<p>I know that this is in the Emory area, but I'm also putting this in the Rice forum. I'm torn, and I was wondering what each has on the other. I'm not trying to start a Rice vs. Emory war...really. I just can't decide where to go. I love Emory's campus and location in Atlanta (being from Florida), but I love Rice's students and their fun atmosphere. I want to major in something to do with the humanties, languages, or international affairs. So, which is better?</p>
<p>I don't know enough about Rice to say that Emory is better (objectively, they're both tied for 17th according to US News), but I can definitely say that I would rather live in Atlanta...</p>
<p>Truth-be-told, I've heard that they are very similar schools academically and as far as campus vibe goes. Are you a senior that's been admitted to both, or are you a junior considering both? If you're a junior, why not apply to both and better your odds.</p>
<p>This is completly dumb (and i feel dumb for saying it), but i do not like the name "Rice"..."I went to Rice for college"</p>
<p>Here's a dumb reply to that...I do like the name Rice because it makes me laugh. I like to sing "Rice, rice baby" (like ice, ice baby...Vanilla Ice? you know? ...right?) So now I have out-dumbed you. Anyways, I'm accepted at Rice, and I really should get into Emory. I hope I didn't just jinx myself writing this. I know stats aren't everything, but I really do have the scores, grades, ECs, recs, and demonstrated interest that go above and beyond so if I didn't get in I'd be very disappointed. Anyways, I have only a month to decide, so if I do get in I'll have to choose. If i don't then I guess it serves me right for assuming that I would. Atleast I wouldn't have to make such a hard decision. Please help me out anyways...what does Rice or Emory have that the other doesn't?</p>
<p>Okay, I'll bite. I have a son who attends Rice and a niece who attends Emory, and just returned from a visit to Emory with my younger son (who's a junior in HS). Both are similar in that they have beautiful campuses in a large city in a pseudo-suburban environment and with large endowments. Both schools have an undergrad focus, with small classes. The biggest difference I see is that Rice has a residential college system (with a mix of freshman and upperclassmen that you're randomly assigned to and become your community for all 4 years), and Emory has freshman housing, sophomore housing, etc. The residential college system promotes an inclusive social environment, whereas Emory seems a little self-segregated. In the end, both are good schools in great cities with lots of resources and opportunities. You really can't go wrong with either.</p>
<p>Even though Rice and Emory are tied at #17 on the USNWR...Rice clearly is much more difficult to get into than Emory. I applied to both, and I've so far gotten into Rice but not Emory yet (waiting until April 1st). Seeing I got into Rice, which is extremely difficult to get into (average accepted stats to get in from my school are a 3.93 GPA unweighted and a 2350 versus for Emory a 3.75 GPA and a 2170), I am assuming I'll get into Emory, or waitlisted at best. If someone got into Emory and was still waiting to hear from Rice, I could not say the same thing that s/he should expect to get into Rice as well.</p>
<p>In all the schools in the South, Duke is considered to be #1 and Rice #2 - Rice and Emory are definitely not equals - Emory is considered to be more on par with Vanderbilt than Rice or Duke - but Emory is right up there behind Rice. I would say it's as hard to get into Duke as it is to get into Rice--I myself got into Rice but waitlisted at Duke, and gathering from threads I've seen around CC, including the Duke and Rice forums, a lot of people have been accepted to one and waitlisted at the other, or accepted to one and rejected to the other, or even accepted to both. </p>
<p>I'm just saying. Also, I think Rice's residential college system clearly gives itself a boost over Emory in terms of amazing undergraduate experience. Yale and UMiami have similar residential college systems that really do make their universities more close-knit and intimate.</p>
<p>OP: I mean, in applying to both schools you HAD to write a "Why Rice?" and a "Why Emory?" supplement, so I suggest you go back and look at what you wrote. </p>
<p>I think it also depends on what you want to major. Rice is an engineering and architecture powerhouse and excels at the sciences, but still strong in the humanities as well.</p>
<p><em>sigh</em> i have the exact same problem. i got into both rice and emory. but i have NO idea where i want to go to. rice just gave me my financial aid package and according to them, i only have to be $281 a yr!!!</p>
