Chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Rice University
1

<p>SAT: 1980 but will retake in october, probably will be much higher as i didnot study for this SAT
math:680
verbal:630
writing:69 8/12 essay (total: 670)</p>

<p>GPA: 3.96 unweighted (114 weighted)
Class rank: 9 out of 534</p>

<p>SAT IIs: US History: 700
Math II: 680</p>

<p>AP: 11 AP classes including ones i will take this year.
so far:
World History:5
US History: 5
Spanish:3
English language: 4</p>

<p>APs i will take:
calculus AB
calculus BC
Chemistry
Psychology
Government
Economics
English literature</p>

<p>ECs:
• Volunteer at hospital: 75 hours currently
• Volunteer at Library: 20 hours currently
• Math Club (tutoring): 3 years, Mu Alpha Theta award
• Sunday School: Attended 6 years; Teacher’s Assistant: 1 year
• Religion-related Activities: 11 years, 5 hours a week.
• Student Council: Active Member 3 years
• Art Classes Every Saturday morning for 4 hours: 1 year
• Visual Art Society: 1 year</p>

<p>i joined more clubs but those were just random ones for which i wasnt passionate like NHS, spanish honor society, science club, key club, etc.</p>

<p>i dont really have any leadership positions because im really a shy person, but usually with the clubs im involved in, im really an active participant. i hope this doesnt hurt too much :(</p>

<p>I'm applying through questbridge, but i dont get picked as the quest scholar, then will go through the regular admissions process.</p>

<p>EDIT: oh and i live in texas (dallas to be specific)</p>

2

<p>Retaking the SAT would definitely strengthen your app, and if you hadn't studied for the first one, I'm sure you could boost it up during the second time. Your GPA is fine, and your EC's are more than I did back in high school. Definitely include your NHS, Key Club, etc clubs even if you weren't too involved in them; even though you're not in a leadership position in those, and it probably won't be a large benefit, it would be a detriment if you never mention that you joined them at all. Why are you taking the Calc AB and BC tests? If you're in Calc BC, I wouldn't bother with the AB test unless your school has a reputation for getting less than a 4 on the BC test.</p>

<p>You also might want to drive down there for an interview if you haven't yet, or at least get an off-campus interview in Dallas.</p>

<p>With similar stats (though my SAT was 1450, I believe), I was accepted into Rice's engineering school and just graduated this past year. With all those hospital volunteer hours, are you planning to apply for the Rice/Baylor program or at least becoming a premed? I'm currently at UT Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, so I can answer questions you may have about premed life at Rice if needed.</p>

3

<p>Knaack - is the premed life at rice extremely competitive? how well does rice prepare you, and what are its positive/negative points?</p>

4

<p>yes i am thinking about premed, but im not sure if i want to make that my major just incase i change my mind. i think im going to major in something else (history probably) and do premed.</p>

<p>yes i am going to take calculus BC, i didnt realize it when i wrote this.</p>

<p>is an interview really mandatory? because, like i said im a very shy person, and get nervous about stuff like that and i think it'll hurt my chances rather than help.</p>

<p>yes, hopefully my SAT score will improve.
Did you apply through regular admissions process or through early, or interim?</p>

<p>i dont think i can participate in the Rice/baylor program because i'll be applying through regular admissions (after QuestBridge).</p>

5

<p>texas789 - </p>

<p>Rice is a great school for premeds. I believe about 90% of Rice premeds get accepted into a medical school during their first try (a stat on Rice's webpage that I read somewhere today...). Overall, I never felt the competition at Rice in my premed classes really. This isn't meaning to say that I got all A's in them (far from it in Cell Biology, <em>cough</em>), but the student body is very relaxed and always willing to help if you need it. I found it to be more of a communal learning process than a cut-throat environment, as opposed to horror stories I've heard at other schools (Johns Hopkins to name one, with people stealing other people's notebooks and the such, though I admit that this is just hear-say). The people there are extremely smart, but most are also helpful and more than willing to teach or aid you as needed.</p>

<p>Positive points:
Rice has a great student body, with brilliant people who are learning their potential. As I mentioned, they're your greatest resource for doing well in school. Also, the professors are great and readily will stay after class (sometimes for over an hour) to help students, or they will have open office hours for those who need them. The classes are top notch, and truly feel that the Rice classes more than prepared me for med school.</p>

<p>Rice also has a great social life, with parties and events around campus. Rice students work hard and play hard. The parties and the alcohol policy are great at Rice, giving you a much needed weekend of relaxation after your school week.</p>

<p>Finally, Rice is literally right next to the Texas Medical Center, the world's largest in fact. Volunteering couldn't be easier, and there are plenty of summer research opportunities for students either at Rice or the medical center. Baylor is right there as well, giving even more oportunities. Research at Rice is great, given the low student to faculty ratio. I did a years worth of research in the bioengineering labs and got a published paper out of it.</p>

