<p>and im assuming rice is more towards the liberal side...is this correct?</p>
<p>overall, all colleges are more liberal than conservative. However, most people that i talk with think of rice as being more conservative than an average college. Texas is a relatively conservative state.</p>
<p>when i visited rice it seemed evenly split between libs and conservatives. Their school newspaper is chock full of liberal activism, but the editorial section has all sorts of letters bashing their liberal views. houston, however, is fairly conservative, especially in the white-dominated suburbs. If you stay in the Rice area, however, you will encounter probably the second-most liberal area in Texas(after Austin) on a regular basis. The Montrose area of Houston is known for being pretty hipster-crazy.</p>
<p>As a recent graduate (Dec 05) - and a fairly liberal one, I might add - I think the campus harbors a pretty obvious political dipole. I can't remember the numbers exactly, but a recent poll confirmed that liberals outnumber conservatives substantially, although there is a large independent/libertarian wing as well. A rather informal survey done by a student recently also showed Rice to be slightly more conservative/independent that schools of similar rank (e.g. - Emory). The reason is, of course, that this is Houston, not New York.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the most important comment I feel I should include is that people are overwhelmingly content with the spirit of free speech on campus. Last year I attended a forum about religious freedom on campus including three professors (one Muslim, one Jewish and one Christian). I recall that the most conservative of these professors (the latter) considered Rice by far the most open school he's ever been affiliated with (I think 7 schools total - including Purdue and other Tier I colleges).</p>
<p>So no matter where you stand politically, you'll find many people who share your views.</p>
<p>i like ur name bry....after the non vascular plants!</p>