Same question I posted on Rice Class of 2023 ED Discussion Thread
Has anyone heard Rice emailing ED parents to ask if they are willing to pay almost all of COA before sending out Early Decision?
Does Rice send financial commitment email to every ED applicant or just student that doesn’t qualify for neither needed nor merit base scholarships?
My daughter attended Owl Days in April even though she had already committed ED. She had a great time, and mets lots of prospective students, many of whom are now her classmates at Rice. This year, Rice did not announce the dates for Owl Days until the regular decisions went out. It’s typically in mid-April. Here is a video from this year’s Owl Days - really captures the spirit of the weekend - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1OQQb671xA&feature=youtu.be.
As far as your second question is concerned, we did not qualify for need based aid and my daughter did not receive a merit scholarship, and we did not receive any financial communication from Rice before the ED notification.
“As far as your second question is concerned, we did not qualify for need based aid and my daughter did not receive a merit scholarship, and we did not receive any financial communication from Rice before the ED notification.”
+1
+1 for us as well
+1 here, too
Thanks everyone, very helpful trying to decipher smoke and mirrors.
“ED to Rice sign the ED agreement” that sounds right.
I just couldn’t believe Rice(any college) would send additional email asking parents “can you pay for full COA” to continue with process of early decision. I think any email like that would be an embarrassing and highly inappropriate.
Oh well, Kid decided to submit RD after all. Not that anyone cares, I will reply with the result in April.
Good Luck Everyone.
Hi, my daughter will be attending Rice in the fall, i almost started crying just writing that… lol, trying to plan a quick trip out to houston, looking for suggestions for hotels, my daughter has been there for SOAR, but we have not! can’t wait to see it! found some ridiculous cheap flights middle of january, trying to figure out the best hotel, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!
Congratulations! I posted this in the other thread, but it is probably more useful here:
I like the ZaZa a lot - the location is amazing. They have a Rice rate, but I have never been able to get it (I think you have to call and there are only limited number of rooms with the rate). Zaza is (much) more expensive than other hotels in the area but it is an easy walk and no need for a rental car. There are many hotels in the medical center area (very close to Rice), with a wide range of prices. A brand new Intercontinental is opening in the medical center area on January 15. It would also be very easy to stay downtown and take the light rail, which has a stop just outside the Rice entrance. I have also stayed in the Galleria area for a very reasonable rate; it is about a 15-20 minute drive.
Airbnb is also an option.
Any thoughts on how convenient this hotel is? Can we walk to campus easily?
Houston Marriott Medical Center/Museum District
Congrats to you and your daughter!! Yes that location is good. If I recall there is also a Hilton and a best western (that was actually quite fine when we stayed there) across from the Marriott. Do ask for the Rice rate.
All of the Med Center area hotels are reasonably close, though they’re more convenient to the South colleges than to the North ones. We stayed at the Med Center Hilton multiple times over four years - great rates with the Rice discount, extremely spacious rooms/suites, and convenient. After the parent-ejection at drop-off, we watched the Matriculation fireworks from the pool deck. 
There are some good airbnb options in the area too. I went down for Thanksgiving one year and shared a little cottage in Rice Village with my daughter; it was a nice change of scene for her without going far.
@sunnyflorida the Marriott is a fine hotel close to Rice. I have never stayed in any of the hotels near Rice as we live nearby, but it looks like some veteran parents have already chimed in. As others have said, there are many hotels in the adjacent medical center that are very close to Rice. They range in price from the Zaza on the high end to The Best Western on the low end. Shop the rates and call to ask if there is a Rice discount and if the hotel has a shuttle. Many of the hotels have shuttles that will take you to nearby places such as Rice, the Rice Village, etc. Many of the hotels cater to patients coming into town for medical treatment so are used to folks needing rides to nearby places. One of my friends stays at the Wyndham Medical Center when she comes to MD Anderson for cancer treatment. It has nice rooms and has a shuttle. http://www.wyndhamhoustonmedcenter.com
Houston’s traffic can be daunting, and the hotels will charge for parking. I would not rent a car, but Uber to and from the airport and other places if the shuttle isn’t available. Fly into Hobby airport rather than Bush, it’s much closer to campus and a shorter Uber ride.
I only mention the Marriott because we are reward members and will excitedly be spending lots of time in the future travelling back and forth from out of state, but if the Zaza is closer, it may be easier! We have never visited and won’t have a car so I’ll have to give it some serious thought. Thank you so much for the advice! It is so appreciated
Some may offer shuttles and uber/lyft is easy too. And there is the light rail.
The Marriott is probably closer, plus you get the rewards points. You can walk to the south side of campus from the Marriott/medical center. The medical center is directly across Main St. from the south side of the campus. The ZAZA is much further down Main St. next to the Natural Science Museum.Once on campus, Rice has busses that circulate around the inner loop. The inner loop runs from Founders Court and Lovett Hall (the administration building) to near the football stadium. Here is a map of the Rice campus. https://www.rice.edu/maps/Rice-University-Color-Campus-Map.pdf
My son was accepted by Rice ED, I am about to change wireless service provider now. Does anyone know which provider is good in Rice university dorms? I am thinking about Verizon or ATT, which one is better?
Many thanks.
This question was asked on the Rice parent to parent network FB group (they will add the new parents after RD comes out, usually in the early summer). Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all came up as good choices. Rice is in the middle of a major city so the coverage is really good with all providers. My daughter has Verizon and has had no problems. I don’t think you can go wrong with either AT&T or Verizon.
@Faulkner1897 Thank you so much for the info, looking forward to join the Rice parent FB group.
@jinl11 Congratulations on your son’s acceptance ED. My daughter also has Verizon. Rice has an excellent wifi network all over campus (even outside). Most of the time my daughter is on wifi so she does not use too much data during the school year.
@Houston1021 Thank you for the info, got the idea.