Frequently Asked Membership Questions

MEMBERSHIP

Already a member? Visit the AST Membership Resources page for more membership FAQ and resources. 

1. What are my membership options?
2. How do I complete an application for membership?
3. What is required for an AST membership application?
4. How many letters of recommendation must be submitted?
5. When will my application be reviewed?
6. How will I know if I am approved for membership?
7. Why am I experiencing difficulty saving my application and attaching the necessary documents?
8. Is there a membership offered to those that are retired?
9. Where can I find my application if I have left the page?
10. How do I reinstate my membership after it has expired?
11. Who do I contact if I have specific questions about membership?
12. What is members only?
13. How do I access the members only section?

DUES

1. How much are dues?
2. Does AST offer discounts for trainees or fellows transitioning to full faculty?
3. When do I need to pay my membership dues?
4. How can I pay my membership dues?
5. Does AST pro-rate membership dues?

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION (AJT)

1. How much is a subscription to the American Journal of Transplantation (AJT)?
2. When will I start to receive my AJT subscription?
3. How do I access the American Journal of Transplantation (AJT) and Clinical Transplantation Journal (CT) online?

MEMBERSHIP

1. What are my membership options?

Full, Doctoral

This includes all individuals residing in the US, Canada, or Mexico with a doctoral degree who are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Physicians and surgeons in this category must have primary board certifications by one of the American Boards or their foreign equivalents.
• All applicants must be actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.
• Full, Doctoral members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

International

This includes all individuals residing outside of the US, Canada, or Mexico who are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Physicians and surgeons in this category must have primary board certifications by one of the American Boards or their foreign equivalents.
• All applicants must be actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.
• International members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

Full, Non-Medical Doctoral

This includes all individuals with a non-medical doctoral degree who are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Members eligible for this category include holders of PhD, PharmD, PsyD, DNP, and other doctoral-level degrees without an accompanying medical degree (MD, DO, MBBS, etc.).
• All applicants must be actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.
• Full, Non-Medical Doctoral members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

Full, Non-Doctoral

This includes all individuals worldwide without a doctoral degree who are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Full, Non-Doctoral members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

Trainee

This includes all individuals worldwide enrolled in a pre-doctoral or post-doctoral training program that is relevant to the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• No individual may remain in this membership category for more than 8 years without further documentation.
• Trainee members may vote and serve on AST committees.
• Trainee members may not hold office on the AST Board.

Full Doctoral/International Year 1

This includes all individuals worldwide who have completed their transplant training program within the past year and are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Year 1 members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

Full Doctoral/International Year 2

This includes all individuals worldwide who have completed their transplant training program within the past two years and are actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation.

• Year 2 members are able to hold office on the AST Board, serve on AST committees, and vote on all matters brought before the general membership.

Additional information about membership requirements can be found in the Membership section of the AST bylaws.

2. How do I complete an application for membership?

• If you already have an online AST profile, please login and select "Join Now" at the bottom of your profile.
• If you are a first time visitor, please click the green "Join" button and select "Don't have an account?" to create your account.
  • All fields marked with a * are required
• On your profile page, select the "Join Now" button at the bottom of your profile to start the application.
  • Read through this information carefully and complete all information requested.
    • All fields marked with a * are required
• Click “Continue"
• Upload the required documents. Accepted file types are .doc/.docx or .pdf only
  • All applicants must upload a current CV/Resume
  • *If you are a Trainee, you will then need to upload your Letter of Recommendation (LOR) and input your Program Director’s name and email address.
• Once all information is submitted, click "Continue”
• On the Checkout page, review the membership type to ensure it is correct. Hit the back button on your browser to make changes to your application.
• Enter payment and click "Submit" to complete your application.

3. What is required for an AST membership application?

All applicants must create an account on the AST website, complete the online membership application form, and upload a current curriculum vitae/resume. All applicants must be actively engaged in the science and clinical practice of organ and tissue transplantation. Applicants applying for trainee membership must submit a letter from their program director on an institutional letterhead containing the program director's signature. This letter is to confirm their status as a trainee; it must describe the nature of the training program and include the date (month and year) of trainee completion. All applications must be submitted and paid for prior to being reviewed.

4. How many letters of recommendation must be submitted?

Full Doctoral, Full Non-Medical Doctoral, International, and Non-Doctoral applicants are NOT required to submit a letter of recommendation.

Trainee applicants need one letter from their program director with the following requirements:

• Must be printed on official hospital/institution letterhead
• Must confirm the applicants status as a trainee
• Must briefly describe the nature of the training program
• Must state the estimated date of the training program’s completion (month and year)
• Must contain the program director’s written (not electronic) signature

Please upload this letter directly with your online application to reduce processing times. Alternatively, you may also email or mail the letter directly to the AST National Office.

