Fellows Criteria

Constitution Article III, Section 6: "Those eligible for election to Fellow shall have made outstanding contributions to the atmospheric or related oceanic or hydrologic sciences or their applications during a substantial period of years."

Both the nominee for Fellow and the nominator must be an active AMS member.

New Fellows are elected annually by the Council from a slate submitted by the Fellows Committee of not more than two-tenths of 1 percent of all AMS Members.

You are allowed to update a nomination package for consideration in years 2 and 3 by either revising the nomination letter or submitting a separate letter with new information. One or more support letters could also be replaced. If the nomination is unsuccessful after the 3-year period, a new nomination package could be submitted.

List of Fellows

Fellows Nomination Procedure

Fellow nomination packages are restricted to electronic submissions.  The nominator, an active AMS member, is responsible for uploading the entire nomination package.  The contents required for nomination packages are:  a nomination letter (limited to one page), completion of the additional nominee information section (not to exceed three pages), and inclusion of three one-page letters of support. Of the three support letters, one letter is required from an individual outside the nominee’s home institution.  The support letters should supplement the information contained in the nominator’s letter and the additional nominee information section. (DO NOT LIST PUBLICATIONS OR INCLUDE CV OR RESUME) 

The additional nominee information:

• Nominee's Educational Background
• Year of entry into a professional position in the atmospheric or related oceanic or hydrologic sciences
• Present Position or Occupation (with address)
• Recent Professional Positions
• Honors and Awards
• Area of Expertise
• Nominee's Current Affiliation Sector
• Number of years spent in Private Sector
• Number of years spent in Academic Sector
• Number of years spent in Government Sector
• Publication Measures (e.g., number of refereed publications, books, citations, other media content)
• List of additional significant contributions, committee memberships and offices held in AMS and other scientific organizations. (DO NOT LIST PUBLICATIONS OR INCLUDE CV OR RESUME)  

We note that Fellows Committee members may not know your nominee and do not have access to their CV or resume, so it is important to summarize all important information about the nominee in the questionnaire, especially in the “additional significant contributions” section.

Evaluation Criteria for Fellow Nominations

Selection of Fellows each year is a highly competitive process.  The AMS Fellows Committee, composed of AMS Fellows, considers the following three, equally weighted criteria to evaluate and rank nominations and forwards recommended Fellows to AMS Council for final approval.  Committee members are not involved in the nomination process.

1. Contributions to science and services including but not limited to:
   • New discoveries (insights, instruments, techniques), as indicated by papers or patents. Particularly for government and private sector, it might be necessary to note that some documentation is proprietary or classified.
   • Development and/or deployment of important technology; transferring technology to operations
   • Development of new forecast services and methods
   • Innovative methods to meet user needs (e.g., decision support tools, insight/impact tools, etc.)
2. Contributions to the weather, water, and climate community (beyond standard job duties) including but not limited to:
   • Efforts including collaboration across sectors to improve the weather, water and climate enterprise.
   • Service to the AMS including committee/board chair, program chair, and editor role. This includes supporting the conducts of Certified Consulting Meteorologist and/or Certified Broadcast Meteorologist exams
   • Contributions to the next generation scientists.  For the academic sector, could be writing a textbook, revolutionizing teaching methods, running online courses or AMS short courses, or working with other sectors to make sure that formal education is relevant. For the public and private sector this might be partnering with academia to make education relevant and increasing educational opportunities for staff.   Note mentoring is considered below.
   • Outstanding citizenry: Public outreach; contributions to science and public policy
3. Contributions and professional excellence in broadening participation, access and acceptance across the weather, water and climate enterprise
   Demonstrates sustained, meaningful contributions to strengthening the meteorological, hydrological, and climate sciences enterprise by expanding access, participation, mentorship, and professional development across diverse institutional, geographic, and societal contexts. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
   • Conducting research, education, service, or operational work in ways that expand access to scientific knowledge, tools, or career pathways for communities or populations historically underrepresented or underserved within the enterprise.
   • Providing mentorship or sponsorship that demonstrably supports the development, retention, and advancement of students, early-career professionals, or staff beyond baseline expectations of supervisory or advising responsibilities.
   • Leading or contributing to programs, policies, or practices that reduce structural barriers to participation, strengthen welcoming professional cultures, or improve the effectiveness and reach of the meteorological enterprise.
   • Assessing the impact of these efforts and initiating innovative approaches to improve outcomes over time.

Helpful Hints for Fellow Nominations

Thank you for taking the time to recognize a colleague through a Fellow nomination. Please note that new fellow nominations will not be processed if they do not follow the length requirements, that is:

• Letters (nomination letter, three supporting letters in PDF) cannot exceed 600-word limit for each letter, on no more than 1 page, with 12-point font.

Some suggestions on how to achieve this. 

• Coordinate with those writing the support letters to make sure they include important non-redundant information. Some nominations have each supporting letter cover a separate area.
• Use plain paper rather than letterhead to save valuable room.

One support letter is required from an individual outside the nominee’s home institution.  Additional letters from an organization other than the nominees tend to be a benefit.

Focus on impacts, not just accomplishments.

Ensure you fill out the complete form to enhance success.

For questions and concerns, please contact Beth Farley, Director of Membership: [email protected]