Faculty

For the College of Ayurveda, faculty members typically have the B.A.M.S. (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) degree, the degree held by professors of Ayurveda in India, the home country of this field, from which we draw the most highly qualified faculty assembled anywhere to teach the Institute’s courses.   The B.A.M.S. degree is conferred only upon successful completion of 5 ½ years of study and internship, and qualifies the recipient to teach in all Ayurveda specialty areas.  Some of the Ayurveda faculty also hold the B.A.M.S. (M.D. Ayurveda) degree, which includes an additional 3 years of study and internship.  All College of Ayurveda faculty have had a minimum of 5 years of teaching experience, and many have had 20-30 years of teaching experience. 

According to the Central Council on Indian Medicine (ccim.india.org) those receiving the B.A.M.S. degree have demonstrated “profound scholarship having deep basis of Ayurveda with scientific knowledge in accordance with Ayurvedic fundamentals with extensive practical training who would be able and efficient teachers, research workers and Physicians and Surgeons.”

Those having the B.A.M.S. (M.D. Ayurveda) degree have obtained “specialties and super-specialties of Ayurveda and so that they are experts and specialists who can be competent and efficient teachers, physicians, surgeons, obstetricians and gynecologists, pharmaceutical experts, researchers and profound scholars in various fields of specialization of Ayurveda.”

The Ayurvedic Schools that our faculty members have graduated from all are certified by the Government of India for graduating Ayurvedic Physicians and Surgeons.  The degree of B.A.M.S. is equivalent to an M.D. in the US, and the B.A.M.S. (M.D. Ayurved) is equivalent to an M.D. with Board Specialties, both degrees higher than the M.A. level, and both designating professionals who are more than capable of teaching at the M.A. level.

Jay Apte, B.A.M.S. (University of Poona, India), M.S. (Biomedical Sciences, Pharmacology, University of North Texas) (1991), founder and president of the Ayurvedic Institute of America, author of the Ayurvedic cookbook You Are What You Eat" and of many articles on Ayurveda, and founder of the Ayurvedic food line "AyurFoods."

Aparna Bapat, B.A.M.S., (University of Poona, India), Ayurveda Program Director and Principal Instructor, Starseed's New Jersey Institute of Ayurveda; extensive teaching and practice in India and Europe, including Senior Lecturer at the College of Ayurveda, London, and Visiting Lecturer at Ayurvedic facilities in London and Belgium; writer for the health columns of India Weekly and numerous professional medical publications in Europe and the United States; appearances on many television and radio health programs as an Ayurveda authority in the United Kingdom.

John Douillard, D.C., Ph.D. author of The 3-Season Diet, Body, Mind, and Sport, Perfect Health for Kids, and The Encyclopedia of Ayurvedic Massage, received his Ayurvedic training in India and holds a Ph.D. in Ayurvedic medicine from the Open International University; co-directed Deepak Chopra's Ayurvedic center for eight years and trained over 2000 Western doctors in Ayurvedic medicine; launched a preservative-free Ayurvedic skin care line in 1998, and an Ayurvedic herbal line for health professionals in 2003; has been teaching Ayurvedic medicine, natural health, fitness, and nutrition internationally for seventeen years, directs the LifeSpa School of Ayurveda and practices Ayurvedic and chiropractic medicine at LifeSpa.

P.H. Kulkarni, B.A.M.S., Ph.D., M.D. (India), Well known Ayurvedic Physician, Research Guide in Ayurveda, and Former Dean and Faculty of Ayurvedic Medicine, University of Pune; Founder and Director, Institute of Indian Medicine Ayurveda Academy; editor of seven Medical Journals including 'Deerghayu International'; author of 40 books related to Ayurveda; worked as Patron, President, Secretary and Treasurer of many Ayurvedic, Medical and Social Organizations at National and International level; has established Ayurvedic Centers in many Countries of the world and traveled extensively for propagation, education and research in Ayurveda; recipient of many National and International awards including Pax Mundi Fellowship (Dag Hammarkjold Awards Committee) for Professional Excellence; president of Tilak Ayurveda College (1994-2002), European Ayurveda Academy, Ayurveda Open University, International Ayurveda Association, and Italian Ayurveda Professionals Association. 

Vasant D. Lad, B.A.M.S., M.A.Sc., Medical Director of the Ayurvedic Hospital in Poona, India, for 3 years; Professor of Clinical Medicine at Poona University School of Ayurvedic Medicine for 13 years; for the past 25 years he has taught in the U.S.  Dr. Lad is Director of the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque and author of Ayurveda, The Science of Self-Healing, Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing (with Usha Lad), The Yoga of Herbs (with David Frawley), Secrets of the Pulse: An Ayurvedic Art of Diagnosis, and The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Home Remedies.

Vivek Shanbhag, N.D., M.D. (Ayurveda), B.A.M.S., C.Y.Ed., Medical Director of The Ayurvedic Academy, Clinic & Spa, Seattle; faculty member, Bastyr University, Seattle; clinical, teaching and research experience spans over 25 years; author of Beginner's Introduction to Ayurveda; Head of the Institute of Research in Ayurvedic Medicine, Poona, India, 1985-88.

Sarita Shrestha, M.D. (Ayurveda), Ob./Gyn., B.H.U., B.A.M.S., has taught and consulted for over 20 years in international institutions, hospitals and clinics, received numerous international awards honoring her presentations and services with special recognition as the first Nepali woman Ayurvedic physician and specialist, is Founder/Director of Devi Ma Ayurveda Rural Hospital and Director; Dwanwantari Hospital, and teaches throughout the US.  She is also well known for her unique herbal formulations.

Shekhar V. Annambhotla, B.A.M.S., M.D. in Ayurveda (India), Y.I.C.C., R.Y.T., Founder and Director of The Ojas Ayurveda Yoga Wellness Center (Allentown, PA); Board of Directors, National Ayurvedic Medical Association; Faculty Member, Kripalu School of Ayurveda; Adjunct Faculty Member, Ayurvedic Academic (Seattle, WA); Founding Faculty Member, Association of Ayurvedic Professionals of North America.

Professor Ram Harsh Singh, Ph.D., senior Professor and Chief Consultant Physician, Department of Internal Medicine, and Dean, Faculty of Ayurveda, at Banaras Hindu University.  Supervised over 75 M.D.'s and 25 Ph.D.'s and published 12 books and over 100 research papers, receiving many awards and distinctions including The Best Teacher's Award and the Jiwak Award in Asian Medicine.

And Other Instructors TBA.