FAsMA is the highest membership level of the Aerospace Medical Association, awarded by peer nomination and a 130-point contribution evaluation, not by examination. To pursue it: remain an active AsMA member, map your work to the four point categories, and identify an active Fellow willing to nominate you. For Associate Fellowship, you need at least five years of full AsMA membership and a CV submitted when winter invitations open. Contact AsMA directly at fellows@asma.org or associatefellows@gmail.com for current procedures.
What FAsMA actually is
FAsMA stands for Fellow of the Aerospace Medical Association, the highest level of membership in AsMA. It is a peer-elected honor for sustained contribution, not a certification, license, or examination.
The Aerospace Medical Association describes Fellowship as its highest level of membership, awarded to active members who have made outstanding contributions to aerospace medicine, aeronautics, astronautics, undersea medicine, or environmental health. Contributions can come through research, the practical application of research, or teaching and example.
This has direct consequences for how you prepare. There is no published syllabus, no question bank, no exam date, and no passing score, because there is no examination. AsMA's benefits page lists election as a Fellow or Associate Fellow among the forms of peer recognition available to members, alongside annual awards.
The selection process also looks beyond a checklist. AsMA states that activity points form a baseline, with additional judgment about a candidate's fidelity to the association's values and mission, and that Fellows are expected to serve as ambassadors for those values. Members from all aeromedical specialties, including physicians, nurses, and physiologists, are eligible; the honor is deliberately open across the field rather than limited to one profession.
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/; Membership Benefits - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/benefits/
Fellow and Associate Fellow at a glance
Associate Fellowship recognizes positive contribution to AsMA and requires five years of full membership. Fellowship is the higher honor, reached through nomination by an active Fellow and a point-based evaluation with a 130-point target.
The two designations sit on the same ladder but work differently. Associate Fellowship is application-based and reviewed by the Associate Fellows Group with approval by AsMA's Executive Committee. Fellowship is nomination-based, evaluated by a points calculation sheet, and aligned with AsMA's values and mission.
The table below summarizes the verified differences. Where AsMA publishes details only in linked documents, such as the exact point values, treat those documents as the controlling source.
| Requirement or step | Associate Fellow | Fellow (FAsMA) |
|---|---|---|
| Membership standing | Full AsMA member for at least 5 years | Active member with outstanding contributions to the field |
| How candidacy starts | Winter invitation to qualified members; CV accepted year-round | Nomination by an active Fellow only |
| Review path | Reviewed by the Associate Fellows Group, approved by the Executive Committee | Evaluated against the Fellows point calculation sheet |
| Benchmark | Positive contribution to the association | 130 total points or more, plus alignment with AsMA values |
| Recognition moment | Inducted at the AFG Breakfast during the annual Scientific Meeting | Listed among elected Fellows on the AsMA site |
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
How the Fellow point system works
Fellow candidates are scored against a point calculation sheet with a goal of 130 total points or more, drawn from four categories: activities in aerospace, communication, education and experience in aerospace medicine, and extreme environments and related activities.
AsMA publishes the four main categories on its Fellows page and refers candidates to the AsMA Fellows Evaluation Committee Points Calculations Sheet for the details of each area. That sheet, hosted as a PDF on the AsMA site, is the authoritative source for what specific activities are worth.
Reading the categories tells you where a strong record comes from: hands-on aerospace work, published or presented communication, formal education and professional experience in aerospace medicine, and involvement in extreme-environment fields related to the discipline. AsMA frames the assessment so that excellence in one area, integrated with working knowledge of the others, counts more than shallow coverage of everything.
Because the retrieved sources do not include the sheet's internal point values, plan around the categories rather than guessed weights. Download the current sheet from the Fellows page and score your own record against it before assuming you are near the 130-point target.
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
Who can nominate a Fellow, and how
Nominations for Fellowship may be made only by Fellows who are active members. Your own application cannot start the process; a sponsoring active Fellow must.
This rule shapes your practical first step: identify active Fellows in your network who know your work. A nominator who has seen your contributions firsthand can present them credibly to the evaluation process.
Eligibility rests on being an active member whose contributions stand out. AsMA emphasizes intangibles alongside the point total: the ability to integrate knowledge across aerospace disciplines and to exemplify the association's values through professional performance and personal integrity.
