ABOUT THE COUNCIL
The Health Professions Council is a group of experts in the field of healthcare and medical education who are partnering with Careers in Healthcare to advise us on how we can best serve our pre-health students.
2023-24 COUNCIL MEMBERS
NISHANT AGRAWAL, MD
Professor of Surgery
University of Chicago Medicine
Nishant Agrawal graduated from Rutgers University where he worked with Eileen White on apoptosis research and received the Marvin Harold Cheiten Award for being first in his class. He completed his MD at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine where he worked with Solomon Snyder on neurodegenerative diseases. He completed an otolaryngology-head and neck surgery training at Johns Hopkins during which time he completed a post-doctorate fellowship with Bert Vogelstein and Ken Kinzler. Dr. Agrawal then completed a head and neck surgical oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He then returned to the faculty at Hopkins. In 2015, he was recruited to the University of Chicago.
Dr. Agrawal is currently Professor of Surgery, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Radiation Oncology. He is the Chief of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Co-Director of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology at the University of Chicago Medicine. As a cancer surgeon and translational scientist, he is dedicated to improving patient care through innovative translational research. His laboratory has been devoted to the study of the genetics and molecular diagnostics of head and neck cancer. Dr. Agrawal’s team has pioneered the development of assays using tumor DNA as a non-invasive biomarker in saliva and plasma. Their research is currently focused on the application of cancer genetics to design diagnostic approaches to reduce morbidity and mortality from head and neck cancer.
CHRIS ANDREWS, PhD
Senior Instructional Professor & Senior Adviser
University of Chicago
Chris Andrews joined the Biological Sciences Collegiate Division in 1999 after earning a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution from Stony Brook University and an undergraduate degree from Cornell University. She is currently a Senior Instructional Professor and received a Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2013. She is an instructor in the Health Professions Preparation Sequence for students not majoring in biology, teaches courses in ecology, evolution, and biodiversity, and oversees the Bachelor of Science program in Biological Sciences. She also serves as a Senior Adviser in the BSCD.
MURRIE AFFINI
MD Candidate
Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago
Murrie Affini is a medical student at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. As a University of Chicago College graduate (Class of 2019), he has recent experience working with the Careers in Healthcare team to prepare for a successful medical school application. Murrie has been named a Society of Hospital Medicine Student Hospitalist Scholar Grantee, a University of Chicago Center for Global Health Kiphart Research Fellow, and a member of the Gold Humanism Honor Society. He has been actively involved in mentorship in multiple capacities, and is excited to support aspiring healthcare professionals in their journeys.
SAM RITCHEY
Associate Director of Admissions, Physician Assistant Program
Northwestern University
Sam Ritchey (he/him) is the Associate Director of Admissions and Student Affairs for the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Physician Assistant (PA) Program. He has worked at Northwestern University for over 12 years in support of student academic and professional development. At the PA Program, he is responsible for managing all admissions and recruitment efforts and also plays an active role in programming for both current students and alumni. Born and raised in Los Angeles, he earned Bachelor's degrees in History and Economics from Santa Clara University. He moved to Brazil shortly thereafter, teaching English for over 3 years, before moving to Chicago. Sam lives in the Uptown neighborhood with his partner Lorna and calico cat Rick.
VERA DRAGISICH, PhD
Senior Instructional Professor & Assoc. Dir. of Undergraduate Studies
University of Chicago Department of Chemistry
Vera Dragisich has three decades of experience advising undergraduates and the graduate students that TA for them at the University of Chicago. She received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Northwestern University and her PhD in Organic Chemistry with an emphasis on organometallic chemistry from the University of Chicago. Following graduate school, she worked in the water treatment industry and is the inventor on three patents. She returned to UChicago as Director of Undergraduate Organic Laboratories and taught courses in the organic chemistry sequence. Following that she developed the TA Training Program for the Department of Chemistry and has published papers on graduate teacher assistant training in the Journal of Chemical Education. In her capacity as Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies, she advises undergraduate students taking chemistry courses as well as chemistry majors. She is the advisor for students in Chemistry’s joint BS/MS degree program and Chemistry’s exchange program with Edinburgh University. Vera is passionate about helping graduate and undergraduate students through their academic journey. She strives to serve as a resource to and an advocate for her students.