Congress Attendance Justification Tool Kit Students and Young Investigators

Due to increased expenditure analysis and budget reductions, The Transplantation Society recognizes it is not an easy task to secure funding for an international congress. The tools provided here may assist you in getting approval to attend the 27th International Congress of The Transplantation Society (TTS 2018), to be held in Madrid, Spain from June 30 to July 5, 2018.

  1. Employer Approval Tips
  2. Expenses Worksheet
  3. Benefits Worksheet
  4. Letter to Manager/Supervisor
  5. Conference Follow-up Report

Young Members Committee Guide to TTS 2018

1. Employer Approval Tips

Benefits may be difficult to quantify. For example, experts agree that the top benefit of attending an event is the networking value. Although it is the most important benefit of attending a conference, it may be the toughest to quantify. Are there solutions you are not aware of?

When you propose TTS 2018 for approval, try not to focus on how much you want to go; instead focus specifically on the knowledge and experience you will bring back to your organization.

Here are some tips to guide you in your request for approval to attend TTS 2018:

  • Your organization is investing in you; provide details about what you will bring back from the event. Consider giving a short presentation to your department on recent advances you learned at the Congress.
  • What sessions will you attend and how will they have an immediate impact on your work?
  • What vendors will you visit on the exhibition floor and how will this help your organization?
  • Which experts will you have access to, and what knowledge would you bring back to share with your organization?
  • Were you invited to present an abstract, chair a talk or enjoy other responsibilities? Don’t forget to share these details with your seniors.
  • Take advantage of the Early Bird Deadline by March 1, 2018

2. Expenses Worksheet

Congress expenses are affected by a number of factors. Before you can even begin to justify your expenses, you need to calculate what those expenses are. Use the worksheet below to develop a cost estimate for attending TTS 2018. Refer to the registration and hotel information online at www.tts2018.org for further details.

Expense

Guideline

Cost

Registration

Early-bird Registration – March 1, 2018

$250

Additional Ticketed Events

Women in Transplantation Event, Young Investigators Event, Congress Dinner, Lunch & Learn Sessions

 

Lodging

See website for details

 

Flight

Actual, or estimate from online travel service

 

Mileage / Kilometer Reimbursement

Driving to Congress, airport. Use online mapping tool to calculate distance; carpooling?

 

Parking Reimbursement

Airport parking for flight departure, and / or at hotel

 

Ground Transportation

Taxi, rental, public system

 

Food and Beverage Per Diem

Check on your organization’s policies. General Congress registration includes daily coffee breaks, box lunch and welcome reception.

 

Total

 

 


3. Benefits Worksheet

Benefits Worksheet - for STUDENTS

Benefit

Justification

Powerful Networking Opportunities

Contacts: Meeting with academic, industry and government representatives from whom I can learn important insights both for my academic goals as well as my future career. Indicate if you are planning to sign up to a career coaching blitz session. Consider arranging meetings with specific people in advance.

Vendor Contacts: Will meet vendors who know our laboratory processes and how they can be enhanced; and also new technologies that can make our lab more efficient in the long term.

Support Contacts: Government officials and technical personnel who know which technologies and topics may qualify for grant funding and how to obtain it.

Regulatory Contacts: Agency representatives that can help clarify regulatory requirements so that I remain current on compliance issues.

Research Contacts: Other researchers who understand issues in our field and are working on new solutions.

Institution Exposure

By attending/participating in TTS2018, our University/College/Institution will gain valuable exposure to a broad international audience who will become more informed about our expertise and facilities.

Find Solutions to Current Issues in our Field of Research

Issue 1:

Issue 2:

Issue 3:

Find Ways to Do More With What We Already Have

Meet vendors and operators that can give us insights into how we can deliver better performance using equipment we currently use more efficiently.

Find New Technologies We Should be Studying

Explore where the industry is heading and which innovations to implement.

Provide Opportunities for Others to Learn My Job and Take on More Responsibility.

