Academy FAQs

There are 4 types of support that you can apply for:

1. Regular Academy funding: Financial support of up to €7,500 for an educational activity, e.g. a workshop, an educational training course or a congresses (part of a day, one full day, multiple days). The ISBT logo is included for approved applications. Example types for educational events are
   • Workshops
   • Trainings
   • Local symposia
   • Congresses
   • All events can be either face-to-face, hybrid or virtual
2. Highlight Sessions: Organizing a session or an entire day within your local congress with ISBT speakers and talks from recent ISBT congresses. Speaker travel expenses can be reimbursed up to a maximum of €10,000.
3. Use of the ISBT logo only: Organisations can apply to the ISBT Academy for use of the ISBT logo only, in cases where no financial support is required. The use of the logo is intended for educational activities (i.e. not for purposes like surveys, position statements, guidelines, commercial content, advertising etc).
4. Endorsement of an existing educational course: We also endorse existing (long-term) courses that meet ISBT standards and criteria. If accepted, these courses are displayed on the ISBT Academy webpages.

The nature of these two events and the organization steps are different: regular Academy funding can be used for financing local transfusion-related events, such as workshops, educational training courses and congresses/symposia, lasting between half a day and multiple days. The programme is composed by the local host organization and comprises local (and international) speakers/trainers. Funding of up to 7,500 EUR can be used for travel expenses of speakers and participants, or for example for logistic expenses related to the event venue and catering.

The aim of ISBT Highlight Days, on the other hand, is to take high quality ISBT congress presentations to regions in the world with limited opportunities for travel to ISBT congresses. These sessions are co-organised by ISBT and the hosting (local) organisation. A selection of 2-3 topics from the congress programmes of the last 3 years (available on the Academy webpages) are selected by the host organisation. ISBT Highlight speakers will be approached by ISBT initially, and confirmed speakers will be invited formally by the host organisation. Funding up to 10,000 EUR can be used to cover the speakers’ flight and accommodation. A maximum of three Highlight Days can be held each year, and they are selected to take place in different WHO regions.

Yes, organizations from high-income countries can apply for the use of the ISBT logo and for endorsement of a course. They also can apply for regular Academy funding (max 7,500 EUR) but only if it is used to sponsor the attendance of delegates from low- and lower-middle income countries (costs for travel and accommodation). Delegates from upper-middle income countries, where the prevailing transfusion knowledge and practices do not yet align with typical upper-middle-income country standards, may also be eligible for such sponsorship. These cases will be assessed individually.

Applications for Highlight Days from organizations from high-income countries can be considered but without funding.

From 2025 onwards, we work with 3 (instead of 2) deadlines per year. In 2025 these are: April 1, July 1, Nov 1. From 2026 onwards the deadlines will be March 1, July 1, Nov 1.

There are 3 application deadlines. The event should take place 4-8 months after the application deadline (see table below). This is because the applications are being reviewed once the deadline has passed. For example, if an application is received in January, the review will start after March 1, and the event should take place after July 1.

To maintain the integrity and educational value of our scientific sessions, ISBT places strong emphasis on ensuring a clear distinction between commercial and educational content. As such, we encourage the selection of speakers who are not affiliated with commercial entities.

However, in cases where it is necessary to invite a speaker from industry, this may be acceptable provided that:

• The speaker’s commercial affiliation is clearly disclosed;
• The content of the presentation is free from promotional bias and does not present a conflict of interest with the company’s products or services; and
• It is explicitly communicated to participants that the pharmaceutical or commercial company is not sponsoring the ISBT session.

The applications need to include the following documents (depending on the type of application):

For the reviewing committee it is relevant to understand the background and qualification of speakers, as we believe that the quality of an event depends heavily on the quality of instruction/talks delivered. It is sufficient to list the most recent work positions, relevant work experience, and areas of expertise of the speakers. Please put all CVs in one document and include a summary list of all speakers at the top of the document (see template). It is important to include only those speakers (in this document and also in the program) that are confirmed or at least are invited and have tentatively accepted.

If you’d like us to add your event to our website calendar, please provide a jpeg file of the (horizontal) banner in good quality (minimum 350x200 pixels) and a brief description of 1-2 sentences about your event. It is also important to provide a URL link to your event website (that can also be a link to an online pdf file within your organization’s website for example). Please let us know in the application form whether your event is open to registration from the general public.

Please provide a detailed list of the expenses you intend to cover with ISBT Academy funding. A full event budget is not required, but kindly include the estimated total cost of the event, as requested in the budget template. For consistency and easier processing, please use this provided template.

No, that is not possible. However, in order to allow execution of organizational steps for which upfront payments are needed, we can provide 50% of the funding upfront, prior to your event, and the remaining 50% after the event, upon receipt of the required reports and final receipts. Alternatively, the full amount of funding can be paid once the event has concluded and all reporting has been submitted.

No, this is not possible. The following expenses are NOT eligible for ISBT Academy funding:

• Honoraria or gifts for the speakers 
• Event management 
• Marketing and promotion 
• Purchase of equipment and computers  
• Dinners and hospitality events outside of congress/event hours (note: catering such as coffee breaks and lunch during the meeting hours are eligible for funding)
• Photography 
• Flowers

Please find more information about eligible costs here.

Yes, the use of the ISBT logo is included in the regular Academy funding.

No, the use of ISBT logo is only intended for educational activities (i.e. not for purposes like surveys, position statements, guidelines, commercial content, advertising etc). Exceptions are surveys produced by official ISBT Working Parties.

Yes, each event requires an application, but organisations that have had two successful logo applications in the previous years for events that are held regularly will be shortlisted as recurring logo applications and can be reviewed with a shorter procedure.

Yes, organisations from any country can apply for the use of the ISBT logo, as many times per year as required. Please note: this does not apply to applications for financial support. Those can only be submitted once per year (per organization).