Abstract Mentor Programme
The Abstract Mentor Programme (AMP) was introduced at the 15th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2004), with the objective to help young or less experienced researchers improve their abstracts before submitting them, in order to increase the chance of their work being presented at conferences.
The programme especially targets researchers from resource-limited settings, who lack access to opportunities for rigorous mentoring in research and writing and for whom online distance education is proven to cost-effectively build research capacity. Over the years, the AMP has proven to increase the motivation of early career researchers, as well as the number of abstract submissions received from resource-limited countries.
The programme is completely independent of the abstract review and selection process.
The Abstract Mentor Programme is now closed, and we would like to thank Mentors and Mentees who have participated in this year’s programme.
Become a mentor for AIDS 2018
The continued success of the AMP rests on the invaluable contributions of our dedicated team of volunteer mentors, who generously share their expertise and experience in abstract writing. These experienced researchers answer questions on practical issues, such as formal requirements of abstract writing, the quality of the data collected, and the methods applied.
Mentors must have had at least two abstracts accepted at international scientific conferences and have co-authored at least one manuscript accepted by a peer-reviewed scientific journal. If you meet these criteria, and are willing to volunteer some time (average commitment time is 4 hours) to support junior investigators and less-experienced researchers, we would love to hear from you! Sign up for AIDS 2018 will be available online in October 2017.
Results and testimonies
Over the years, the AMP has proven to increase the motivation of early career researchers, as well as the number of abstract submissions from resource-limited countries. The IAS 2015 AMP received 151 draft abstracts. From the 151 draft abstracts that received online mentoring, all were submitted for IAS 2015 and 34 were accepted into the conference programme (23%).
" The Abstract Mentor Programme was an excellent opportunity to ask specific questions with excellent answers given by my mentor. He/she was obviously very used to word constraints and was able to provide excellent advice about how to minimise the word count and still convey the message."
Akash Devendra
General Practitioner, Scotland
" I am always amazed by the quality and the hard work that comes through the Mentor program. Despite various extraneous challenges, these young and aspiring researchers are focused on learning and pushing their knowledge boundaries; this has been a very humbling and valuable learning experience for me. I am always excited to provide any assistance I can to help them fulfill their aspiration of presenting their work at the conferences. I wish I could meet them in person one day! "
Dr. Tassos Kyriakides
Associate Research Scientist in Public Health, Yale Center for Analytical Sciences, USA
"The program gives a good opportunity for junior scientists, especially those from non-English speaking backgrounds, an opportunity to work with experienced scientists to enhance their scientific presentation capabilities. For the mentor it's always fulfilling to work with a junior scientist and to see them develop their ideas into a well-constructed presentation".
Prof. Adeeba Kamarulzaman
Director, Centre of Excellence for Research in AIDS, University of Malaya, Malaysia
"As an abstract mentor since 2010, I've enjoyed seeing a wide range of research from diverse settings. It's a privilege to play a small part in helping the results of these important studies reach a wider audience at IAS conferences and very rewarding to see the final presentations of those accepted."
Dr. Clare van Halsema
Specialist Registrar Infectious Diseases, Regional Infectious Diseases Unit, North Manchester General Hospital, UK