Margaret Faul, vice president at Amgen Massachusetts, spoke to graduates about the importance of leaning on connections and combining passion and creativity.
Margaret Faul left Northeastern University Ph.D. graduates with three “guiding principles.”
Faul, the vice president of process development and site head at Amgen Massachusetts, spoke at the Doctor of Philosophy Hooding and Graduation Ceremony on Monday at Matthews Arena on the Boston campus about the future that awaits the more than 300 graduates and how these principles can help guide them.
“You are stepping into a world filled with opportunity, a world where you can make a real difference,” she said. “Your training has equipped you to think creatively and to innovate in ways that can drive real change.”
Faul said these principles have driven her own work. Originally from Ireland, Faul came to the United States in 1987 to pursue her own Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry. Over the course of her career, Faul has worked on drug development while also advancing the principles of green chemistry. Her work has helped deliver groundbreaking therapies for serious diseases and shaped sustainability in biotechnology. She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for her work.
Leaning on others has helped Faul not only advance in her career but also helped others do the same. She described how she built relationships that eventually led to her co-founding the Empowering Women in Organic Chemistry Conference series, an event meant to support diversity in STEM and provide space for women and their allies to connect and grow.
“What began as a bold idea has grown into a vibrant, thriving community, one that shares not only research, but mentorship, support and lived experiences,” she said. “We have heard from graduate students who attended EWOC as their first conference and left saying, ‘For the first time, I felt like I truly belonged in science.’ That sense of belonging then becomes a catalyst for confidence, for leadership, and the desire to pay it forward. Simply put, your network matters.”
Faul said it is “more crucial than ever” to both push for inclusion, citing times when she stepped outside her subject matter expertise is when she grew the most.
“Science and life are not about certainty,” she said. “It is about persistence and adaptability. Setbacks are not obstacles. They’re just stepping stones to the next breakthrough. Now more than ever, we need your resilience. Do not underestimate your ability to evolve, to grow, to rise to the moment, you have now the skills of passion and training to lead through change and uncertainty. Keep pursuing that purpose that drives you forward, because the world needs it.”