The NASL is committed to fostering “liver talent” and has therefore launched a new initiative. The NASL offers grants to support students (basic, translational, or clinical researchers) in attending an international congress or symposium abroad. It is important that applicants can demonstrate how hepatology-related expertise will be brought back to the Netherlands. Applicants are required to submit a one-page (A4) motivation and outline of the scientific objectives, formulated in a way that can be evaluated afterwards. If the congress also serves to establish an international research collaboration, concrete objectives for this purpose must be included.
NASL members can apply directly to the NASL for a travel grant, with immediate effect. Details of the conditions involved are set out below.
→ Download Travel grant application form
Conditions
- Travel grants are awarded subject to the following conditions:
- Applicants must have been a member of the NASL for at least one year at the time of application (calculated from the official date of accession during the General Assembly).
- Travel grants are intended exclusively for clinicians and researchers in the field of gastroenterology or hepatology. Medical specialists with a permanent appointment and researchers with a permanent contract are not eligible.
- Applications may only be submitted for participation in major international gastroenterology or hepatology conferences or symposia held outside the Netherlands.
- The maximum amount awarded is €500, for conferences held within Europe or beyond. While additional external funding is permitted, applicants must declare that the NASL grant will indeed be used to cover travel expenses for the specific conference in question.
- Grants will only be awarded if the applicant makes an active scientific contribution to the conference (poster presentation or oral presentation). The abstract concerned must also be submitted to the NASL or the NVGE for presentation during one of their Spring or Autumn meetings.
- No more than one travel grant will be awarded per member during their period of membership. For each abstract, a travel grant will only be awarded to a single author, on a single occasion.
- In the event of cancellation due to illness or force majeure, the NASL reserves the right to reclaim the awarded travel grant. The Board strongly recommends that applicants take out travel cancellation insurance.
- After attending the conference, recipients are required to submit a brief report of their participation and outcomes. This report will be published in the Association’s journal LEVER.
Application Procedure
- A completed travel grant application form, together with a copy of the submitted abstract, must be sent to the NASL Secretariat at least six weeks before the start of the conference.
- If the abstract has been accepted, applicants must send a copy of the letter of acceptance, together with a reference to their application, no later than three weeks before the start of the conference.
- In general, if the above conditions are not met, the travel grant will not be paid.
Additional Provisions for Clinicians and Basic Researchers
Following the establishment of the Dutch Experimental Gastroenterology and Hepatology (DEGH) meeting in Veldhoven, it is no longer possible to submit clinical hepatology abstracts for the Spring meeting. This may prevent applications for certain conferences (e.g. the American Gastroenterological Association, AGA), since the requirement to also submit the material at an NVGEmeeting could not be fulfilled.
The same issue may apply to basic researchers wishing to attend the AASLD or EASL meetings, who cannot submit their abstract prior to the Autumn meeting (as only clinical abstracts may be submitted there).
To address this, applicants may submit a provisional application in advance, consisting of the standard application form and the abstract submitted to the conference, accompanied by a written undertaking that the abstract will also be submitted to the next NVGE meeting. If the other conditions are met, NASL may issue a provisional award decision. Once the abstract has been submitted to the NVGE (from mid-May for the Autumn meeting, or from 1 November for the Spring meeting via www.nvge.nl), the grant can be claimed.
Applicants (or their supervisors) must pay the travel expenses in advance themselves.
Contact
NASL Secretariat
P.O. Box 657
2003 RR Haarlem
The Netherlands
Phone: +31 (0)23 551 3016
Email: gastrostart@nvge.nl
