| Stanford University, B.A. | 1989 |
| Human Biology with focus on Neurosciences & Political Science | |
| UCSF, Doctor of Medicine | 1996 |
| Medicine | |
| Balliol College (Oxford), M.Sc. (Rhodes Scholar) | 1991 |
| Diagnostic Imaging | |
| Balliol College, Core Curriculum for BA/Masters | 1990 |
| Philosophy, Politics & Economics | |
| Stanford Hospital, Dept. of Surgery, Board Certification, ABEM | 1999 |
| Emergency Medicine Residency |
In the non-profit sector, Michael founded and operates QuestBridge, the nation’s largest recruiter for extremely talented and low-income youth for Ivy League colleges, universities, and employers. QuestBridge now places more talented low-income students than any other non-profit in US history. Last year alone, 2000 Quest students were offered admission to one of Quest’s 34 partner colleges, including Stanford, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Caltech, Amherst, and Williams. 146 Quest students were accepted to Stanford in 2008 alone for example, and Quest students make up 11% of Amherst’s entire freshman class. Quest is now expanding to recruiting for top companies and graduate schools. Quest also manages personalized scholarships for high school juniors which double as a recruiting engine for college admission. Most recently, with more then 6,000 Quest alumni from top colleges, Quest has begun to place its alumni in top companies like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and the Wall Street Journal.
Michael also founded BeAGoodDoctor.Org and was co-chair for the medical and neurosciences track for Singularity University. BeAGoodDoctor.Org serves as an incubator for a variety of vibrant social ventures infused by top students from Stanford, Yale, Berkeley and other top colleges. Recent efforts include KaeMe, which is partnering with the Ghanaian government to remake the entire orphan care system, helping organize a Wild West of orphanages. To do so, KaeMe members are interviewing every orphan in the country to determine their individual needs and facilitate reunification, foster care, and adoption. Other BeAGoodDoctor projects include the Courage Project, S.C.O.P.E., and several overseas clinical internships (Nepal, Dharamsala and Honduras). Michael also sits on the board of the Dalai Lama Foundation. Michael was elected an Ashoka Fellow in 2004. Most recently, Michael co-founded the Global Leadership Incubator which recruits top students of Tibetan and Himalayan origin for top universities and leadership positions in partnership with the Central Tibetan Administration and the Office of the Dalai Lama.
In the private sector, Michael is a Principal/Partner at Capricorn Healthcare and Special Opportunities (CHSO), working with Managing Principal Barry Uphoff. Previously, Michael was a partner at HeadWaters Capital Partners(HCP), with Managing Partner John Stevens (now CEO HeartFlow). HCP focuses on Life Science, Education and Clean Tech investments. McCullough previously co-founded RegenMed Systems and served as its interim president. Prior to this, Michael was an Operating Partner at the Capricorn Investment Group, where his early investments include HeartFlow and Apnicure. Michael sat on the founding board of 2Tor (now 2U) and has served as an advisor to Vocera, Venrock, NanoDimension, HeartFlow, NeuroVigil, Shmoop, [ConnectEdu], eCullet, 4Afri, and others for which he has raised over $110,000,000 in early funding for promising start-ups since 2004. Michael was elected a Kauffman Fellow in 2009. Michael was elected as an Ashoka Fellow in 2004 as a leading American social entrepreneur.
Michael is an ER physician with specialized training in emergency medicine, trauma and diagnostic imaging, affiliated with both Stanford and UCSF. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine, a published researcher and recipient of multiple awards for teaching and public service. Michael was introduced to medicine by his own childhood brain surgery, where he subsequently retrained himself to speak, eventually paying for college with teaching and stand-up comedy. In addition to continuing to work part-time clinically at Stanford and UCSF affiliated level-one trauma centers, Michael has served as an expedition physician, volunteer clinician in developing countries, and occasional ER doctor to selected scientists the Dalai Lama during His Holiness’s US tours in California.
Michael earned his undergraduate degree from Stanford University, Phi Beta Kappa, in Human Biology, focusing on Neuroscience and Political Science. Michael was the first undergraduate hired to teach at the Stanford Medical School. Michael was a Rhodes Scholar and attended Balliol College, Oxford, studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics and obtaining a Masters degree in Diagnostic Imaging. He holds an MD from the University of California, San Francisco where he was the first medical student to receive the Chancellor’s and Burbridge awards for public service.
Michael speaks often at Stanford University, Yale, Princeton and nationally on multiple issues in education, leadership, and medicine.
Michael is a private pilot with an enthusiasm for yoga, neuroscience, meditation, martial arts, hiking, teaching, good conversation, old and new friends, and good wine.
