Fellow of the ERA – FERA Regulations

The FERA is an important recognition given by the ERA Council to ERA current members. This title is given to persons who have been very active in the initiatives and life of the Society, as well as in the clinical and research fields regarding nephrology and its related subjects.

I. FERA benefits

1. FERA certificate
2. FERA pin
3. Recognition by ERA on the Society’s website
4. One (1) extra point compared to other candidates in the evaluation/selection of speakers for the ERA Ambassador programme and/or for the annual Congress and meetings as well as for the nomination in the board of the various ERA bodies

II. Nominations by Council

The Council can grant FERA of its own initiative provided that the candidates comply with all the four requirements mentioned below (Article V) and that they have been an active ERA member for at least five consecutive years at the time of nomination (a specific template has been prepared and must be used for this purpose) any Council member can make the proposal during any Council meeting and the FERA title is automatically granted after a majority vote. The Council will also examine the proposals and applications submitted by ERA members who wish to receive this title.

Exceptions can be made for members with exceptional merits in the development of nephrology in difficult geographical and political contexts.

III. Ex-officio fellows

All Council members, provided that they have been an active ERA member for at least five consecutive years, automatically receive, upon their election, the FERA recognition.

All ERA Congress Presidents also receive the FERA recognition, provided that they have been an active ERA member for at least five consecutive years at the time of nomination.

IV. General requirements for an application for the FERA title, valid for all persons who are not ex-officio fellows and who are not directly nominated by the Council.

1. Candidates for the title of FERA must have excelled in the practice of renal medicine, medical science or medical literature and must meet the specific requirements listed below (Article V)
2. At the time of confirmation, the FERA candidate must be an active ERA member with at least five years seniority (at the time of nomination), and have made a significant contribution in one or more of the ERA areas of interest
3. The FERA application form and the documentation related to the requirements listed below are the only documents that are necessary to submit a candidature

V. Specific requirements

1. Board certification in nephrology or equivalent certification (applicants must fulfil at least one (1) of the five (5) options written below).

Document certification by National Society or other Board of Medical Specialty in:

• Nephrology
or
• Paediatric Nephrology
or
• Pathology with specialisation in renal pathology
or
• Surgery with specialisation in kidney transplantation
or
• Immunology with specialisation in renal diseases.

2. ERA activity (applicants must fulfil at least one (1) of the three (3) options written below).

•Chair or board member of one of the ERA Committees/Bodies: ERA WG, ERBP, SAB, Congress Scientific Committee, Congress Paper Selection Committee (min. 3 terms), CME Committee, ERA Registry, YNP, etc. 
or 
• Editor and Editorial board member of NDT or CKJ 
or 
• Author of 10 abstracts accepted for presentation at the ERA Congress (first or senior author) in the past five years 

3. Publications (applicants must fulfil this requirement).

At least ten articles published in peer/reviewed international journals in the past five years. In at least one of the articles, the applicant should be the first or the senior author.

4. Public service (applicants must fulfil at least one (1) of the three (3) options written below).

Contribution to the development of nephrology at:

• National level (document, in English, signed by the current president of the National Nephrological Society)
or
• European (also countries bordering Europe and the Mediterranean Sea) level (document signed by the ERA President)
or
• International level (document signed by the appropriate person designated for this international activity).

VI. Submission and approval procedure for non-ex-officio fellows who wish to receive this title.

1. The FERA Application Form must be submitted together with the documentation related to the board certification, the ERA activity, the publication and the public service requirements
2. The ERA Secretary General is the officer in charge of FERA. With the help of the ERA HQ, he/she will verify whether all the criteria are met before submitting the final list of applicants to the Council; if some criteria are not met, the ERA Secretary General will be in charge of contacting the applicant to try and solve the matter
3. The ERA Council is in charge of reviewing the applications and eventually granting them. There is no examination involved in becoming a FERA
4. During the first possible annual General Assembly recognition will be given to the granted FERA fellows of the past 12 months. At this time the FERA fellows will be given their diploma and pin (if this is not possible, they will be sent by post)

Last update: January 2024