Chances at School of Social Sciences

Colleges and Universities A-Z Rice University
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<p>Fair question Jen. Why Rice over some other LAC's better regarded for their humanities, indeed?</p>

<p>Well, not being coy, I never said Rice necessarily OVER these other LAC's. She is a strong across the board student and has some pretty real scholarship opportunities -- one in our State honors program and another in a medium sized school which is somewhat of a safety. That being said, she is aiming pretty high with her other apps. There is no telling which of these other schools she'll get into and which will give her merit aid. Also, the amount of potential financial assistance can vary tremendously (we've got another child in private school simultaneously).</p>

<p>She really liked Rice and it's certainly possible that the computing of relevant pros and cons might point a final decision towards Rice. I'm just trying to help her ascertain whether Rice's English program is just kind of "there," or is really a fine department. From all accounts, it's the latter (as one would expect from an institution of Rice's reputation).</p>

<p>P.S. I'm sure she can hold her own as far as good-natured ribbing is concerned. It's when the ribbing ceases to be good-natured and is rather ubiquitous, a la Cal Tech (so I'm told from a couple of different sources), where one can reasonably ask why an English major with OTHER good choices would opt to go there. I appreciate your comments and question. Continued good luck at Rice!</p>

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<p>Juniormom: glad to clear things up. We obviously come from two very different areas, because if your son went to my high school he would truly stand out in many ways. I think ID will help at Rice and showing a strong interest in the school will too (maybe in an essay?). Rice might reject some top applicants because of some sort variant of the "tufts syndrome" because they think they're being used as a HYP-backup. Your son's SAT is 120-140 points above Rice's average and his transcript/ECs/etc are impressive, even in the Rice applicant pool. I'd bet money that he gets in. BTW, I decided not to apply to the USNA (tough decision) and I wish him well in that process, I'm sure he has a great shot.</p>

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<p>Rice is also known for the large number of double majors (see this years Newsweek/Kaplan Guide of the "Hottest" schools). One alum we met during the admsissions process had gone to Rice for the Math and Engineering programs, and ended up a double major in English and Religious studies! I addition to Rice's strong math/science programs, it has an outstanding History/Political Science Program with the Baker Institute for Public Policy and a phenomenal Music program through the Shepherd School of Music. It is an excellent, well-rounded institution, as are its students. Your daughter will be fine. That said, my s. is an applied/engineering physics person, though I have been fascinated by his choice of classes in the humanities and social sciences. As there are "divisional" requirements outside your major, all the divisions are strong.</p>

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<p>cavalier302 - Thanks for your comments...appreciated...what made you decide not to apply? It's a huge process after the application, nominations, Dodmerb and my son applied for NROTC too, another benefit of Rice! Did you go to Summer Seminar? I am not sure what his choice will be if accepted...he's just not sure yet if he wants the intense Service Academy background or the more relaxed college life or ROTC....glad my choices were easier...one application, $25, one acceptance, done :-)</p>

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<p>Juniormom, my dd is at Rice as a freshman and is loving it. She is an 'academ" not a sciency-type, and she has found lots of wonderful people to be friends with, and is enjoying challenging classes, and taking part in about a zillion different activities and when I talk with her she is excited about many many opportunities and events. So far, she's had dinner with her college master several times, been to operas, string concerts, asian and Indian dinners and performances, colloquiems, guest lecturers, political rallies, the zoo (many times; she has to do observations for a class), rugby games, poetry readings, informal parties and "themed parties", etc. etc. I know that this isn't addressing your question - but I'm just wanting to share her experience and the joy that she has found at Rice. (Even though she lives in the UGLIEST college.) I've been suprised at how active the intercollegiate sports and club sports are.. DD is turning into a jock! She hasn't experienced any discrimination or teasing about not being in the science and engineering area --- I think the school is pretty balanced between the departments. It's NOT very strong in the fine arts though (excepting music, of course), but she went to one cool party where the architect students had great artwork up and body-painting (or something like that..????) Anyhow - if you have any specific questions that I, as a parent, could answer, let me know. Your child sounds like a strong candidate for Rice. Go ID if possible. HTH.</p>

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<p>Juniormom: I decided not to apply for several reasons. Last summer I had prepared my application and was ready to mail it by July. I decided to hold it until after I visited Princeton, and after that trip, I decided I was going to do Princeton ED. There was only one problem with this, however: Princeton prohibited any applications concurrent to an ED one with them, so I had to rethink the whole USNA thing. In the end, after weighing all of my options, I decided that I wanted a more relaxed college experience and that I didn't want to apply if I wouldn't attend.
I did attend Summer Seminar (session 1, delta) and loved it. It was a great experience that I have really come to value and would recommend to anyone...and will probably regret not applying to later in life.</p>

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<p>Anxiousmom - </p>

<p>I know your daughter as I too am a freshman in the UGLIEST (but BEST) college. </p>

