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Bengaluru-born Ananya Ravikumar heads to UPenn for Ph.D. in gene therapy
Ravikumar pursued lab research, public health work, and community service at UCLA, in preparation for a Ph.D. in gene therapy.
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Pranavi Sharma - Tue, 27, May 2025
- 02:21 EDT
- 30
Ananya Ravikumar / UCLA
Ananya Ravikumar, originally from Bengaluru, India, is graduating this June from UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in molecular, cell and developmental biology and a minor in biomedical research. This fall, she’ll start a Ph.D. program in gene therapy at the University of Pennsylvania.
When she first arrived in Los Angeles for college, the transition wasn’t easy.
“I came in feeling very overwhelmed,” Ravikumar told UCLA Newsroom. “Now, standing on the other side, I feel more secure and know that I can handle change a lot better than I would have before.”
Her interest in biology began in high school and quickly focused into a drive to understand diseases at the molecular level.
“I was interested in immunology because it connects to public health,” she said. “But I’ve always wanted to know why things happen in the body. Studying molecular biology helped me understand cellular processes, the basis of disease and where therapies can make a difference.”
At UCLA, Ravikumar took part in the Beckman Scholars Program, which gave her the opportunity to spend full summers working in a lab — an experience she said was key in preparing her for graduate-level research.
“Summers in the lab taught me what it’s like to be a Ph.D. student,” she said. “During the school year, it can sometimes be stressful to balance classwork and other engagements with experiments in the lab. The full-time experience helped me effectively deepen my skills.”
Outside of the classroom and lab, Ravikumar also found community through student groups. She joined Swipe Out Hunger, a club that works to combat food insecurity among students and Los Angeles residents.
“Being part of that club helps me give back to the community in a meaningful way,” she said. “We work to support students and the larger Los Angeles population suffering from food insecurity. The people I met at Swipe Out Hunger became close friends.”
That sense of connection, she said, also shaped how she views research environments.
“You want a lab that’s collaborative,” she said. “An encouraging lab will help you find the strength to navigate the ups and downs of research. Choosing the right environment matters.”
In the Lowry Lab at UCLA, Ravikumar worked with stem cell cultures to study intellectual and developmental disorders — research that solidified her interest in a long-term scientific career.
“I’m excited to further build my research and critical thinking skills,” she told UCLA Newsroom. “I’m so thankful for the opportunity to do this.”
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