<p>but for emory i have to get loans in order to get FA. which is stupid b/c how many poor people have the credit to get loans????</p>
<p>i love them both and i'm going to visit emory (again) in april...</p>
<p>but...i don't know...</p>
<p>Here's one:
I have a friend that goes to Rice, and I go to Emory. He says that Rice isn't a fun school socially. I think Emory is. Also, he says Rice is more cutthroat academically, whereas Emory isn't. </p>
<p>Obviously these are just 2 people's opinions, so take them with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>but i also heard from lots of people that @ emory, people are only friends with their "own". but when i went to rice, everyone seemed to friends, no matter the race.</p>
<p>Rice is a fun school. Because of the college systems, the social atmosphere is amazing. That is why it was ranked high for its "undergraduate life experience". It has everything; great academics,amazing organizations, plays, huge parties (+1000 people), and of course BEER BIKE! Houston is also a great city. Rice is right across the street form the worl's largest medical center, the park, the zoo, numerous museums, the Rice Village(shopping center), and is in a beautiful neighborhood.</p>
<p>You probably can't go wrong with either, but Atlanta is an awesome city if you're interested in international affairs. And Emory has the Carter Center. I don't know what kinds of similar opportunities there are at Rice.</p>
<p>"I have a friend that goes to Rice, and I go to Emory. He says that Rice isn't a fun school socially. I think Emory is. Also, he says Rice is more cutthroat academically, whereas Emory isn't."</p>
<p>Rice is academically challenging and demands the best from its students but it's not like UChicago where students study 24/7 and where "fun comes to die"; it also doesn't have frats or Greek life whatsoever (its residential college system is an amazing fusion of frats + dorm life). Rice is a very tough school, make no mistake of it. Anyone thinking it's going to be an easy ride is in for a big surprise. Emory is challenging too but not up to Rice's level; lots of Greek life at Emory too.</p>
<p>I mean, also, college is what you make of it. Someone's social life experience at Emory or Rice may vastly differ from another fellow student's experience at the same college. Only you can decide how your college experience will be.</p>
<p>Rice also has the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy which is simply amazing. Go to the link below for more information on upcoming events and news!</p>
<p>James</a> A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy Rice University</p>
<p>Not to mention, Houston is the nation's 4th largest metropolitan city and is a fantastic place :)</p>
<p>for engineering and IR, go to Rice. for business and the natural sciences,
Emory would suit you well.</p>
<p>"its residential college system is an amazing fusion of frats + dorm life"</p>
<p>If you're not in a fraternity, then you can't make a comparison. There's more to a fraternity than parties, and you just can't get the experience anywhere else. I'm not saying the residential college system is a bad thing, as I know little about it. I do know that the two just aren't comparable.</p>
<p>Also, from personal experience, Atlanta as a city is much more of a college city, better weather, and is just all around more enjoyable to live in. Houston just isn't a great place to be in college. Though there is a huge amount of business, industry, and healthcare there, probably because it's such a huge metropolitan area. That being said, I'm sure Rice has done a great job making the area around the campus into more of a college feel. I've never been to the Rice campus, so I can't say anything about it specifically. But I have been to the city generally several times and know people who lived there. I think we would all agree.</p>
<p>slightly off topic but... is emory or rice better in terms of medical school?</p>
<p>
[quote]
In all the schools in the South, Duke is considered to be #1 and Rice #2 - Rice and Emory are definitely not equals - Emory is considered to be more on par with Vanderbilt than Rice or Duke - but Emory is right up there behind Rice
[/quote]
I am from the west coast and i think many people will agree with me that in terms of most known/best southern schools it goes like this:</p>
<p>1) duke 2) vandie 3) emory 4) rice.</p>
<p>
[quote]
emory or rice better in terms of medical school
[/quote]
</p>
<p>i think emory is more known than rice in terms of med.</p>
<p>I thought rice was big on engineering...</p>
<p>Rice has amazing grad school placement. Over 90% medical school placement, which is absolutely amazing.</p>
