Yeshiva College Graduate and MD/PhD Candidate Prepares Students for Careers in the Sciences The summer after 11th grade, Alex Kushnir already knew he was headed to Yeshiva College (YC) for an immersive education in the sciences. But he didn’t want to wait until then to get his feet wet. The challenge he faced: how does a 17-year-old with no advanced background or contacts in the biological sciences secure a research internship?

“I typed ‘genetics research NYC’ into Google and called whatever lab popped up,” said Kushnir, laughing. “I called Mt. Sinai; I called New York University.” His persistence paid off. Impressed by Kushnir’s passion and enthusiasm, Andrew Marks, director of the Center for Molecular Cardiology at Columbia University, took him on as an unpaid research intern in his cardiovascular research lab. Now, almost nine years later, Kushnir has received his PhD with distinction working for Dr. Marks and has returned to medical school to complete the clinical component of his dual MD/PhD degree. In the intervening decade, Kushnir has received numerous grants, awards, fellowships and publications; been sponsored by Yeshiva University to present his research at conferences in Israel, Scotland and Canada; and served as an adjunct professor in YC’s biology department from the age of 21. But all that is old news to Kushnir, whose goal is ultimately to turn lab expertise in electrophysiology, the study of electrical impulses that stimulate the heartbeat, into advances in medical treatment. “What I like about science is that it gives you the ability to look at something and say, ‘What’s going on here? How does this work?’ ” Kushnir said. For him, the answers to those questions are critical. He chose to pursue a joint medical and doctoral degree to ensure that he would have intimate knowledge of clinically relevant topics. “Science is a way to help humanity, whether you use it to build computers or spaceships or help people who are sick,” Kushnir explained. “Clinical medicine trains you to walk into a hospital, look at a patient and ask, ‘What’s making this person sick and what can be done to make him or her feel better?’ Having a PhD trains you to come up with novel ideas for understanding mechanisms of disease and potential therapies, as well as how to design experiments to test these hypotheses in the lab.” Kushnir’s excitement about the potential of science is contagious, particularly in the advanced biology courses he teaches at YC. “In every class I have taken with him, ranging from cardiac electrophysiology to neuroethics, Dr. Kushnir has brought masterful knowledge of the topic to the class,” said Peter Kahn, a YC senior double-majoring in biology and philosophy. “His engaging classroom style encourages his students to challenge themselves and consider new ideas and perspectives that they otherwise might not have.” As a student, Kahn finds Kushnir’s fusion of a dedicated medical scientist and devoted Orthodox Jew especially meaningful. “He demonstrates that it’s possible to be a successful scientist, physician and Jew without compromise in any of these three realms,” Kahn said. “I found that it was particularly special to be able to daven Ma’ariv [evening prayers] together with Dr. Kushnir at 8 p.m. and begin our cardiac electrophysiology class immediately after at 8:30 p.m. That’s the type of experience that could only happen at YU.”

For Kushnir, that integration of spiritual and academic pursuits played an important role in his decision to teach at YC. “It’s the only place where you can experience the best Torah education and scientific training under one roof,” he said. “I see YC as the perfect place for guys like me, who want to be Torah Jews and contribute to society. I walk into a classroom today and these guys look at me—they have all the questions I had five years ago. And they know they can come to me with those questions.” Carl Feit, chair of the biology department, who taught Kushnir as a student and works with him now as a colleague, felt that having an ambitious recent graduate as an adjunct professor sends an empowering message to students. “They see someone who a few years ago was just like them,” said Dr. Feit. “Now, he’s earned a PhD and will soon be receiving a medical degree from one of the most prestigious medical schools in the country.” Kushnir’s advice to science students just starting out? “You have to dream, to think the impossible,” he said. “Who would have thought that what I started one summer before college would become the focus of my PhD? Treat every educational experience as an opportunity to shape and propel your career into the exciting dream you want it to be.”