Grad student Felix Wu finishes his nine year journey at Rice

After native Houstonian Felix Wu was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy as a young child, his family's vision was singularly focused: they wanted him to have a good life and to maintain his health as long as possible.
Now, thanks to Wu’s unshakable determination and drive, positive attitude and the support of his family and community, he is graduating with a Ph.D. from Rice University.
In spite of a grim medical diagnosis at a young age, Wu’s determination knew no bounds. A straight-A student, he dreamed of attending Rice, and turned this dream into a reality, attending for his bachelor’s, master's and Ph.D, which is referred to as a “triple owl.” This weekend, he will graduate from Rice with a Ph.D. in psychological sciences, with a focus on industrial-organizational and quantitative psychology. After graduation, he will be a research scientist at the Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO).
Wu’s personal experience fueled his passion for research in the workplace, especially in areas where people with disabilities are often overlooked.
“I’ve always been interested as a person with a disability to really bring my own experiences into my research, because I think that a lot of the time people with disabilities are understudied,” he said.
His work focuses specifically on the pervasive negative attitudes towards disabilities in society and the workplace as well as other systemic barriers that prevent the employment of people with disabilities, aiming to bring his personal experiences into the academic discourse to effect change. He is also interested in applying advanced quantitative statistical techniques like machine learning and structural equation modeling to study these phenomena, examining what factors play a part in developing individual differences like vocational interests (as well as their measurement), and understanding how artificial intelligence and other new technologies affect the workplace.
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