Dr. Rishab Gupta has had a long and successful career. He retired after decades at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine conducting cutting-edge cancer research and training surgical oncology fellows and graduate students. However, he could not stay away from the classroom for long, and he quickly jumped at the opportunity to work as an instructor at UCLA Extension and continue his passion for education.

In 2014, Sheila King, the chief of staff and assistant dean of strategic initiatives at UCLA Extension recruited Gupta to teach a cancer biology course, which encompasses molecular biology, biochemistry, and cell biology. UCLA Extension offers courses for prospective medical school students, providing an alternative pathway to reach medical school. Gupta’s course serves as a challenge to students who have already made it through most of their pre-med curriculum and want an extra challenge.

As time went on, he also began teaching a class on protein structure, which goes into disease and treatment. It involves looking at what changes in the protein molecules lead to abnormal growth and what approaches can be taken to remove those abnormal proteins. Gupta then added a third class, microbiology.

He explained that he wanted to fill his time doing something useful, such as disseminating knowledge to ambitious students. Teaching these courses helped him do just that. Gupta’s cancer biology course has gained a steady following and reputation, while he also contributes to the pre-medical aspirations of students through the microbiology course.

“It makes the time become less heavy on my part,” Gupta said. “I'm always doing something, whether that’s grading assignments or preparing the lectures.”

His course on cancer biology ties into his previous work in cancer research, which included identifying the markers that are associated with particularly solid tumors such as melanoma, breast cancer and lung cancer. Similar to teaching, Gupta felt his time researching was a fulfilling activity.

“I enjoyed my time working among the surgeons who supplied me with tumor specimens from cancer patients to work on. I used these samples to identify how the cancer differs from normal counterparts in their body, as well as using patients’ blood to look at the immune responses the body developed,” Gupta said.

As for why he chose to go into medicine, Gupta said he had this passion “from the very beginning.” He moved from India in 1965 and earned his Ph.D. in microbial physiology at Rutgers University. His research focused on microbiology and trying to understand the mechanism of action of various antimicrobial agents. He went to Yale University to do further research in autoimmune processes. His academic journey ended at UCLA in 1968 when he became a lecturer and then climbed the academic ladder to full professorship before retiring.

Now, Gupta is focused on helping his students achieve their own careers in medicine. He explained that many of his students take his courses as a way to fulfill the requirements to go into medical school or to pursue fields such as nursing or dentistry. Gupta hopes his classes teach students how to be proficient and understand the mechanisms of human biology.

Not only does Gupta provide the knowledge to go into these fields, but he also shared that he often writes recommendation letters for his pupils. Though he called it a “daunting task” as he often finds himself with dozens of letters to write, he expressed that he was happy to help his students succeed. His students have gone on to attend UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, the UC Davis School of Medicine, and the University of Illinois College of Medicine, among other medical schools.

“I do enjoy teaching. The classes are generally three hours long, but they end up going longer than scheduled since we cover so much” Gupta said. “I stay in the classroom for as long as it takes for every student's queries or clarifying questions to be answered.”