<p>That party you described was EXCELLENT, i have to say.</p>

<p>Agreed w/ jym that public policy programs are excellent, esp. with the Baker Institute bringing in some great speakers. Tom Brokaw was just here, and one must admit that Alberto Gonzales (an alum of that ugliest of colleges) has obviously risen up through the ranks of the government nearly as far as you can go, even if you disagree with his political views. </p>

<p>I also will vouch for the huge variety of on and off campus activities - no matter what your interests are, you can find something to get excited about here.</p>

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<p>How much does applying ED to Rice help your chances? Especially in the sciences...</p>

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<p>Thanks Jym ...
And ironically, my other child is an engineering/applied physics type who opted for a partial scholarship at a less science/math/tech oriented school, precisely not to become too narrowly focused at the tender age of 18. The beauty of this whole endeavor is that there is more than one "good" way to proceed.</p>

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<p>jenskate1~the speakers you talk about and the activities really interest my son. He also has an aunt and uncle in Dallas which would be fun on a long weekend. I am still not sure why completely but Rice "spoke to us" as many said a good match will. We really liked the area, thelight rail system, Rice Village where we had to spend mucho time as the airlines lost all our luggage for 3 days and my son had to buy interview clothes in less than an hour and a half! Keep in touch and I'll drop a question or two along the way. Actually, here's one~how is the food and do you generally eat in your college?</p>

<p>cavalier302~reading your above comments it sounds like Princeton "spoke to you" and you made the riight decision. It's good that you had the Summer Seminar experience to help you make the decision. We just got back from Candidate Visitation Weekend and the experience was TOTALLY DIFFERENT from SS. The mids were tired (ok that part wasn't different), somewhat bored, fed up with school and no freedom and envying their friends that come alive at 10:30 instead of lights out. Our son had a very realistic look at the "drudgery of mid life". He came away thinking thoughtfully and knowing what life would be like there. Several that he met were thinking through their decisions over turkey. We were there exam week. Anyway as you well know if you started the process abd getting through the paperwork is a milestone. BTW my son was in SS#1 and your team won the competetion...we watched a little of Sea Trials from afar as we arrived early...glad it wasn't me! You should be hearing soon about ED...good luck!</p>

<p>anxiousmom~all the things you listed are what appeals to our son and us! So much to do within a small radius of the city! We've only seen a few schools like this; one in Washington DC and one in St. Louis. Boston is nice but getting around there is for the birds and it's always raining it seems! Thanks for your input and I'll share it. Wish Houston was closer but I guess 4-5 in a car vs in a plane really isn't any different just a little more planned. :-)</p>

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<p>The food - </p>

<p>It's not mom's cooking, that's for sure, but it is generally edible, and often really pretty good. This really depends on where you live. </p>

<p>If you live at the north colleges (martel, jones, or brown) You will usually eat in the North Servery, which is very large and has many options - much like a central dining hall at any university. If you live at Hanzen or Weiss, you will probably eat in South Servery a good deal, which is similar to north servery, but smaller. If you live at Baker, Will Rice, Lovett, or Sid, your college has its own food area. </p>

<p>Most people think that the food is generally better at the larger places, with Will Rice believed to be the worst. Most people though do eat at their own colleges most of the time since they are just convenient and you know that lots of your friends will be there. </p>

<p>At breakfast there is always cereal, or yogurt if you don't want to eat anything that they've cooked onsite. At lunch and dinner, for picky eaters, there is always PB&J, grilled cheese, salad, and make your own sandwiches. There is unlimited ice cream all the time! This is a problem for me :) </p>

<p>Over the course of this semester, I've had meals in all of the colleges except for baker and sid, although I ate at baker when I was a prospective.</p>

<p>and JYM, parents weekend is kind of a funny time to try to judge the food. They were trying to impress you after all. But you are right, it's really not bad.</p>

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<p>Juniormom-
I'll give you my opinion on the food, though my experience was limited to parents weekend. But it was wonderful!!! My s's college shares its "servery" with another college (each have their diningrooms on opposite sides of the servery). They have their own chef, who happens to offer a cooking class (for credit) as well. There is always something unique/classy at one meal every day. When we were there for parents weekend, we attended his cooking demonstration, thinking it'd be something basic. It wasn't. It was a 4 course meal prepared in front of us (with some advanced prep work done) with shrimp, salad, chicken and napoleons for dessert. I wish I'd known-- I would have skipped lunch! Food was amazing. Now I know why several friends join him for meals!</p>

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<p>The distance - </p>

<p>I fell into that trap (5 hours by car or by plane, what's the difference?)</p>

<p>Trust me, there's a difference. </p>

<p>First of all - 5 hours in a car will not cost nearly as much as 5 hours in a plane. Flying home every break is expensive - for example, my plane tix home for thanksgiving cost over $300 round trip. You make the trip for times and you've spent a lot of money. </p>

<p>Also, if you have a five hour car trip, that means you go from your dorm to your house in five hours. If you have a five hour plane trip, that means you have five hours from takeoff to landing. This doesn't include things like:</p>

