Wilderness Medical Society SIG Registration Procedures Page 2
Active SIGs
Active SIGs will be required to have a minimum of 5 members in the interest group who each contribute $20
annual membership dues to the WMS. Students who are members of SIGs are not required to join the WMS and
pay the annual dues, but becoming a member of the WMS is highly encouraged.
Active SIGs will receive the following benefits: A free hardcopy subscription to the journal: Wilderness and
Environmental Medicine, the peer-reviewed publication of the WMS; a free subscription to the Wilderness
Medicine newsletter for each member; significant discounts to WMS conferences and Student Round Tables; free
loans of educational lecture series (slide sets or CDs), and WMS store discounts.
In addition to having a minimum of 5 WMS members per year, active SIGs will also be required to update the
WMS on a yearly basis with contact information for the SIG Leader and one alternate SIG member. Due to the
time demands and variable schedules of upperclassmen, it is recommended that at least one of these individuals
be a 1
st
or 2
nd
year student.
Inactive SIGs
SIGs who are unable to meet the 5 WMS member minimum per year or fail to complete the annual renewal
process will become Inactive SIGs. Inactive SIGs will lose all Active SIG benefits. Inactive SIGs will still receive
e-mails regarding WMS events for the year and, if the group decides to meet the requirements for active status, it
will be easy to transition to the active tier.
Pending SIGs
The Pending SIG tier will represent all of the groups that are in the process of either applying or becoming Active
SIGs.
Dues
Membership in the WMS is $55 for an individual membership, or $20 per member as part of a SIG. Dues
payments must be received before a member will be eligible for member benefits and dues payments for at least
five members of a SIG must be received in order to attain "Active" status. Note, that any SIG student who
continues their membership into their residency can continue to pay the $20 rate as a resident if there is no
interruption or lapse in paying of dues.
Registration Procedures
In order to register your SIG as Active, the following SIG registration forms must be filled out and returned to the
Wilderness Medical Society:
SIG Information Form: This form requires contact information of the student who will be the SIG Leader, an
alternate student point of contact, the SIG's faculty advisor, and the institution's Dean of Student Affairs.
Student Membership Form(s): Additionally, each dues paying student member must fill out a WMS Student
Membership Form and return it to the Wilderness Medical Society along with a check for their dues payment.
Alternately, the SIG may submit a single membership roster that includes all members' information.
Letter of Approval: Finally, you must submit a letter of approval from your institution that states that your SIG is
officially recognized. This letter may be from your office of Student Affairs, or other department that oversees
student organizations and activities.
Forms are available for download from the WMS SIG website. Active SIG status is not attained until membership
forms and dues payments are received by the WMS office.
v. 6-Apr-04
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