<p>Negative points:
Since the student body is composed of intelligent people, the curves in classes are harder. While med schools will look at Rice as a highly competitive school, a low GPA at Rice, or anywhere for that matter, can kill your application. Getting a A+ at Rice is a difficult thing to do, especially in all your premed classes. You simply can't be the best at everything here, unless you sacrifice your social life (something I wouldn't recommend). </p>

<p>Also, and as more of a side note, Lovett college (essentially a dorm, for those unfamiliar with the college system at Rice) is ugly as hell, and I pity those who live there.</p>

<p>Hope this helps. Feel free to contact me with any other questions you may have.</p>

6

<p>To help you with your decision, Rice doesn't have a premed major. So you get to do whatever you want, as long as you take the medical school requirements sometime in your four years (2 years bio, 2 years chem, 1 year math, 1 year physics, 1 year english... I think that's the standard). History and the premed requirements should be no problem in that time frame.</p>

<p>The interview is not manditory, but I would recommend it. I interviewed with an admissions staff member at Rice and basically just talked about river-rafting and Tae Kwon Do for an hour. It's very informal, but lets you ask about Rice and its community. Showing interest in a school has never hurt anyone (aka, asking lots about Rice and the college system... people enjoy answering questions that make it look like you've done some research on the school). And if you're planning on medical school, it's not bad to get some interviewing experience under your belt before then. I was extremely shy before undergrad, but I still found the interviewer to be very friendly and helpful. Many people get in without interviews, however, so don't feel obligated if you're really against it.</p>

<p>I applied early decision, simply because I didn't want to fill out any other applications and I knew I'd go to Rice over Harvard or MIT (what can I say, I love Texas). I'm not sure how the QuestBridge admissions works, but applying earlier does help your chances overall.</p>

7

<p>hmm, rice sounds amazing, i just wish it weren't in houston. seriously, how did you deal with the weather? and what other colleges would you recommend that have a similar environment/academic rigor? do you know if rice is generous with merit scholarships?</p>

8

<p>thankyou so much for your help and answers. if i need anything else, i'll be sure to ask you :)</p>

9

<p>Houston really isn't that bad. During the summer months, unless you're doing research, you'll be elsewhere. And the winter is great knowing that it'll probably never get below freezing (very, very nice while wondering around campus at 2 am). You'll have a couple months of discomfort, but the winter more than makes up for it in my mind. Then again, I hate snow :P</p>

<p>As for schools similar to Rice, I'd say that many schools have similar academic programs (just look at the rankings), though few also have that similar liberal arts college feel. It's a rare combination, in which the college system (no frats) really amplifies. I know Oxford has the college system (and started it, I believe), but I honestly don't know if any other American universities have adopted it as fully as Rice has.</p>

<p>I know Rice will pretty much fully support any required financial aid, but it's merit based scholarships are kind of limited. Since you have the top students applying, the competition is great and its rare that you will receive anything. You would probably have to seek your own merit scholarships apart from Rice, unfortunately.</p>

10

<p>ok so i got a 2190 on the october. but now i have another concern, im not doing so great in my calc ab class, i got a 86 my first semester (we have 9 week semesters). is that going to hurt my chances?</p>

11

<p>Just a note about med school admit rates, and this applies to all schools not just Rice, these numbers are typically based on those who actually apply to med school, not on how many begin premed, succeed in those classes, and eventually are admitted. Having said that, a 90% rate is very good.</p>

12

<p>try to bump up the SAT II's</p>

13

<p>is december too late for that? (interim)</p>

<p>btw, i got chosen as questbridge finalist and thats supposedly supposed to help my chances</p>

14

<p>yes. December is too late. By the ttime your application goes in, all testing nshouyld have been completed</p>

15

<p>Hmm i thought u can send ur december scores directly to colleges before u even see the results?? No?</p>

16

<p>darn it. what about regular decision?</p>

17

<p>"All testing must be completed on or before the due date of the application" this is a gospel fact for all applications... you MUST take the test and choose to send your scores to any college BEFORE the due date for the app</p>

18

<p>Actually, Antarius, you're wrong on this matter. From the Rice website:</p>

<p>"There are three deadlines for application to Rice. For students using the Early Decision option, the deadline for submission of materials is November 1. The Interim Decision deadline is December 1, and the Regular Decision deadline is January 10. Note that this is not the date by which you must have completed your testing. Testing deadlines are as follows: Early Decision = November, Interim Decision = December, Regular Decision = January."</p>

19

<p>thankyou dorian_mode :D</p>

20

<p>No problem. I can be helpful sometimes.</p>