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Kunal Patel named assistant dean at UNC School of Medicine
Patel will assume the leadership role after years of mentoring medical students and advancing medical education.
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Malvika Choudhary - Thu, 25, Jun 2026
- 17:35 EDT
- 51
Kunal Patel / med.unc.edu
The University of North Carolina School of Medicine appointed Indian American physician-educator Kunal Patel as assistant dean for student affairs in the office of medical student Education, effective July 1.
Patel, an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine's Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, currently serves as a foundation phase academic coach in the Office of Academic Excellence, where he works with first- and second-year medical students to strengthen study strategies, time management, and learning skills.
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In his new leadership role, Patel will oversee student affairs while continuing his commitment to medical education and student support.
He is also a member of the UNC Interstitial Lung Disease Program and the UNC Center for Bronchiectasis, with clinical expertise in interstitial lung disease, bronchiectasis, non-tuberculous mycobacterial infections, general pulmonology, and critical care medicine.
Beyond his clinical work, Patel's academic interests include undergraduate medical education, faculty development, curriculum design for residents and fellows, and addressing trainee burnout in high-intensity clinical settings such as critical care medicine.
Patel has earned several honors recognizing his contributions as an educator, including the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award from The Arnold P. Gold Foundation, the Internal Medicine Inpatient Faculty Teaching Award, and induction into Alpha Omega Alpha.
Medical students selected him as a UNC Pearls Day speaker in 2025 and invited him to serve as the 2026 Match Day speaker.
Patel earned a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, completed his MD and PhD at the University of Pennsylvania, finished his residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and returned to the University of Pennsylvania for fellowship training.
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