Following the recent news that St Mary’s University, London is set to open a new school of medicine, the university has now appointed its founding executive dean – Professor Sonia Kumar.
Prof Kumar is joining from the University of Leeds, where she is a professor in medical education and associate dean of community engagement.
Spanning more than two decades, her career as a GP and educationalist has been formally recognised several times.
Before moving to Yorkshire, Prof Kumar had an award-winning tenure at Imperial College London, where she received the Presidents Medal for Outstanding Contribution to Teaching Excellence. She also received the CATE collaborative award from AdvanceHE. She occupied the director of undergraduate primary care education role at Imperial.
“I feel hugely honoured to take on this founding role to lead the new School of Medicine,” she said on her appointment.
“I am immensely proud and privileged to be part of this significant moment in St Mary’s history, bringing my shared values, vision and experience to serve our colleagues, students and most importantly our society.”
Prof Kumar will join in January ahead of the school’s first cohort of students in September 2026.
University vice-chancellor, Prof Anthony McClaran, commented: “We are delighted that Prof Kumar will be joining us here at St Mary’s as the Founding Executive Dean of Medicine.
“This is an exciting initiative and strategic priority for the University, which is aligned to our mission to be a forward-thinking university tackling the challenges of the 21st century.”
Prof Kumar has provided consultancy through the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office to UNAM in Mexico.
Image credit: iStock
