New rankings out for Rice. https://unconventional.rice.edu/happystudents?fbclid=IwAR22wBqTVnFfJf3hVvcl9dJ0LKk8owZlpGXERlYvNNV04bOPlnr3HYnvbHk
For those interested the Rice Common Data Set for 2018-19 is posted. https://oir.rice.edu/sites/g/files/bxs1496/f/2.%20CDS_2018-19_WEBSITE.pdf
@Houston1021 A pall of gloom must have descended onto the Rice campus: The school has fallen all the way to #5 in the Princeton Review ranking of āHappiest Students.ā 
For those who are curious about such things, Iāve drawn on Riceās now-posted 2018-19 Common Data Set to compare Riceās standardized testing numbers with those from a range of peer schools. Where the 2018-19 CDS is as yet unavailable, Iāve drawn on the previous yearās statistics. (I was unable to track down data for some schools, including Princeton, Chicago, and JHU.) Iāve ranked the schools by the 75% SAT figure, since this is a handy benchmark of what the unhooked student typically aims for. When schools have the same 75% figure, Iāve used the āaverageā SAT score as a tiebreaker.
Harvard: 1460 - 1590 / 32 - 35 (2017-18)
Duke: 1390 - 1580 / 31 - 35 (2017-18)
MIT: 1500 - 1570 / 34 - 36
WashU: 1470 - 1570 / 32 - 34 (2017-18)
Stanford: 1420 - 1570 / 32 - 35
RICE: 1450 - 1560 / 33 - 35
Yale: 1450 - 1560 / 33 - 35
Vanderbilt: 1450 - 1560 / 33 - 35
Penn: 1440 - 1560 / 32 - 35
Dartmouth: 1420 - 1560 / 31 - 35
Northwestern: 1430 - 1550 / 33 - 35
Brown: 1420 - 1550 / 32 - 35
Georgetown: 1370 - 1530 / 31 - 34
USC: 1350 - 1530 / 30 - 34
Emory: 1350 - 1520 / 31 - 34
Interestingly, Rice, Yale, and Vanderbilt share the same 25/75 numbers both for the SAT and the ACT. Aside from this three-way tie, what stood out for me on the list was Dukeās lofty 75% figure of 1580. I assume that Dukeās relatively lower 25% figure of 1390 reflects the presence of many Division I ACC recruits on campus.
@MrSamford2014 Every year there is jockeying for happiest students. 5 is the lowest in a long time, but Rice seems to be rising in a number of other categories. Interesting analysis of the CDS data. Duke obviously recruits some national caliber athletes that are going to be one and done and headed for the NBA.
Hi,
Iām the parent of an incoming freshman this fall. We are from up north so will be flying down with the boy to drop him for O-week. Can someone give me their two cents on the residence hall linens program? This is our first one off to college, so I am already a deer in the headlights about the whole thing. If you arenāt packing up a car at home (we will be renting one in Houston), whatās the best way to handle all the stuff?
Your son is embarking on a magical adventure. Congratulations to you! You have a lot of choices on how to do this. Southwest Airlines, if you can use them, allows two large checked suitcases per person. Thatās more than enough to bring a whole lot of stuff.
Bb&B, online options with Big Store shops allow to shop in one location and pick up the stuff at no extra charge at a store elsewhere. Or just do your shopping in Houston. Thereās a Target, heck a number of Targets, Walmartās, whatever, within short distance of the University. Houston is the third largest city in the US. You arenāt going out to any backwoods locale with no shopping around. Our son shopped with roommate, as we met up with that family and coordinated purchases. Sometimes seeing that room and talking to the person whoās going to share it helps with decisions.
Once you get everything set, you can mail stuff from home that has no equal to the College where your son is living. The residential college system makes for safe and easy mail and package delivery because it goes right to where they live. Youāll get that address if you donāt already.
You (and we) are better off not having a van load of stuff we are taking there. When the kid has to pack it up and store it at the end of the year, less is very very good.
@ops19212325 We had a similar situation with our oldest, but in reverse - she went to college in the NE, we live in the South. We did as @cptofthehouse described - checked bags, bought things locally (too many things). She really had too much stuff, and move out at the end of the year was a big pain and she ended up throwing stuff away. With our Rice daughter, we learned the lesson. She brought the minimum - clothes (Rice is pretty casual, but there are a few opportunities to dress up), hangers, laundry bag, linens (we washed them at home and she made the bed as soon as she got there), towels (washed at home), toiletries, desk lamp, computer. We said she could get additional things if she really felt she needed them. We got her a small rug when we were in Houston since her college has concrete floors. As cpt noted, the mail system is excellent and convenient, so she order a few decor things from Amazon, and there is a shuttle to Target every weekend so she picked up a few things there. But in general she kept things pretty simple and move out at the end of the year was super simple and straightforward.
