Each year, the AUA Annual Meeting is the premier event for young urologists (YUs) to learn about groundbreaking research and participate in networking events, and the 2024 Annual Meeting in San Antonio will be no different. At AUA2024, the YU Committee is again coordinating the popular YU Forum, held on Saturday, May 4, at 8:30 AM. We will be providing breakfast for the YU Forum attendees. This year’s theme is “Cultivating Passion for Urology: Ensuring Job Satisfaction for the Future.” We will be delving into topics such as job changes early in the career, upcoming workforce changes and setting yourself up for success, and what it means to have long-term passion in your career. Three extremely dynamic speakers have been invited to share their thoughts and experiences: Dr Jennifer Miles-Thomas (treasurer-elect, AUA, and CEO of Urology of Virginia), Dr Phillip Pierorazio (chief, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania), and Dr Alexander Kutikov (chief, Department of Urology, Fox Chase Cancer Center). Also, it is at the YU Forum that we honor our AUA2024 YUs of the year; please join us for this special recognition.

A new event that we are showcasing this year immediately following our speakers and as part of the YU Forum is called “Peer-to-Peer Discussions: Defining Your Personal Plan in Urology.” Set up as roundtable small-group conversations, we will explore various topics of interest in a more informal and candid format. These discussions include defining your purpose and mission, interpersonal dynamics like communication and personality styles, career management and advancement, and self-care and physical health. Each table will be led by a moderator who is also a subject matter expert. We are fortunate to have some fantastic YU peers engaged with this effort: Dr Phillip Pierorazio, Dr Alexander Kutikov, Dr Angela Smith (vice chair of Academic Affairs, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Dr Jennifer Miles-Thomas, Dr Kristin Chrouser (S Matthew Berge MD research professor, University of Michigan) and Dr Andrew Gabrielson (board member of the Society of Surgical Ergonomics, postgraduate year-5 at Hopkins Urology). There will also be a chance to discuss getting involved with AUA publications with Jennifer Regala, director of publications and executive editor at the AUA. This is a great opportunity to gain valuable insight from these mentors, and also network and connect with other peers who are contemplating career development and experiencing similar forks in the road. With the small-group arrangement, participation in this portion of the program will require sign-up during registration for the YU Forum. We highly encourage interested YUs to sign up early, as space is limited!

In addition, back by popular demand this year is the Speed Mentoring Session, happening on Sunday, May 5, at 2 PM. This program continues to be well received and is a fundamental part of YU Committee programming at the AUA. Medical students, residents, and fellows are encouraged to sign up as “mentees,” where they will then be paired with YU mentors to have 10-minute speed mentoring conversations on topics chosen by the mentees. These topics could include work-life balance, ideal locations for work, finding a job in a competitive market, side gigs, private vs academic practice, and contract negotiations. This is a great networking opportunity for trainees who want to be mentored on specific topics and interact with a large group of practicing YUs. Be sure to sign up for this exciting event in advance at https://www.auanet.org/AUA2024/attendee-info/residents-and-fellows/speed-mentoring-program

Finally, the AUA is offering numerous other excellent sessions throughout the meeting that may be of interest for YUs. Some of these focus on leadership development, such as the Society of Academic Urologists Meeting (Thursday, May 2) and The Institute for Leadership and Business Track (occurring Thursday, May 2, through Sunday, May 5), while others focus on burnout and the emotional toll of surgical complications. A new program geared exclusively to YUs at the AUA this year is “Flip the Script,” where content experts will live-review presubmitted, interesting scenarios with known outcomes. Be sure to check out these exciting sessions at the meeting. With an amazing lineup of plenary sessions, instructional courses, and special topics, we’re sure this year’s Annual Meeting will be highly educational and enjoyable. If you are posting to social media, please remember to use hashtags #YoungUro and #AUA24, so we can repost your content. We look forward to seeing you in San Antonio!