Fellowship

The purpose of the BSA Fellowship Scheme is to acknowledge current BSA members’ positive contributions to the discipline of Audiology and the broad aims of the BSA. It is intended to appeal to all members of the BSA regardless of career stage or discipline/profession.

The Fellowship is awarded to candidates who show commitment to supporting, shaping and influencing their discipline and is linked to sustained BSA membership.

We will be accepting 20 Fellowship applications per quarter. Once this number is met the online application portal will close until the next application intake.

There are four levels of Fellowship each with specific criteria that need to be met through written application. The Fellowship is hierarchical so that progression from one level to the next is conditional on an applicant demonstrating increased significance or impact (see criteria below).

• Associate Fellow of the BSA – AssocFBSA
• Fellow of the BSA – FBSA
• Senior Fellow of the BSA – SFBSA
• Principal Fellow of the BSA – PFBSA

See application resources section for Fellowship criteria

1. Visit https://fitwise.eventsair.com/bsa-awards-website/submit to open your application account.
2. Choose the Fellowship level based on your experience and the criteria provided. The online form will also ask for your name, educational & employment history and BSA membership number.
3. Upload a personal statement (max 1000 words) to provide evidence of your contributions to your field- signed by a suitable referee.
4. Upload your CV- this should be clearly cross-referenced to the personal statement, showing how evidence in the CV supports the achievement of the criteria. All evidence should be relevant to the specific fellowship level, and should be recent, ideally within the last 5 years. A CV template is also available here to display relevant evidence more clearly.
5. Complete payment of application fee (£25)

1. Application process and Fellowship Criteria
2. CV Template
3. Personal Statement Template

Applications will be reviewed by expert reviewers who form part of the BSA council. Each application will be reviewed separately by two reviewers. Once all applications have been reviewed the results will be presented at a BSA council meeting for approval and results will be announced to applicants shortly after.

Only the first 20 fully completed applications will be reviewed each quarter. Please regularly check this web page for application deadlines.

Following successful application, individuals will be able to use the following post-nominals and the appropriate Fellowship certificate as marker of esteem: Associate Fellow- AFBSA, Fellow- FBSA, Senior Fellow- SFBSA, Principal Fellow- PFBSA.

The BSA Fellowship is a unique opportunity for professionals from a wide range of disciplines and career stages to be recognised for their contributions to their specific field. Many people may have ‘BSA member’ or membership to another organisation on their CV but membership alone does not require active involvement. A Fellowship requires review of sufficient evidence and is a way of celebrating a BSA member’s work in shaping and positively influencing their field.

Here are some comments from the first cohort of BSA fellows:

“I felt the scheme allowed members to demonstrate their commitment to audiology and equally allowed BSA to celebrate that contribution”

“I think it is essential that women are represented and recognised at the highest level in UK audiology. The majority of the audiology workforce are women, and although is encouraging to see an increasing number and visibility of women leaders in research, clinical and professional practice, there is still a gender imbalance in senior positions and representations on committees and panels compared to the scale of the workforce.”

“I can think of few professions or organisations that can provide such depth, and be extremely rewarding. BSA members are rightly very proud, and I think it’s great that BSA has introduced the Fellowship scheme to acknowledge this commitment. As a profession we should do everything we can to make ourselves heard (pun intended). We do a great job and our service users, staff and students do appreciate what we do immensely.”

“I applied for a fellowship as a way to demonstrate, and have recognized, my commitment to personal development, advancing new ways of working, and ensuring that everything we do is continually working towards maximizing the impact of our services for the benefit of the families who use them.”

To cover the cost of administration a non-refundable charge of £25 per application will be payable by the applicant.