He received a medical degree from the University of Washington and a doctorate in philosophy from the RAND Graduate School of Policy Studies. He completed a residency in primary care internal medicine at the University of California at San Francisco and is board certified in internal medicine. Dr. Morales is currently conducting psychometric research on the cross-cultural equivalence of survey instruments and substantive research on disparities in health care, immigrant and Latino health and cultural competence in health care. He also see patients and supervises medical residents at the UCLA Medical Center.