Those vacuum bags work really well for packing towels and linens - can shrink them down to small efficient bundles. We also liked the Samsonite tote-a-ton bags, which can be checked and fold down into nothing and stored under the bed during the school year, and re-packed and stored over the summer. Our daughter ended up storing most of her stuff in Houston over the summer - her residential college had PODS and the students could (for a small fee) put their stuff in there.
Also, keep a ānicerā outfit in a place that is easy to unpack. The students have matriculation the night of move in - most girls seemed to wear dresses or sundresses or skirts, boys seemed to wear button down and khakis.
And to add a note about the linens program - most people say that they are not great quality and donāt hold up. Also, you might want to find out which college your son is in first - my daughterās college has twin XL mattresses, but not sure if this is the same across colleges
Thank you both! Excellent suggestions. The adventure beginsā¦
Welcome @ops19212325. Congratulations on your sonās admission to Rice. I would not go with the linens program. There is a Bed, Bath and Beyond on Kirby not too far from campus. You can order stuff online and go there for pick up once you get to town. B B & B also gives out lots coupons online and in the mail. The store on Kirby usually stocks some Rice gear around move in time.You can also order from Target online for in store pick up. There is a huge Target on Main Street pretty close to campus. It is worth it to rent a car and make a reservation at a hotel close to campus on the Saturday before move in. You can do errands and get acclimated before the move in frenzy on Sunday. Fly Southwest to Hobby and pack as many big bags as you can for free. You are allowed two per person up to 40 pounds each. The Bush airport is a lot further away from campus, and the other airlines charge baggage fees. The parents can fly back with most of the empty suitcases.
Two sets of linens is all they need, (and that assumes the kid actually changes the sheets once in a while). Towels may get washed more often, so several of those come in handy. A beach towel is useful for the pool etc. Most dorms have XL twin mattresses. There is no need to bring many winter clothes other than a few sweatshirts and a light jacket if your kid is planning to come home for Thanksgiving or Christmas breaks. It will be hot well into October. The student can bring some winter stuff back to campus then. Amazon delivers stuff to each residential college. There is a campus shuttle that goes to Target, and the O Week coordinators will take the kids there during O Week. Make sure kid has a debit and/or credit card with sufficient balance/limits to make purchases.
Many thanks, I am feeling better!
Forgot to mention, power strip with surge protector, extra long phone charging cord, and shower caddy too! Shower shoes if the student is in one of the colleges with hall bathrooms. Exciting times for all of the new students!
New student celebrations! Not a lot of information out yet but if you live near one of these locations you might want to save the date!
I wish there was an Austin event planned for new students. Anyone on this thread from Austin?
Rice will likely add more events to the schedule as hosts and locales are firmed up. I wouldnāt be surprised if they add events in Austin and in various parts of Houston.
Excerpt from Presidentās Leebronās letter to Parents. Alumni etc. re: admissions this year.
āWhen I last wrote earlier this spring, I shared some of the incredible responses that we received as a result of The Rice Investment. Not only did Rice receive more than 27,000 undergraduate student applications this year, increasing applications by 30% from the year before, but we also saw the incredible impact that The Rice Investment has had with regard to Riceās reputation nationally and globally. You may recall that we had nearly 15,000 applications just from the United States outside Texas, plus another 4,600 from outside the United States (both U.S. citizens abroad and international students). In the end, we were able to accept only 8.7% of those applicants.ā
@juststaycool an Austin event has been added as well as several others. Two are in China! More should be added as the summer progresses.
thank you! @Houston1021
I thought Iād share that if your student gets allergy shots and is on a maintenance plan, health services can give them their injections. Contact them now for the forms.
More new student celebrations have been added, locations are set, and registration is now open. The one in inner loop Houston is at the Huff House on the Rice campus. https://alumni.rice.edu/newstudentcelebrations
Hello, my son will be starting at Rice coming fall. He and all of us are looking forward to next 4 years of growth. Is O-Week the equivalent of orientation that other big Texas universities have already started? When do kids get to choose their courses?