5. When will my application be reviewed?

Review takes place within 7-10 busiess days. Only applications that have been submitted and paid for will be reviewed.  If for some reason your application is rejected, you will receive a refund in full. Applicants can contact AST staff anytime to check on the status of their application at info@myAST.org.

6. How will I know if I am approved for membership?

Once your application has been approved, you will receive an email from the AST National Office advising you of your membership.

7. Why am I experiencing difficulty saving my application and attaching the necessary documents?

The AST website does not work well with Internet Explorer. We recommend using either Firefox or Google Chrome in order to avoid any problems with attempting to submit your application.

8. Is there a membership offered to those that are retired?

AST members who have retired from practice in the field and have reached the age of 65 may request to be advanced to Emeritus status by sending a letter to the AST Secretary. Emeritus members cannot vote or hold office on the board, and they are exempt from paying dues. Emeritus members may subscribe to the AJT at the reduced AST member rate.

9. Where can I find my application if I have left the page?

You must be logged in to the AST website to return to your application. Once logged in:

• Click "Join Now" at the bottom of your profile page. All previous responses have been saved.

10. How do I reinstate my membership after it has expired?

Individuals who have let their membership lapse and wish to rejoin must complete an online application form to:

1. Verify and confirm contact and demographic information
2. Pay dues for the year in which they are rejoining

To start a rejoin application, please contact the AST staff at info@myAST.org.

11. Who do I contact if I have a specific question about my membership?

Please contact the AST staff at info@myAST.org or (856) 439-9986 with any questions you may have.

12. What is members only?

Certain pages on the AST website are available exclusively to AST members and require login access. These pages contain information or tools that are part of the AST member benefits.

13. How do I access the members only section?

If you are an AST member, please login when prompted. If you forget your password, simply use the “Forgot password?” link or you can contact the AST staff at info@myAST.org.

DUES

1. How much are dues?

Full Doctoral - $420 (includes full subscription to AJT)
Full Doctoral, Year 1* - $170
Full Doctoral, Year 2* - $270 (includes online subscription to AJT)
International - $300 (includes full subscription to AJT)
International, Year 1* - $120
International, Year 2* - $200 (includes online subscription to AJT)
Full Non-Medical Doctoral - $250
Full Non-Doctoral - $90
Trainee - $90

*Please note, Year 1 and Year 2 are available only to recent graduates of a fellowship or training program as part of our graduated dues program. 

2. Does AST offer discounts for trainees or fellows transitioning to full faculty?

Yes, AST is pleased to offer a 3 year graduated dues program. Click here for more information about the program.

3. When do I need to pay my membership dues?

AST dues are billed on an annual basis and are not pro-rated for renewing members. Dues invoices are sent to all members beginning in September with a final due date of March 31 of the following year. If payment is not received by April 1, your membership will be terminated.

4. How can I pay my membership dues?

You may pay your membership dues with a check or credit card information. Checks must be made payable to the AST, be drawn on a US Bank, and be in US dollars. AST accepts Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Dues payments should be submitted with a copy of your AST invoice. Invoices with credit card information may be faxed to the AST at (856) 581-9604.

Members can also pay their dues online by logging into www.myAST.org, then clicking “Renew.”

5. Does AST pro-rate membership dues?

The AST will pro-rate dues for new members who join in the months of July and August for the current membership year. The rates listed below are for new members only. These discounts do not apply to renewing or reinstating members. 

Full Doctoral** - $270
International** - $210
Full Doctoral, Year 1 - $85
International, Year 1 - $60
Full Doctoral, Year 2* - $165
International, Year 2* - $130
Full Non-Medical Doctoral - $125
Non-Doctoral - $45
Trainee - $45

Please note, there will be an additional charge should you choose to purchase the full print and online AJT subscription ($120) or the online only subscription ($60). Member types marked with ** receive the full print and online AJT subscription with their membership.  Member types marked with * receive the online only subscription with membership.

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION (AJT)

1. How much is a subscription to the American Journal of Transplantation?

The AST’s reduced membership rate is $120 for 12 printed issues and online access for $60. Full Doctoral and International membership dues include a full subscription to the AJT. Other members can subscribe to the AJT at the reduced member rate.  Members wishing to opt out of printed copies of the journal can contact the AST staff at info@myAST.org with their request.

2. When will I start to receive my subscription to the AJT?

Once your membership dues have been paid and processed, you will be able to access the online journal through the AST website and you will start to receive the printed journal in approximately 8-10 weeks. If you are a new member that is accepted to membership September through December, you will not receive journal issues until the following year.

3. How do I access the American Journal of Transplantation (AJT) and Clinical Transplantation Journal (CT) online?

Journals can be accessed directly from a member's AST Personal Snapshot. Once logged into your AST account, select "My Journals" on the lefthand navigation bar, and then choose the journal you wish to access from the following page.  Please contact the AST staff at info@myAST.org if you have any specific questions regarding your AJT subscription.