After hearing back from everywhere I applied, I have narrowed my choices to Duke and Rice. I’m really interested in going pre-med (majoring in Neuroscience and/or Econ) and am interested in learning more about the atmosphere, any potential weeding/attrition rates, and research/shadowing opportunities at these two schools. Financial aid is negligible as they’re both about the same (15k scholarship at Rice and 25k in grants at Duke—note Duke costs more to begin with). I have been to Duke and really loved it, but I have read a lot about Rice and it sounds incredible too (planning to visit in about a week). I just want input on which to choose. My main goal is to get into medical school. I don’t care about name recognition, but I am interested in getting a really well-rounded college experience. I’m interested in greek life, but I am excited about the residential college system at Rice too (so that is also not a huge factor).
Here are the pros and cons from what I can tell:
Duke
Pros
Duke Medical School
Strong research opportunities
Greek life
Sports culture
Incredible school spirit
Closer to home (cheaper transportation)
Weather
Broad core curriculum
Cons
Supposedly more brutal pre-med route
Durham (not a con—just not as expansive as Houston)
Rice
Pros
Texas Medical Center
Strong research opportunities
Supposedly more collaborative/more laid back atmosphere
Supposedly no weeding
Residential college system
Adjacent to Houston
More open core curriculum
Cons
No medical school
Weaker sports
Humid weather
Further from home (more expensive transportation)
Technically less name recognition
Overall, I feel like I could really be happy at both of these schools, so I am really just concerned over which would be more in line with my career goals. Thanks!
Rice #5 “supposedly no weeding” : If true, then that practice combined with cheaper medical schools in Texas should be weighed more heavily in your decision making process.
Remember, when thinking about the weather you will be in college during the winter. The weather at Houston in the winter is wonderful. You will be sitting outside on a patio sipping latte, probably with a professor at your table, in February. Daughter got a paid research job freshman year. The largest medical center in the country is adjacent to the campus. Completely different vibe though. Rice no fraternities. Rice, though division 1, little interest in division 1 sports, football team in last place, but HUGE interest in the goofy interhouse competitions and quirky college traditions. Think Hogwarts.
Go to owl days.
Yeah Hogwarts, Owls, same same
All I know about Duke is that a girl I knew at Penn was from Durham and she hated Duke. Wouldn’t even take me to see it when I visited her. I got the impression it wasn’t in Durham but a drive outside but long ago now.
Rice isn’t adjacent to Houston but in the center of Houston.
You can’t go wrong with either of those two great schools. They are very different in culture and vibe. After you visit Rice, you will have a good basis for comparison to Duke. Owl Days is a great way to experience Rice student life. Rice does not have Greek life, but the residential college system is great and inclusive. Rice does not have the rah rah sports culture that Duke does. Rice has a new neuroscience major (formerly a minor). Many students at Rice pursue double majors. Many of the students at Rice are premed, but the placement rates into medical school are great. The medical center is across the street from Rice so there are lots of internship and research opportunities. Rice has a strong premed advising program. https://oaa.rice.edu/pre-health-professions
My son is freshman premed at Rice. He is majoring in Cognitive Sciences with neuroscience emphasis (or whatever they call it). He is considering changing to the new Neuroscience major. Due to AP credits he is skipping the one year of general biology and chemistry classes (although biology lab is still required) and one semester of math. So far he has taken or is currently taking the following premed requirements: two physics classes, two English classes, one statistics class, first org chemistry class, and first general biology lab. He tells me that the classes require a lot of effort but are fair in their grading. He studies with lots of premed friends and hasn’t experienced any “cut throat” competition. The org chem class has been the roughest so far, but he really likes the professor. He hopes to eek out an A-, but may make the first B of his academic life. I don’t know if you call the org chem class a “weeder”, but it apparently is the hardest (along with org 2) of premed requirements at any university. Overall, he’s been very happy with his classes and classmates thus far.
Regarding extracurricular premed activities, he started volunteering at an aids hospice center last fall (a fellow senior premed told him about it). He does this on weekends. He also started volunteering 8 hrs per week this semester at a federally funded health clinic in a poor part of Houston. He secured this by application and interview and by being known there by having participated in Rice’s summer Urban Immersion program before he started his freshman year. So, my point is that he has had little trouble so far finding clinical volunteer opportunities at Rice. He also just secured a clinical research spot starting this summer with a Baylor med school professor across the street in the Texas Medical Center complex.
Overall, my son is loving Rice. He loves the size of the school, the location in the heart of the museum/Tx Med Ctr district, the academics, and the residential college system. He has found it easy to make many friends, loves the access to umpteen number of restaurants/shops/other retail, and the beauty of the campus and the surrounding area.
Thank you so much for all the feedback and advice! It was a tough decision, but going to Owl Days and Blue Devil Days made me realize how much more I really liked Duke. I will be attending Duke University in the fall!!!
Congratulations! We have a Blue Devil and an Owl in our house. I’m glad you had the opportunity to visit both great schools and found the best fit for you.