Hello everyone,
Where I’m from (not Texas or the South), Rice is regarded as a great school, but specifically for science and engineering. The kids who apply to Rice from my school are mainly interested in engineering and are competing for the same major, so it’s difficult for me to gage whether or not I would be competitive for Rice based on school-specific admissions stats on Naviance.
Would a student (such as myself) interested in history or political science be more likely to be accepted than an engineering applicant?
Thank you for your insight.
This isn’t unusual, Rice is most thought of as a STEM school, though of course it has strong offerings in other disciplines and many students who are not STEM.
Rice does consider which school you are applying for. I would think the admissions committee would look to see if you will be a strong candidate in the humanities/social sciences. They would probably look for strong essays, verbal test scores and top grades in related course and be more likely to forgive a less than fantastic quantitative test score.
No, Rice doesn’t consider what school you’re applying for unless you’re applying to Shepherd or as an architecture student. I have not read anywhere that it is relevant at all.
If they do consider it, it is very unimportant and you should focus on demonstrating interest and your overall academics much more. Of course what I mean by this is also demonstrating interest in the indicated major you have chosen/the entirety of the university. But I highly doubt that choosing a humanities major will significantly increase your chances.
Check out the Common Data Set for Rice to see which factors they weigh the most/least:
http://oir.rice.edu/Common_Data_Set/
very interesting- thanks. Do you think Admissions evaluates the applications by the school applicants applied to (like do they compare everyone who is applying for Humanities or is it regional)?
@autocraticllama
If I understand your question correctly, no. Unless you are applying to Shepherd or as an architecture student, everyone is considered within the same pool of applicants. You are not only compared to those who applied to the same school as you.
Perhaps in larger universities they may, but Rice is very small, and the fact that major changing is common probably means that evaluating the applicant body as a whole is a better idea.
What makes you say that? On their own website they say they do.
Yes, in your application to Rice you must specify which one of our six academic schools is your primary area of interest. The six schools are architecture, engineering, humanities, music, natural sciences or social sciences. Although this is not a binding choice, the decision should not be made lightly. We are looking for a thoughtful response to this question. Our academic schools are looking for different strengths and qualities in applicants, so you will need to choose the school in which you feel the most confident of your abilities and interests. If your application is denied, you cannot be reconsidered under a different school.
https://futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/Frequently_Asked_Questions.asp#2
@Dimnarion
Not in the aspect the OP is talking about. Just because there’s many STEM majors at Rice doesn’t mean a non-STEM will have an easier time getting in. The wording on the website implies that they look for students who are strong within their field of study. You still have to have a similar degree of competency/demonstrated interest in your potential field of study regardless of major.