Call for Conference Award Applications

Deadline for Submissions: May 17, 2026 at 11:59 PM PT

AMERSA is committed to promoting health professionals and pre-professional students to attend the AMERSA annual conference through conference attendance awards.

This year we are pleased to offer five conference scholarship awards:

1. AMERSA Conference Award, 
2. Workforce Development Award, 
3. Community Professional Conference Award
4. Multidisciplinary Engagement Award, and
5. Sidney H. Schnoll Early Career Award*

Individuals who are accepted to present an abstract or workshop are prioritized for the Conference Travel Award. The Workforce Development Award includes the opportunity to participate in a year-long dedicated mentorship program. 

Our awards are guided by the following priorities: 

• Increase participation of educators, researchers and clinicians who bring a range of perspectives, life experiences, and cultural influences, including, but not limited to: 
  • Lived experience of substance use disorder
  • First-generation students (parents or guardians did not attend a college equivalent program)
• Support conference participation by pre-professional students and early career professionals, including:
  • Students in health professional programs or equivalent certificate programs, in the fields of pharmacy, medicine, nursing, social work, psychology, and public health
  • Early career health professionals in their first two-years of practice after completing residency or certificate programs (including advanced practice providers)
• Increase attendance among community professionals and within underrepresented disciplines for whom registration costs may have historically prohibited conference participation, including:
  • Peer Recovery Coaches/Certified Peer Specialists, Community Health Workers, Community Support Specialists, Case Managers, Community Health Educators, Substance Use/Addiction Counselors, Social Workers, Pharmacists, Nurses and those in frontline positions in safety net community medical and/or behavioral health settings

*Individuals selected for the Sidney H. Schnoll award must meet the following criteria:

• Focuses on the interface between substance use and pain or substance use in the perinatal period or pregnancy
• From a discipline that is under represented in AMERSA (e.g., counseling, nursing, psychology, social work) or specialty (e.g., anesthesiology, cardiology, obstetrics/gynecology)
• Early career investigator (i.e., up to 5-years post-doctoral degree)
• Has an accepted abstract related to the above focal area

Application Instructions
Please complete the following application form below. During the submission process, applicants will be asked for the following requirements:

• Answers to short narrative questions
• CV/resume
• Letter of recommendation
  
• We also ask about demographics and experience relevant to AMERSA’s priority areas listed above.