{"id":64668,"date":"2026-05-05T10:36:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T14:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/?p=64668"},"modified":"2026-05-05T10:37:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T14:37:11","slug":"news-2026-commencement-spotlight-mother-son-student-duo-reflect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/2026\/05\/05\/news-2026-commencement-spotlight-mother-son-student-duo-reflect\/","title":{"rendered":"Commencement Spotlight: Mother-and-Son Student Duo Reflect on Two-Year Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

When\u00a0Fatema Abdo DMD AS 26\u00a0matriculated at GSDM\u00a0two years ago<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0she\u00a0joined\u00a0her son, Mohamed Hussein DMD 26, who was part-way through his own\u00a0dental\u00a0education.\u00a0This\u00a0month,\u00a0the\u00a0mother-and-son duo\u00a0will reach the finish line together\u00a0as GSDM graduates.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“[Commencement] represents to us the many years of hard work, not only in dental school, but also with the journey that brought us here,\u201d Hussein said. \u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0a reminder of how unexpected life can be.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Abdo\u00a0said\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0been a\u00a0dream come true studying alongside\u00a0Hussein.\u00a0It was a\u00a0privilege\u00a0watching him firsthand\u00a0develop\u00a0his hand skills and patient rapport,\u00a0she said,\u00a0in addition to receiving\u00a0unwavering\u00a0support, encouragement, and helpful information\u00a0from her son.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see\u00a0your\u00a0son in front of\u00a0your\u00a0eyes\u2014he’s\u00a0growing up,\u201d Abdo said.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When the duo moved to the U.S. from Saudi Arabia, neither\u00a0could have predicted that they would have\u00a0graduated\u00a0from the same dental school in the same\u00a0year.\u00a0Hussein\u00a0said he now\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0imagine it any other way\u00a0as watching his mom\u00a0adapt to a new dental system and\u00a0staying passionate\u00a0about dentistry\u00a0has been inspirational for him.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBoth of us are excited about dentistry [and] the moments where we talk about cases, techniques for learning, and different ways we can help patients\u00a0made\u00a0this exciting journey memorable,\u201d Hussein said. \u201cIt really enforced for both of us why we chose this profession.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
It\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>hard for<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Fatema Abdo DMD AS 26\u00a0<\/span><\/span>and Mohamed Hussein DMD\u00a0<\/span><\/span>26<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>to believe their days of being dental students together are nearing the end, but they both have visions for their next career steps<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>(<\/span>Photo credit: Dan Bomba,\u00a0<\/span><\/span>GSDM.)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span> <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

During\u00a0the\u00a0didactic\u00a0portion\u00a0of their respective programs,\u00a0Abdo and Hussein\u00a0took two classes\u00a0at the same time. With the classes they\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0take concurrently, they helped each other study and shared guidance to best succeed.\u00a0Their collaboration extended into the Patient Treatment Center as they become a \u201ctrue mother-son duo,\u201d as they\u00a0assisted\u00a0each other\u00a0with long\u00a0procedures\u00a0whenever they could.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAt some points,\u00a0he guided\u00a0me, especially with technology, and with practical things\u00a0with\u00a0patients, I guided\u00a0him,\u201d Abdo said. \u201cWe helped\u00a0each other.\u00a0He was\u00a0really\u00a0supportive.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While there were\u00a0many\u00a0milestone\u00a0moments throughout their time at GSDM, both Abdo and Hussein said\u00a0their favorite\u00a0shared\u00a0experience was when\u00a0they passed their\u00a0licensure\u00a0exam,\u00a0especially\u00a0after a\u00a0significant\u00a0snowstorm\u00a0affected\u00a0their\u00a0initial\u00a0testing day.\u00a0That achievement\u00a0took\u00a0studying\u00a0into the wee hours\u00a0of the night, practicing in the Simulation Learning Center, and\u00a0getting\u00a0coaching\u00a0from\u00a0faculty, the pair said. It was an immense relief\u00a0for\u00a0both to\u00a0pass.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHaving someone\u00a0who\u00a0understands what you are going through and sharing the experience made it more manageable and more meaningful,\u201d Hussein said. \u201cSharing all the experience created memories that both of us will carry for the rest of our lives.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the last two years,\u00a0the duo\u00a0spent most\u00a0weekends driving\u00a0back\u00a0and forth between\u00a0Boston\u00a0and\u00a0East Longmeadow, Massachusetts,\u00a0where the rest of their immediate family, Abdo’s husband and their daughter, lives while the latter is attending private high school in Connecticut.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The four-hour\u00a0round-trip drive\u00a0was worth it for everyone in the family to pursue their academic\u00a0goals. Hussein said he and Abdo made the best of their long car rides.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d\u00a0talk about our day, discuss cases, sometimes just relax and enjoy the road,\u201d Hussein said. \u201cDental school is busy and those moments became valuable.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It is hard for the duo to believe their days of being dental students together are nearing the end, but they are also excited for the next steps in their careers. Following commencement, Hussein will be starting a general practice residency at Yale New Haven Hospital in Connecticut. Abdo plans to enter private practice as a general dentist. Hussein joked that it would be great to one day open a family office with his younger sister, who wants to become an orthodontist, an idea that Abdo loved.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Abdo\u00a0said she hopes her experience\u00a0with Hussein proves\u00a0to\u00a0any parent\u00a0that they should chase their dreams\u2014even\u00a0if\u00a0their child shares the same\u00a0enthusiasm.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you put something in your mind, if you work hard and you do your best, I believe you will reach\u00a0your goal,\u201d Abdo said.\u00a0\u201cMy advice to any mom, to any family, any dad, anybody interested, do not stop at\u00a0any\u00a0point.\u00a0You\u00a0have to\u00a0continue\u00a0your\u00a0life.\u00a0Nothing is stopping you.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As for Hussein, he said life\u00a0has a funny way of showing\u00a0you\u00a0that\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0on the right path.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are\u00a0very grateful\u00a0for Boston\u00a0University and GSDM for giving us this opportunity.\u00a0It’s\u00a0not\u00a0every day\u00a0that a mother and son are able to share such an experience, and\u00a0we’re\u00a0very fortunate\u00a0to have\u00a0been part of this community,\u201d Hussein said. \u201c[We] made unforgettable memories, made our friendships that will last forever, [and] mentors\u00a0who\u00a0we keep learning from.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read their story from 2024:\u00a0<\/span><\/i>https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/2024\/10\/30\/mother-son-duo-class-of-2026\/<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To read our full commencement coverage, please visit\u00a0our\u00a0<\/span>Commencement 2026\u00a0page.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By Rachel Grace Philipson<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Fatema Abdo DMD AS 26 matriculated at GSDM two years ago, she joined her son, Mohamed Hussein DMD 26, who was part-way through his own dental education. This month, the mother-and-son duo will reach the finish line together as GSDM graduates. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21998,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[13911,13840,13839,13891],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64668"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21998"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64668"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64670,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64668\/revisions\/64670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/dental\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}