I plan to cross-train (insert name) to cover my laboratory duties while I am away. I will have this person fully ready to assume these tasks before my departure and debrief them upon my return.

Staff Presentations to "Share the Information" gained from TTS2018

Supervisor's Report: Prepare and submit a written report of findings and a short-term and long-term action item that result from what was learned at TTS 2018.

Staff Briefing: Prepare and deliver a presentation of findings learned at TTS 2018.

Training Assistance: Help others learn how to effectively attend a major Congress like TTS2018 and deliver the maximum benefit upon their return.


4. Letter to Manager/Supervisor

(Date)

Dear (Manager/Supervisor Name),

After reviewing the program and activities, I am interested in attending the 27th International Congress of the Transplantation Society, to be held in Madrid from June 30 to July 5, 2018. I have submitted an abstract to the meeting and look forward to presenting my work to an international audience.

The Congress will enable me to attend a number of technical sessions that are directly applicable to my work, such as: (list names of 4-5 sessions). Thought leaders and experts who have faced similar challenges will be facilitating each of these presentations. By attending, not only will it be useful to prepare us with, but it will also be beneficial to learn from how they overcame these obstacles. Incidentally, I have only listed some of the technical sessions I am planning on attending, as including all would make this letter quite lengthy.

The Congress will also be a prime location to network with a variety of academic and industry leaders in our field from around the world. Many of the presentations are tailored to (enter your field here) and give information on how to (list benefits to your responsibilities). Aside from attending the Congress, I also plan on cross-training another lab colleague to be tasked with my duties while I am away. This will afford the opportunity for our colleague to experiment a different work setting and responsibility.

Therefore, I am seeking sponsorship of the registration fee and travel-related expenses during the Congress. A detailed cost breakdown is here below.

The full-price conference fee is ($), if registered before March 1, 2018. The registration includes access to all sessions, exhibit area, materials, internet access, welcome reception and food and beverage offered onsite (coffee breaks and lunches).

The cost breakdown is as follows:

Roundtrip airfare:
Transportation:
Accommodations:
Meals:
Conference Add-ons: (ticketed events)

The total cost associated with attending is:

I will be applying for external grants to help support my attendance, including the TTS Mentee-Mentor award and hope that these will help to subsidize the costs of attendance. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,


5. Congress Followup report

Executive Summary:

On June 30 to July 5, 2018, (organization name) was represented at the 27th International Congress of The Transplantation Society in Madrid, Spain. The purpose of attending was to:

  • Identify solutions to the problems our department faces today or may face in the future
  • Find new ways we can better perform at better cost-efficiency over time
  • Keep our finger on the pulse of the industry so that we know where it is going and how these changes will affect (organization name)
  • Fulfill continuing educational requirements to maintain my certification, and;
  • Establish contacts at other companies, universities, regulatory agencies, vendors and delegates that can help us continue to deliver high performance.

 

Solutions:

A number of items have been identified to be of beneficial impact to our organization which are described as follows:

Existing Process Improvements:
(issues we are currently struggling with)

Leading Edge Concerns:
(new rule changes that are about to be implemented)

Networking Takeaways:
(new contacts, why they are important for the department, who will follow-up and when)

Trade Show Exhibit Takeaways:
(information gathered from the Exhibit area about products and services of interest)

Program Ideas or Recommendations Inspired from the Congress:
(what process or innovation is your organization currently doing that could be showcased at a future TTS event, who will prepare and submit an abstract to cover this topic from your organization)

Action items:
(who will do what and when; dissemination plan for briefing staff on information gathered, timeline for planning for the next TTS Congress)

Conclusions and Recommendations:
(Comment on the overall cost-effectiveness of the TTS 2018 experience. Would you recommend continued attendance from your organization?)


TTS Office Information

27th International Congress of The Transplantation Society
c/o The Transplantation Society
505 Blvd. René-Lévesque West, Suite 1401
Montreal, QC, H2Z 1A8, Canada
T. +1.514.874.1717; F. +1.514.874.1716
Email: info@tts2018.org
Web: www.tts2018.org

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