Meet Jason Uwaeze. Uwaeze is a first year Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Computer Science at Rice University. Uwaeze is from Texas and is a Rice Graduate Ambassador. Ambassadors are students who represent the university and help prospective students gain knowledge of student life as a graduate student at Rice.
Uwaeze chose Rice as a graduate school because of his passion for conducting research and the school’s location. He spends most of his days solving medical related problems.
“Imagine ‘"radiology’" as the concept of viewing what goes on in your body, using big machines such as an MRI and X-Ray,” said Uwaeze. “Now imagine ‘machine learning’ being the concept of teaching computers to understand complex problems, like humans learning how to read or understand math. When you combine those two concepts, using ideas and tools from both, you get what I'm interested in researching.”
When he is not conducting research, he is serving in various leadership roles within the Rice community. He is a part of the Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA) on campus and is a National GEM Consortium Fellow.
Uwaeze advises prospective students to be open-minded while trying to pursue a graduate degree.
“Come with an open perspective and be humble to help prevent a hiderance with the learning process,” said Uwaeze.
Uwaeze advises current students to establish clear communication and expectations with their advisor.
“Everyone’s learning rate is different, and you shouldn’t focus on what you may think your advisor wants,” said Uwaeze. “You should focus on what you want from the learning process.”
Outside of academics, Uwaeze enjoys the food truck park on Westheimer and eating Asian and Vietnamese cuisine.
Uwaeze found out he was adopted in 2015 and defines that moment as a fun fact about himself. He says being adopted “shifted his perspective” and gave him an unique perspective on life.
Graduate ambassadors can be contacted via email at gradambassadors@rice.edu. Jason Uwaeze can be contacted directly by email at ju6@rice.edu.