Fellows when they arrive in the local area.
    • If the fellows fly in/out of the region, fellows must be transported to/from the airport to the designated hotel or meeting location.
  • Provide housing, meals, and ground transportation for the ASG Fellows, as well as covering the costs for these arrangements.

Group Hosting

The Traveling Fellowship Subcommittee also encourages members to “group host,” with several institutions in one area sharing the hosting duties and costs, thus adding to the diversity of the tour.

Become an ASG Host

If you are interested in hosting future ASG Fellows, please contact fellowships@aoassn.org.

Application

Applications for the 2026 ASG Traveling Fellowship are now closed.

Learn More

Learn more about the ASG tour through the experiences of past ASG fellows. Visit the AOA Traveling Fellowships Blog.

ASG Alumni

Name Year
Deana Mercer, MD, MSCR, FAOA, FAAOS 2024
Nicolas Noiseux MD, MS, FRCSC 2024
Aman Dhawan, MD, FAOA 2020
Brian Mullis, MD, FAOA 2020
Susan Bukata, MD, FAOA 2018
Neil P. Sheth, MD 2018
Eric W. Edmonds, MD 2016
Simon C Mears, MD,PhD 2016
Ahmad Nassr, MD 2014
James Slover, MD 2014
Theodore A. Blaine, MD 2012
Charles L. Nelson, MD 2012
Susan A. Scherl, MD 2010
Scott P. Steinmann, MD 2010
Richard Iorio, MD 2008
Robert Alan Hart, MD 2008
Lee S. Segal, MD 2006
John M. Martell, MD 2006
Brian D. Adams, MD 2004
Joseph Borrelli, Jr., MD 2004
Peter J. Briggs, MD 2004
Ross K. Leighton, MD 2004
James D. Michelson, MD 2002
Richard M. Terek, MD 2002
Edward G. McFarland, MD 2000
Sean P. Scully, MD, PhD 2000
J. Lawrence Marsh, MD 1998
Michael J. Yaszemski, MD, PhD 1998

Questions?

Please e-mail fellowships@aoassn.org.