<p>I don't care about what people think on the streets in California where I go to school, their opinions don't matter--the grad schools' and my future employer's do. People don't really know WashU either here, but does that make it a bad school just because in some geographic location someone doesn't know much about it?</p>
<p>People who know about top schools respect and know Rice. Trust me. Grad schools admire and respect Rice and a Rice degree. No, I do not expect the average common man on the street to know what Rice University is, but really, why should I care?</p>
<p>Emory is not equal to Rice. Rice is on par with Duke.</p>
<p>The only reason why Rice isn't known more is because it doesn't have a huge basketball legacy and following like Duke does. But given its proximity to Texas Medical Center, the world's largest medical center, 5:1 faculty ratio, and location in the 4th biggest city in America, residential college system--among many, many other attractive features--I'd choose Rice over Emory any day.</p>
<p>Rice is considered the Harvard/Yale of the South. It's one of the most underrated universities in the country. The reason why it's not ranked higher is because of its relatively weak graduate schools--but it's been ranked #1 for best undergraduate experience among other high rankings. Rice is fantastic! :) If you look at the median SAT scores (to determine student quality) it's higher than those of Emory, Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, and Cornell. And essentially the same as Penn's.</p>
<p>And yes, Rice is an engineering powerhouse. Emory? Not so much. At Emory most people tend to be premeds, but at Rice there is more diversity in majors and pre-professional tracks--only 1/6 are premeds, as opposed to about half at Emory.</p>
<p>AND Rice costs less to attend!</p>
<p>I'm sorry, it's like 2:13 AM and I might not be writing/thinking coherently, but I'm seriously considering to go to Rice next year and am in love with it! Just waiting for some more decisions later next week to clinch the deal.</p>
<p>Rice certainly doesn't get as much credit as it deserves, but it is such a great school.</p>
<p>If you choose to go to Emory, you'd still get a great education there too, make no mistake.</p>
<p>But in terms of which one is better, I firmly believe Rice is clearly the better university. In the Princeton Review's 2007 rankings, Rice was ranked first for "Best Quality of Life" and third for “Best Overall Academic Experience for Undergraduates.” The same publication also placed it as first in the nation for “Lots of Race / Class Interaction.” In the 2008 edition of the Princeton Review, Rice was ranked as the #1 "Best Value" Private College.</p>
<p>For each argument that someone gives that Rice is better, there's a counter argument that Emory is better. Neither decision is a bad one. But I think it's really tacky when students from other schools feel the need to bash Emory on the Emory message board. It's very nice of you to give your opinion on here, because this is a difficult decision for the incoming freshmen. However, comments such as these are misleading and inflammatory:</p>
<p>"Rice has amazing grad school placement. Over 90% medical school placement, which is absolutely amazing."
-So does Emory, look it up</p>
<p>"Rice is considered the Harvard/Yale of the South."
-Emory certainly receives similar acclaim</p>
<p>"And yes, Rice is an engineering powerhouse. Emory? Not so much."
-Actually the only engineering program that we have, a joint biomedical engineering program with GaTech, is ranked 2nd in the country. Emory is a liberal arts school, primarily, at the UG level. We just happen to have outstanding Business and Nursing schools as well.</p>
<p>"At Emory most people tend to be premeds, but at Rice there is more diversity in majors and pre-professional tracks--only 1/6 are premeds, as opposed to about half at Emory."
-Most graduates of Emory are not premed - less than 200 out of 1250 are at graduation (1/6). Emory also offers about 75 majors, which is pretty diverse.</p>
<p>"The reason why it's not ranked higher is because of its relatively weak graduate schools"
-In fact, USNWR rankings (if that's what you're referring to) and most other UG rankings are independent of graduate school rankings. Those are usually done by department in the Humanities and Sciences and by college/school for the professional areas of study. So, I'm not sure why Rice having weaker graduate schools is relevant.</p>
<p>Like I was saying, this is a big decision, so I would highly recommend doing your own research before you make a decision. Obviously, anyone who goes to either school is going to be biased, so don't take anything you read on here as the absolute truth. Even so, you're going to have a great experience at both. No matter which decision you make, you've made the right one. I really can't see any downside to either.</p>