<p>How much does "school interest" factor into Rice's admissions decisions? E.g. if they have two applicants with nearly identical stats, will the one who did campus visits and took a renewed interest in the university be chosen over the one who simply applied to "see what they could get"?</p>
<p>I'm sorry if this sounds like a dumb question...</p>
<p>Yes from what i heard. I talked to an alumni the other day and he says showing big interest is huge points in admission besides comparing stats. If you want to show interest, schedule an interview, take a visit, talk to alumni, and talk to a student at Rice.</p>
<p>Yeah, interests helps (though I'd hope people would be interested in every school they apply to...lol). Visiting is nice but definitely not necessary...that's way too expensive for some people. I think it's probably easiest to show interest on the "why Rice" essay just by doing your research: go to the webpage of the department you're interested in, find something unique you like about it and discuss it. Or something.</p>
<p>But wouldn't talking to an alum be bad? Rice could be paying them to "interview" us and make us feel as if Rice is the best for us</p>
<p>Alumni interviewers are volunteers.</p>
<p>That's the idea of an interview. The big secret is that it's much more about the school selling itself to you than it is about you selling yourself to the school. There's a really strange give-and-take in college admissions.</p>