Travelling Leadership Fellowship for Women in Cardiothoracic Surgery in partnership with AtriCure

This Fellowship has been created by the EACTS Women in Cardiothoracic Surgery (WiCTS) Committee to encourage and promote leadership development opportunities. It will provide the successful candidates with an in-depth understanding of cardiothoracic surgical leadership by visiting with three accomplished female leaders across Europe. The successful Fellows will learn to manage time and resources which are critical to being a successful leader in a rapidly changing environment. The Fellowship will equip the Fellows with a strong foundation and help develop core elements of leadership and access wider networks in different countries. The experience, exposure, training, and expertise will help the Fellows to hone their skills, drive innovation and lead with confidence by widening their perspective.

Other Intiatives

Summary

• Application Dates:

  1st March – 1st May 2025
• Grant:

  €6,000
• Location:

  Rotterdam, Barcelona, Cardiff, Munich or Pisa
• Duration:

  3 weeks
• Start Date:

  From January 2026

Fellowship Overview

The Fellowship will consist of three one-week visits to any three of the international centres outlined below. Each Fellow will shadow all professional activities and other sessions, strategic planning and leadership meetings.

• University Hospital of Pisa, Pisa – Prof Franca Melfi
• Erasmus MC, Rotterdam – Prof Jolanda Kluin
• University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff – Prof Indu Deglurkar
• German Heart Centre, Munich – Dr Julie Cleuziou
• Cardiovascular Institute at Heart Clinic, Barcelona – Prof Marta Sitges

In addition, the candidates will be required to attend the 2-day EACTS Leadership Course that will be held in Windsor, UK, in November 2025 as a part of this Fellowship.

Funding

We offer a bursary of €6,000 to help with the living and travel costs associated with this Fellowship. EACTS will also contribute towards the cost of your attendance at the 2025 EACTS Annual Meeting.

Fellowship Learning Objectives

The key aspects that the candidates will learn from established leaders are:

• Identify their leadership strengths and styles, formulate, and implement effective leadership strategies.
• Building strong and authentic relationships with members of the team which forms the basis of a strong foundation for successful leadership and high team engagement.
• Be accountable and adaptable to internal and external change.
• Push boundaries, motivate, innovate, and create dynamic teams.
• Strengthen decision making skills.
• Manage conflict, give constructive feedback and critically seek feedback from the team.
• Negotiation.
• Critical thinking.
• Effectively lead and share vision in an organization.
• Develop their emotional intelligence to understand human behaviour and an ability to manage different personalities.

Application and Selection

In order to apply for this fellowship there are some essential criteria you must meet:

• Be an EACTS member
• Be a female Consultant Surgeon who demonstrates an in depth understanding of cardiothoracic surgery with independent practice and has demonstrated leadership potential by undertaking various roles
• Be Fluent in English.

Applicants who possess the following desirable criteria would be of particular interest:

• A highly motivated individual who has engaged with EACTS and demonstrates potential that will be useful in her institutional and wider practice.

In order to complete your application, you must submit the following documents*:

• Letter of interest detailing the way in which you meet the above application criteria, along with your career aspirations, as well as how you believe the Fellowship will impact your career.
• Curriculum Vitae
• Letter of support from a current supervisor

*Please ensure that all documents submitted are written in English, and that they are submitted either as word documents or PDF. We do not accept images or handwritten applications.  We are unable to provide advice or guidance about visa applications, so please ensure that you understand the visa requirements before applying for this Fellowship.

Evaluation and Feedback

There will be periodic communication with the Fellowship director to ensure feedback from and toward the trainee. At the end of the Fellowship, the Fellows will produce a full report on their experience based on the Francis Fontan Fund Committee guidelines.