<p>We're in the lull right now between panicked almost-freshmen and panicked applicants, so I thought we could start something to add a little life to this board.</p>
<p>Current/former students, what are your favorite things about Rice that don't get talked about enough? This is a chance to hype up the things you really like that aren't given enough credit, or that prospective students often overlook during their search. So things like the College System, class size, enthusiastic students, etc. are out.</p>
<p>One of my favorite things about Rice University that isn't given enough credit is the Rice Coffeehouse. It is a completely student-run organization that serves certified organic, fair-trade coffee at reasonable prices. The KOCs (Keepers of the Coffee) who work there are fun, attractive, and lively--and if you're a regular (like me), they'll often give you your drinks for free. I go there at least twice a day, and it is one of my favorite places at Rice.</p>
<p>This post is brought to you by the caffeine of a large Rice Coffeehouse dark roast.</p>
<p>You would. I, personally, am a fan of the Passport to Houston which allows all us lucky Rice students free or discounted admission to many of Houston’s cultural amenities. Then again, I mostly use it for the free admission to the zoo, because animals are awesome.</p>
<p>2.7 miles of jogging trail on the peripheral of Rice campus, red clay(thus, easy on your knees), 90% under shade and, yeah, for people watching.</p>
<p>Hi. My name is TheRisenLilith, and I am a panicked applicant.</p>
<p>207 miles of jogging trail! Heck yes…that means I’ll be forced to exercise. I think (if I go), I’ll make a friend of mine drop me off at the opposite end (err..curve?) of the trail, and leave and turn his/her cell phone off. That way, I’ll be forced to run…</p>
<p>Is it true that most student lose weight their first year rather than gain? I mean, that adds a whole new dynamic to the term “Freshman Fifteen”.</p>
<p>I like the fact that we can have random dance parties in the commons (plural?). I’m saying this because I just got back from one, and it was awesome.</p>
<p>It’s actually just a hair under 3 miles (measured with a GPS).</p>
<p>I forget what it is called, but there is a great little bar in the basement of the science building (I think) that has extremely cheap beer. It is billed as a grad student bar, but grad students over 21 are welcome. We went there with D and some people and it was great.</p>
<p>The bar is called Valhalla and actually serves beer at cost (I believe all of the bartenders are volunteer grad students). </p>
<p>There’s also an undergraduate bar in the basement of the student center called Willie’s which is considered more of the undergraduate bar. While it does operate under Texas state law on underage drinking, it’s a fairly popular hangout for a lot of the undergrad population (they serve non-alcoholic drinks and pizza and other food and have pool tables and a big-screen tv usually showing some sporting event).</p>
<p>Really, one of them came up to my current-Rice-freshman friend and let her pet him/her/it. It was really cute…kind of like a mini-initiation for my friend, huh? Even the squirrels are welcoming!</p>
<p>The great parties thrown by the colleges. Beer-Bike, although this must have changed somewhat with the new drinking age. The MOB. The great trips we took on spring break - to Padre Island and Mexico, canoeing the Guadalupe in the hill country, ski trips to Colorado.</p>
<p>Most of the time they do a pretty good job. There are occasional roommates that don’t work out (though college masters will usually work with students to rearrange roommates when problems do arise) but for the most part, people seem pretty happy with their roommates - I stayed with mine through sophomore year and know a lot of other people who have done the same.</p>
<p>It’s actually the orientation-week coordinators who do it (except I hear Weiss has a different system) so three students from each college who have pretty much a full time job over the summer dealing with such things. Being students themselves, they tend to know what to look for a little beyond the “find 2 students who say they’re late risers, non-drinkers, and tidy” approach.</p>
<p>Yeah, the O-week coordinators who actually are Rice students know how to match up freshmen better than a 40-year-old housing director who went to a different university twenty years ago.</p>
<p>Underappreciated things:
-KTRU, Rice radio. Very few students that I know of listen to it, but it has a huge range and is pretty popular in the rest of Houston. </p>
<p>-How easy it is to get involved with almost anything. Everything is pretty egalitarian and welcoming. If you want to write for the Thresher, be a KTRU dj, or do research in a lab, it is incredibly easy to do so.</p>
<p>-The housekeeping, groundskeeping, servery, and custodial staff is also very, very unappreciated. They do a really great job and are always friendly to students.</p>
<p>-The relationship between the police (RUPD) and students is a much better one than I’ve seen at other colleges. You will see RUPD officers eating in the colleges, talking to students, and just working to have an open atmosphere.</p>