Sunil Ramaswamy

Critical Care Fellowship at University of Rochester Medical Center

After graduation from college with a B.A. in anthropology and history, Sunil spent his first year out of college playing bass in a rock band. Unsure about his next steps, he shadowed his father, an MD, on his rounds and fell in love with the patient interactions.

It was after this experience that his life then pivoted toward a career in medicine. Sunil learned about MUA from a family friend who had excelled there; liking what he heard he began the application process and was accepted. “I found MUA challenging, with an excellent faculty that was there to help. I also made a great group of friends who became like family.” Enjoying his clinical rotations, Sunil found himself torn between internal medicine and surgery, ultimately choosing the former and matching into his first choice, an Internal Medicine residency at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center: Mercy Hospital. He is understandably proud that while he was the first MUA student to match there, there are several MUA students behind him that have recently matched into University of Pittsburgh Medical Center: Mercy Hospital. He tried to set a good example for the rigor and work ethic that that MUA instills in their graduates.

After his residency, he spent a year of working as a hospitalist at Cooper University Hospital and Inspira Vineland Medical Center in New Jersey, which was unfortunately hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. “I was happy to be able to help during the COVID-19 crisis. I helped run the ICU step down and overflow units there. These patients in the ICU step down/overflow are still critically ill, yet not sick enough to be in the ICU. Some of these patients were critically ill with Covid-19. This is a very strange disease and it’s difficult to treat, but I’m grateful for the chance to take care of very sick patients” Sunil will begin his Critical Care Fellowship at University of Rochester Medical Center shortly and will take all his prior experience and learning with him. Ties to MUA remain, as Sunil’s cousin is currently studying at MUA, and getting ready to begin his clinical rotations. For other students looking at MUA, Sunil shares this guidance “MUA gives you a chance to do it and become a physician. If you go there, you’ll have the tools you need to succeed, but you need to make the most of the opportunity. If you work hard, you’ll have a chance to get a residency.”