<p>OP, if he already knows he loves it then, yeah, do an overnight after he’s accepted.</p>
<p>Rice was ds’s no 1 choice for two years, but he didn’t have the greatest overnight experience. Blessing in disguise for us because he was WL’d. Having not had a great overnight made that sting a little less, like maybe it wasn’t the right school for him anyway.</p>
<p>Good luck to your ds. Rice really is a great school.</p>
<p>Thanks for weighing in, anxiousmom.</p>
<p>Our first foray with the dept was not as good as our second, and they were very kind and helpful when we had a flat on the way to DS’s interview!!</p>
<p>My younger son also had a really difficult time scheduling an overnight at Rice several years ago. He finally gave up on the overnight, and scheduled a visit during the day where he was paired with a student for the day and attended several classes (he had already done the tour/interview on a previous visit).</p>
<p>I agree - wait to do an overnight until he’s been accepted and is making his final decision. Rice has Owl Days Admit Days - last year in April:
[Rice</a> University | Undergraduate Admission](<a href=“http://admit.rice.edu/owldays.html]Rice”>http://admit.rice.edu/owldays.html)</p>
<p>We didn’t have any trouble at all with Rice admissions, but it was even a year before jym’s son. Also, we dealt mainly with Shepherd School for scheduling auditions etc. We found them very flexible and helpful, but also had no problem with the regular admissions office. I’m glad we missed the grump!!! </p>
<p>Don’t let it sour you on Rice. It’s an awesome school and I feel it offers a better educational experience than just about anywhere.</p>
<p>Well, it does sound like there have been a wide range of experiences with Rice’s admissions office. Also sounds like a bit of a negative pattern exists with respect to the scheduling of overnights. I wish son had a quick answer like hillbillie did, but go figure. </p>
<p>I’ve calmed down a bit. It seems kind of silly to have son visit just to show interest if it’s inconvenient for everyone. The point should be to help him make a decision. We will just let him apply and hope for the best…a visit can always come later as per Shanghaimom’s suggestion and others.</p>
<p>My kid wrote Rice that distance and expense made a visit impossible prior to acceptance. Rice responded not to worry and a fat envelope arrived anyway. Then we had problems scheduling an April overnight due to schedule conflicts during Rice’s official accepted student visit dates, so he never did an official visit; he flew to Houston at the end of April during a reading period before Rice’s finals, crashed with a student from his HS who was at Rice, and explored the campus and connected with kids on his own. Rice ended up being a close second choice to his first choice, which offered full tuition. So book those April visit dates or you might be shut out. And don’t give up on Rice because of Admissions grouches! (Although if their final money offer had arrived a bit sooner my son might have gone to Rice, but that’s a different gripe!)</p>