For questions about Fellowship, AsMA directs inquiries to the Fellows Committee chair at fellows@asma.org. Use that channel for current procedures rather than relying on secondary summaries, including this one.
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
The Associate Fellow route
Associate Fellowship requires at least five years as a full AsMA member. Each winter, qualified members receive an invitation to apply; CVs can be submitted year-round to associatefellows@gmail.com, and successful candidates are inducted at the AFG Breakfast during the annual Scientific Meeting.
If you are earlier in your AsMA membership, this is the realistic entry point to the Fellow track. The Associate Fellows Group reviews applications and submits them to the Executive Committee for approval, so the review is internal to the association rather than a test.
Two timing details matter. First, applications arrive by invitation each winter, so a CV sent outside that window still registers interest but may not trigger an immediate review. Second, induction happens at the Associate Fellows Group Breakfast during the annual Scientific Meeting, which anchors the recognition to the association's main yearly event.
AsMA also points prospective Associate Fellows to the group's own website and social channels for maintaining active participation. Staying visible in the group's activities is consistent with how the honor is described: recognition of members who have contributed positively to the association over time.
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
The AsMA Fellows Scholarship
The AsMA Fellows Scholarship awards $2,000 for first place and $1,000 for second place annually to a member student in an aerospace medicine or allied training program. The application deadline is January 31.
Eligible applicants are AsMA members who are students in an aerospace medicine residency, a master's or doctoral program in aerospace medicine, a medical certificate or aerospace diploma course, or a full-time training program in allied fields such as nursing, physiology, human factors, psychology, ergonomics, or engineering.
Selection criteria are specific: deliver a slide or poster presentation as first author at the AsMA Annual Scientific Meeting, then publish a first-author manuscript in the journal Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance on the same topic or material. The committee judges scientific value, originality, quality, and relevance, and gives special consideration to applicants at an early career stage.
The money underwrites valid costs of attending scholarly meetings related to aerospace medicine, such as registration fees, transportation, hotel accommodations, or a meal per diem. The application form is published on the Fellows page, and the deadline of January 31 applies to each award year, so confirm the current form and date on the AsMA site before submitting.
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
Building a candidacy while you wait
Since selection measures documented contribution rather than test performance, the useful preparation is career building: stay an active member, work across the four point categories, present and publish, and cultivate relationships with active Fellows.
The following steps are advice, not official requirements. They map directly onto what AsMA's own materials say the evaluation measures, so they are the highest-yield use of your time.
The annual Scientific Meeting is a natural venue: it brings together clinicians, scientists, and operators from the services, NASA, FAA, and industry, and it is where scholarship applicants must present and where Associate Fellows are inducted. Contributing a poster or slide presentation there builds both the communication category and visible relationships.
- Maintain active AsMA membership continuously, since both honors require current membership and Associate Fellowship requires five full years
- Keep a running CV organized under the four point categories so a future nominator can verify your record quickly
- Present first-author work at the Annual Scientific Meeting when possible; it strengthens both Fellowship candidacy and scholarship eligibility
- Identify active Fellows early and let them see your work, because only they can nominate you for Fellowship
- Submit your CV to associatefellows@gmail.com if you are tracking the Associate Fellow path, and watch for the winter invitation
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/; Membership Benefits - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/benefits/
Your next steps and official documents
Everything verified here comes from AsMA's own Fellows page and membership benefits page. For point values, current forms, and procedure changes, use the official documents and contacts directly.
Three documents cover most candidate needs: the Fellows and Associate Fellows page for selection criteria and contacts, the AsMA Fellows Evaluation Committee Points Calculations Sheet for the detailed scoring, and the annual scholarship application form for award requirements. All are linked from asma.org.
Because procedures can change between award cycles, confirm timing and requirements with AsMA before acting: the Fellows Committee at fellows@asma.org for Fellowship, and associatefellows@gmail.com for Associate Fellowship and the AFG.
- Confirm your AsMA membership status and tenure in years
- Download the current point calculation sheet and score your record honestly against the 130-point target
- Approach an active Fellow about nomination if you are within range
- Send your CV to associatefellows@gmail.com if you meet the five-year mark, and note the winter invitation cycle
- Mark January 31 if you intend to apply for the Fellows Scholarship
Official sources: Fellows & Associate Fellows - Aerospace Medical Association — asma.org/membership/fellows/
Official sources
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