<p>Getting to the airport from your dorm
Checking in and going through security (You have to allow 2 hours for this, so that's adding a lot of time right there)
Getting your bag(s) at baggage claim
Getting from the airport to your house</p>

<p>Somehow this five hours in a plane has turned into a 12 hour (13 with the time change) ordeal for thanksgiving. </p>

<p>This is obviously not a good reason at all to decide not to come to rice, really - but don't fool yourself, it's very far away from NY.</p>

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<p>Thanks all for the information...another question...how hard is it toget to the airport...we can fly into either. We flew into International but drove to Dallas following our trip. Any shuttle service to the airports or are you on your own...?</p>

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<p>Hobby is much closer than Bush-- easier to get to/from, I'd say (but then again, I've never flown into Bush-- always chosen Hobby for the aforementioned reasons). My s. came home last minute for part of a long weekend-- actually caught the city bus to the airport- cost him a buck. On the way back he took one of the airport shuttles (think it was maybe $15 at most) that dropped him at a hotel very close to campus. Pretty easy to do. Security at Hobby is pretty uneventful, and as he carried on his luggage it was pretty smoothe. I happenend to have some vouchers for free flights, so his cost about $5 in taxes, and nothing else. He was going to fly Airtran's xfare, which is a great deal if Airtran services your city. Students 18-22 can fly standby for $60-75 depending on location. There a lot of blackout dates (they had a big fiasco last spring break, with 4 hr waiting lines, etc) so they've scaled back, and they are cutting back the program in 2005, though they promise there will still be some xfare program.
We are a 2 hr planeride away. The drive would be 13 hrs or so. Yuk. Where we live we'd have been equidistant (flight-wise) to the northeast or to Houston, so it didnt matter. Good news-- rarely have to worry about weather conditions affecting flights into/out of Houston. When he went to a summer program at Duke ( an 8 hr drive for us) we drove it, but that was long enough. When I was in grad school we piled into my car and took shifts driving from Fla-NYwith few stops, but that was when I was young and foolish :)</p>

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<p>JYM626-Thanks for the info...that's why these boards are so helpful. We fly Airtran all the time and didn't know about the discount. I imagine you fly standby for all segments of the trip!?! A lot to think about and again, thanks for the info! I am sure it will come in to play if he gets the opportunity to make the decision!</p>

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<p>Actually, he hasn't yet flown standby yet (he's a freshman)-- he was going to fly standby this last time, but I wanted to use up the vouchers, which were going to expire. Little did I know at the time that Airtran planned to scale back their xfare program. Bummer. Hopefully they will kick it back into gear after the holidays. I emailed them, and all they would say is that it will end Dec. 15 and the program will start again sometime next year. I suspect they are waiting to see if Delta is going to survive or go belly up. That will likely affect their expected passenger load. What city do you fly out of?
Also-- I can ususally find a great fare to Houston-- around $80 or so. So for the extra 20 bucks, I'd rather have a confirmed seat. But for last minute stuff, the xfare can't be beat-- especially if its an off time or your child is flexible. Yes, you fly standbye for all segments. Last time I flew to Houston I sat with a girl who was going to visit her BF at U of H I think--Anyway, she flew from Ohio, changed planes in ATL. Standby for both, and no problem. She either paid the $75,or had to pay $60 for each segment. I don't recall. I think she said she flew standby for the flight to Houston, but booked a ticket back because she was able to get a cheap one. I suppose you could book the first leg and fly standby for the second, if you are changing planes... I wouldn't risk it the other way-- ie I wouldnt book the second leg of a flight with a plane change in case you cant get on the first flight... but I guess that goes without say...</p>

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<p>for all you that want to know, these are the stats for rice:</p>

<p>1330-1530 SAT (25th to 75th percentile)</p>

<p>Factors that count in the admissions:
Academic:
-Secondary school report=very important
-Class Rank=very important
-LoR=very important
-Standardized test scores=very important
-Essay=very important
Non-Academic
-Interview=considered
-ECs=very important
-Talent/Ability=very important
-Character/personal qualities=very important
-Alumni=considered
-Geographical residence=considered
-State residency=considered
-Volunteer work=considered
-Work experience=considered</p>

<p>total applicants=7501
total accepted=1821
total enrolled=751</p>

<p>54% accepted through early decision/action
overall acceptance rate=24%
Early Decision acceptance rate=28%
non-early acceptance rate=21%</p>

<p>86% ranked in top 10% of their class
98% were in top half</p>

<p>ACT score (25th to 75th percentile)</p>

<p>30-34</p>

<p>this is from the US news book 2005..just thought it might help...</p>

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<p>Good luck to your son, Juniormom...my S is also applying ID at Rice...he has a good friend who is a freshman at Yale who was waitlisted at Rice...so you never know...and this guy was outstanding in every area. It's a lottery ticket, no matter how outstanding you have been. A word of comfort...he will end up where he needs to be (my mantra these days :)</p>

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<p>Agreed...my mantra too...wish this was an easier process as there is so much effort put into each application it makes the decision process much more complicated than when I did it...</p>