{"id":144229,"date":"2026-05-14T14:59:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:59:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/?post_type=bu-article&p=144229"},"modified":"2026-05-18T15:31:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T19:31:20","slug":"medical-sciences-graduates-urged-to-make-the-world-a-better-place","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/news-events\/articles\/2026\/medical-sciences-graduates-urged-to-make-the-world-a-better-place\/","title":{"rendered":"GMS Graduates Urged to be Courageous and Make a Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Student\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGMS Convocation<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t GMS Graduates Urged to be Courageous and Make a Difference \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\u201cContinue your pursuit of knowledge with a purpose.\u201d <\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n
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May 14, 2026<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\tTwitter<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\tFacebook<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\n\n\n

C. James McKnight<\/a>, PhD, associate dean of Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS), told graduate students receiving diplomas at their May 14 convocation to continue making a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYour hard work here has prepared you, and we are confident you have the will, the courage and the tools that are necessary to make a difference in all of our futures,\u201d said McKnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GMS awarded 42 master of arts degrees, 334 master of science degrees and eight combined degrees at the ceremony Thursday at BU\u2019s Track & Tennis Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Two<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hee-Young Park<\/a>, PhD, dean, ad interim<\/em>, advised graduates that they lived in a world undergoing profound and rapid change with the burgeoning impact and potential of artificial intelligence, an ever-changing political and policy arena and changes to federal research funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Park urged them to continue what they\u2019d done during their graduate education. \u201cYou remained focused. You stayed determined. You continued your pursuit of knowledge with purpose,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is exactly how you will make the world better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Hee-Young
Yerke Suleimenova (holding her child) with Hee-Young Park, PhD<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cScience and health professions transcend national, cultural and racial boundaries. They connect us,\u201d Park continued. \u201cThrough them\u2026you will collaborate, innovate and contribute to improving humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Farihah Chowdhury was the first of three GMS students chosen by their peers to speak at the convocation. The child of parents who immigrated to the U.S. from Bangladesh, Chowdhury cited their sacrifice to build a better life for their family as instilling in her a profound sense of duty to serve others. Like many of her classmates in the Master of Medical Sciences program, Chowdhury is hoping to gain admission to medical school. She said the past 18 months volunteering in the hematology and oncology unit at Boston Medical Center taught her valuable life lessons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy time volunteering at the hospital has helped me realize the importance of the smallest acts of kindness and what it feels like to play an essential part in someone\u2019s larger medical journey,\u201d she said, urging classmates to help fill the gaps in healthcare access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Headed to the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School following graduation with a Master of Science in Pathology Laboratory Science, Samuel Camilli chose to reflect on what he\u2019d learned from failure, not success. The Sarasota, Florida, native felt he\u2019d failed when he couldn\u2019t maintain a schedule working a hospital night shift while attending graduate school that sacrificed sleep and his well-being. He also took to heart the rejection inherent in applying to medical schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Camilli discovered three things that carried him forward: be fully present, choose deliberately how you spend your time, and observe and learn from the unexpected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Student
Ainsleigh Scott getting hooded.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTake time to look over your shoulder at the road behind you. See the victories and the failures, the highs and the lows,\u201d he told classmates. \u201cUse that information in the present to adjust, not to panic\u2026but to make a thoughtful next step.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The transition from small town Virginia to Boston to enter the physician assistant program at BU was initially daunting for Paige Conner. Bostonians were reserved, she found, with brief eye contact, quick conversation and \u201ca lot of passing by without a smile\u201d that was a little intimidating, Conner recalled in her convocation speech. But that changed when she met her friendly and supportive classmates and found that kindness takes many forms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSometimes it\u2019s quiet. Sometimes it\u2019s just someone showing up,\u201d said Conner, who is beginning her career as a physician\u2019s assistant following graduation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Three<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEven in the most ordinary moments we have the ability to impact someone in ways we may never fully realize,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those in healthcare tend to meet patients on what can be the worst day of their lives, Conner observed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat they\u2019ll remember won\u2019t always be the diagnosis or the treatment,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019ll remember how we treated them. They\u2019ll remember how we made them feel. As we move forward, don\u2019t underestimate the impact of how you show up\u2014for your patients, your colleagues and each other.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See the Facebook album<\/a> for more. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

C. James McKnight, PhD, associate dean of Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS), told graduate students receiving diplomas at their May 14 convocation to continue making a difference. \u201cYour hard work here has prepared you, and we are confident you have the will, the courage and the tools that are necessary to make a difference in all […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":903,"featured_media":144237,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"bu_prepress_billboard":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term":"GMS Convocation","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"tags":[383,459,405],"bu-publication":[367],"medicine-article-category":[],"medicine-topic":[],"news-article-category":[455,384],"news-topic":[],"bu_edition":[390],"media_type":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/144229"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bu-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/903"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=144229"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/144229\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":144397,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/144229\/revisions\/144397"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/144237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=144229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"bu-publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-publication?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"medicine-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/medicine-article-category?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"medicine-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/medicine-topic?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"news-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-article-category?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"news-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topic?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"bu_edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_edition?post=144229"},{"taxonomy":"media_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_type?post=144229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}