I’m really hoping I get admitted to Rice not many people near me apply to the school. As of right now I got into UMich, Union, Hamilton, Colby, and UMass Amherst. UMich was amazing but being OOS it just costs way too much for me. Leaning towards Hamilton right now but I’m just waiting on Rice and the Ivies (because why not)
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Accepted: Michigan, UCLA
Rejected: Caltech, MIT
Waitlist: Chicago
Pending: Berkley, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, Duke, Penn, Harvard (deferred EA)
Rice is pretty high on our list; its one of the schools that has gained ground in the college process (Chicago shot up the ranks as well). The culture seems to mesh well with what our S21 is looking for in a school.
Daughter accepted to Colby, UMass, UVM Honors college so far. Waiting on 12 more including Tufts, Cornell, Colgate, USC, Wake Forest, Amherst College, Columbia and many more I don’t even remember them all at this point. Rejected at Yale. She was full remote for the first half of the school year so not tons of guidance on the list so I hope she ends up somewhere she likes.
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Can I ask what you loved about Rice? My daughter likes the size and residential communities but hasn’t seen it yet. Thanks so much.
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Well . . .
I have a sophomore at Rice and I am actually on my way home from visiting her now. She loves it! It was the only school she applied to that she did not visit before applying. She actually took Rice off her list because it was in Texas (we live 1200 miles away), she hadn’t visited, and she was burned out and tired of writing essays. Then, about 5 days before the applications were due she decided she regretted her decision because it just sounded on paper exactly what she was looking for. We told her to go for it, not to get her hopes up, and promised a visit if she was accepted. We were pretty shocked when she was admitted.
When we visited she loved the diversity and how friendly the kids were. And she continues to love those things. The atmosphere is truly not competitive. The kids compete with themselves and not with each other. There are a lot of study groups and other ways that kids help one another. Rice has some really fun traditions and the campus is gorgeous. As a sophomore she is really getting some great hands on experience in her major (Bioengineering) and working closely with some truly impressive faculty. Overall she is really happy there.
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Colby, Umass, UVM Honors - all three are fantastic, but different options. She’s playing with house money now!!!
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Yeah it was kind of a weird college advisor thing saying apply at a couple of these state schools 1. To get something in and 2. Scholarships. Alabama gave him essentially a full ride and how fun would that be? He’s not considering though. Right now I would say he will go ND and it’s been very high on his list since he was very young. But he also really liked Rice as well. Loved the residential colleges, diversity, size, proximity to Houston, yet quiet setting and our tour guide was awesome. SOmetimes for young people that’s all it takes good or bad.
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Alabama is the place for merit. That’s why they are 60% out of state with lots that turned down Ivies. Tons of NY/NJ/IL. My son goes there for engineering. Turned down a Purdue scholarship. Why ? For the beautiful dorm. Oh and hated his first year but now has a girlfriend so all is good. Has a great internship this summer too.
Congrats on ND. For many it’s the dream. It all worked out…Rice or otherwise. Congrats.
Camaraderie here as DS was rejected by the same set of schools plus HMC. He was even WL-ed by Swat too LOL. Pending: CMU, Rice, USC, Brown, etc. Accepted: Arizona state, UT, and Carleton.
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Carleton is a great college. Not sure I’d take Rice over Carleton, all else remaining equal. Guess it would depend on the subject…Engineers would of course choose Rice.
Small schools only/ with endowments. Interdisciplinary like Rice or LAC with Engineering. Can’t afford public out of state. Daughter gets full tuition + at top LAC.
In my family, if you’re not gonna put your heart into it, don’t bother doing it. And if the flames are too hot… as the saying goes.
Yes it is emotional. AND Yes, everyone will be fine. I find it comforting to delve into and try to make sense of this crazy admissions game. Crazy in any year, exceptionally so this year.
My son’s teachers have been telling him he’ll be able to “pick” where he goes to school. They are used to having their top graduates attend Ivies, little Ivies and other top tier schools, despite the fact that only 41% of the school’s graduates attend college! Largely due to the bonus of geographic “uniqueness” and sparse population of our state. We’ve been trying to keep up on the “reality” of this year’s admissions, that the teachers and school are NOT aware of.
Sure, he’ll be fine going to the State School 25 miles away where you only need an ACT of 22 to get accepted. He’ll take advantage of the Honors Program and have four years of free tuition. And as an avid outdoorsman and mountaineer he will continue to explore what he loves.
But as a Top 50 student in our entire state (in a state in the bottom half of the national rankings- but still top 50) I’d absolutely love for him to experience a learning community of diverse, brilliant students in a setting like Rice. To be challenged and to quench his incredible thirst. I’d like for him to be more than fine.
Not second guessing/ just intensely hoping.
Good Luck to all, both students and parents, during the final weeks and admissions decisions!
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Agree with all four statements you made. It might as well come down to geography in the end - should he get in of course.
Well-said. Curious what kind of outdoor activities are popular in Rice; DS likes outdoor too.
If lucky enough to get accepted, my son figures he will skateboard, climb at the climbing gym and figure out how to get the “hook” on some water skiing. Sounds like NM has potential outdoor climbs. Oh, and he remembers seeing a number of trampolines on campus. And the pool! That should be enough to keep him moving outdoors. There’s always spring break for a backpacking trip somewhere. The big adventure for him will be exploring a city 4 times the population of our state!
Any Rice students on this thread to share what they do for outdoor activities?
If my financial aid non custodial parent waiver request is still in review, does that mean I am probably rejected? Does anyone know? I am guessing if they were considering me they would have made a decision by now, even if it was rejected.
When did you submit it?
@awesomepolyglot can you chime in here as I know you are a rock climber. My daughter has a long board that she uses for fun and to get around campus. Many students bike and skateboard. Some of the residential colleges have trampolines, swing sets, etc. Rice has a wonderful recreation center with all kinds of amenities including a recreation pool and a training pool. Hermann Park, the largest city park, is directly across the street from campus. It has a golf course, walking trails, the City zoo, an outdoor ampitheater, etc. There is a 3 mile jogging track around the campus perimeter. Rice has a disc golf team, a sailing club, a rowing club and many intramural sports teams including powderpuff football. There are nearby lakes and bodies of water such as Lake Conroe, Clear Lake, and the Gulf of Mexico for watersports, but you need a car to get to them.
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January 29th