Ayaska Fernando, MS, has assumed the position of director of admissions at the School of Medicine.

Prior to arriving at the medical school on August 1, Fernando was associate director of admissions and director of STEM recruitment in the Yale Office of Undergraduate Admissions (OUA), a role he had held since 2014. He had done a variety of STEM-related work since joining OUA after earning a BS in mechanical engineering from Yale College in 2008.

Fernando serves on Yale Scientific Magazine’s advisory board, and is a resident fellow of Jonathan Edwards College, where he advises first-year students, many of whom are first-generation or have declared an interest in STEM.

As director of admissions, Fernando succeeds Richard A. Silverman, who retired this year after presiding over the recruitment of 19 consecutive School of Medicine classes, including the just-admitted Class of 2022.