The ISTAART Experience at AAIC

Become a member of the Alzheimer's Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTAART) and access a world of research and collaboration while at AAIC.

Become a Member

On This Page:

• Member Benefits
• Apply for the ISTAART Ambassador Program
• ISTAART Programming at AAIC

Member Benefits

ISTAART members enjoy the following AAIC benefits:

• No-cost virtual registration or discounted in-person registration fees.
• Complimentary continuing education credits for AAIC.
• Access to ISTAART Professional Interest Area (PIA) Day* at AAIC. Each PIA will host a dynamic session tailored to the needs of their members. Additional networking and engagement opportunities will be provided throughout the day. Indicate your interest in attending via your AAIC registration.
• Early notifications about the ISTAART educational and networking events that take place during the conference, which are designed to help kickstart a career in dementia research.
• The ISTAART Networking Reception, which allows current ISTAART members to connect with fellow attendees, share their AAIC experience and engage with ISTAART and PIA leaders.
• Eligibility for the ISTAART Ambassador Program, an opportunity for trainees to volunteer behind-the-scenes at AAIC and meet leaders in the field.

*PIA events are only open to current or new ISTAART members — members may attend any of the PIA sessions, regardless of PIA membership.

As well as other member benefits, including:

Journal Benefits:

Discounted author fees in the following journals:

• Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association
• Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring
• Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions
• Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research & Behavior and Socioeconomics of Aging

Year-Long Engagement Benefits:

• Educational webinars that showcase the latest updates in the field and provide knowledge on specialist topics.
• Opportunity to join or create a Professional Interest Area (PIA). PIAs are assemblies of members with common subspecialties, including neuroimaging, neuropsychiatric syndromes, vascular cognitive disorders, biofluid-based biomarkers and more.
• Members-only discounts on registration for other scientific meetings.
• Grant and funding announcements.
• Weekly email digests with new opportunities, funding calls and member updates.
• Access to the ISTAART Career Center.
• Learn more.

Apply for the ISTAART Ambassador Program

The ISTAART Ambassador Program (previously known as the ISTAART Student Volunteer Program at AAIC) provides early career researchers with year-round professional development and networking opportunities. Using virtual, regional and professional networks, Ambassadors amplify impact and awareness of ISTAART activities both year-round and at major scientific meetings like AAIC. Through this program, Ambassadors gain exclusive access to the Association's suite of scientific conferences and receive personalized mentoring and career development training to ensure they are equipped with the skills and knowledge to advance in this field. Upon completion of the program, Ambassadors join a dynamic network of volunteer alumni for continued collaborations and mutual support.

Kickstart your career and grow your network as an ISTAART Ambassador! Apply by Feb. 10, 2025.

ISTAART Programming at AAIC

The AAIC program features several offerings that are co-created by ISTAART members and PIAs. These events are open to all attendees, and are a great way to get more involved at AAIC and beyond.

ISTAART Immersives: Half-day or full-day hands on skills workshops in a formal classroom-style setting. These sessions are focused on immersive learning (e.g., providing hands-on experience with coding, statistics packages, image analysis, data mining, bioinformatics, media training, etc.), and each session is crafted around a specific topic or area of interest.

ISTAART Skills Workshops: 1-hour interactive workshops over lunch. These workshops are tailored to early career researchers and focus on hard skills (e.g., thesis writing, figure design, presenting, reference managers, peer-reviewing) or soft skills (e.g., negotiation, communication, leadership, finances, mentoring, support networks).

ISTAART Intermissions: Lunchtime discussion tables in the AAIC poster hall. These meet-ups are intended to focus on insights (e.g. meet the editors, meet the funders) or networking (continent or work-group meet-ups, PIA gatherings, peer networks for minoritized groups).

“I attended a PIA business meeting during my first AAIC and it turned out to be the best decision of the conference. It was wonderful to meet a group of people that focused on related research, with in-depth scientific discussions, and a group of dedicated people that really want to advance the field. Ever since, I’ve been actively involved with ISTAART’s PIAs.”

– Sietske Sikkes, Ph.D.
Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Netherlands