Rice University

College Search & Selection
21

<p>aworldapart,
Please note that my reference to U Chicago, Georgetown, et al was in response to the OP’s mention of those colleges. </p>

<p>As for Rice’s lower national profile, I think much of this is attributable to its small size (3000 undergrads) and large numbers of Texans (usually in the mid-40% range for most incoming classes). Couple that with the fact that Texans like “staying home” when they graduate from college and the fact that many northeasterners would have difficulty finding Houston on a map and you get a geographically relatively skewed student and alumni distribution.</p>

22

<p>Interesting note: In the past week, at least three major news sources broke stories about the booming economy in Houston: Forbes had one on best cities for college grads (Houston, Dallas, Austin were #1,2,3). Both the Chicago Tribune and Newsweek had stories along the lines of “Houston, we don’t have any problems” (a take-off on the line from Apollo 13). </p>

<p>For anyone nervous about Houston, it seems like the place to be right now.</p>

23

<p>If only my D could get into Rice!!! </p>

<p>She has a 3.7, 2170 SAT and is a NMF. And it sounds so hopeless that she could get admitted. </p>

<p>It is a fantastic college and she will definitely apply, but I know her stats are just not high enough.</p>

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<p>It’s cetainly not hopeless.</p>

25

<p>Ivydreamin- Your daughter stands a very good chance. I hope you are kidding.</p>

26

<p>It’s hard to tell based on such limited stats, ivydreamin, but mine were very similar and I am going to be a junior at Rice this year.</p>

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<p>ivydreamin: Those stats are not bad at all. And Rice doesn’t just look at grades. There is so much more to the process…EC’s, essays, recs…</p>

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<p>Architecture!</p>

29

<p>Okay, in terms of majors I’m looking into specifically Political Science, and possibly History or Literature. Any more comments on Rice? Because even without visiting (yet) it just seems really appealing, I’m just concerned about whether I could get a better education somewhere else.</p>

30

<p>Anyone who says Rice is academically subpar is quite uninformed. And I’ve never been to Texas.</p>

31

<p>While Duke is said to be the Harvard of the South, Rice is more like the Yale of the South–undergraduate-focused, excellent academics, fantastic professors, and most distinctively, the integral and vital residential college system that defines and constructs an unbeatable undergraduate experience.</p>

<p>There’s no argument Rice has no prominent graduate schools, and that’s the reason why it’s not rated higher on USNWR. Oh, and the fact that it’s in Texas–apparently everyone hates Texas/South and has a huge East Coast/West Coast bias. </p>

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<p>In fact, in 2007 Princeton Review ranked #1 for “Best Quality of Life” and #3 for “Best Overall Academic Experience for Undergraduates.” Other notable rankings by PR include among the top 20 schools for students who “Never Stop Studying” (pretty hard academics–I’ve talked to some Rice grads who’ve said grad school was a cakewalk compared to their undergrad courseload at Rice) and very accepting and friendly place–#1 in the nation for “Lots of Race/Class Interaction.” This year in 2008 PR ranked it #1 “Best Value” Private College.</p>

<p>Furthermore, Rice has one of the biggest endowments, with $5-6 billion, pretty impressive given its tiny <3000 undergraduate body. It has a fantastic 5:1 student-faculty ratio. Many people overlook its architecture and music schools, which are top ranked and among the best in the entire country. It’s literally located across the street from Texas Medical Center, the world’s biggest medical district/complex–ample opportunity for undergrads to conduct research and do internships. Last year it had a 90% medical school placement rate.</p>

<p>Because it is entirely undergraduate-focused, costs $10,000+/year less than comparable peers ($50-52k at Northwestern, WashU, etc) <em>in addition</em> to being extremely generous with need-blind financial aid, great access to professors, emphasis on undergraduate research, gorgeous Spanish Mediterranean architecture, and most prominently–the residential college system–it’s no question why people choose Rice over Ivies and decide to attend. It’s such a great deal!</p>

<p>People may hate Houston, but if you haven’t visited Rice, don’t make blanket statements against it–Rice is actually in an incredible place in Houston. My friend who lives in Houston (I live in the Northeast) said he doesn’t really consider Rice to be part of Houston because it’s SO different from the rest of Houston–green, lush, and park-like. There are beautiful hedges surrounding Rice that serve as a buffer against the rest of the city.</p>

<p>ITS AMAZING</p>

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<p>Just wondering, why are Rice’s grad programs not very highly ranked?</p>

<p>Also, if I was planning on pursuing a career in journalism, or possibly going to grad school to get a PhD in Political Science, would Rice be good undergrad?</p>

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<p>Rice is not known for its graduate schools–its entirely undergraduate-focused and undergraduate-oriented. I mean, there’s no Rice Law or Rice Medical or Rice Business schools–it has a Jones Management business grad school that’s in top 50, but nothing that special. </p>

<p>You want to go to Rice for undergrad–do well at Rice undergrad, you can go anywhere. Rice is completely centered on undergraduates, that’s a huge reason why people apply–there’s no towering grad schools at huge state schools like Berkeley or Michigan or even at Harvard that steal and rob top faculty and research and resources and attention from the undergraduates. So if you were a budding physician, if you wanted you could do some undergrad research in the first month of starting your freshman year at Rice. </p>

<p>Rice is EXCELLENT for undergrad–there’s a thread on CC somewhere and Rice was in the top 10 or 15 feeder schools to Yale Law School. Not sure about PhD in political science (are you planning to go to grad school? maybe law school?), but Rice is a highly respected undergrad degree and will serve you well in whatever field you choose.</p>

<p>For political science, Rice has a notable James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy–you can check out the link below for the institute’s website:</p>

<p>[James</a> A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy Rice University](<a href=“http://www.bakerinstitute.org/]James”>http://www.bakerinstitute.org/)</p>

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<p>Ivydreamin- I had similar stats and I am going to Rice next year.</p>

35

<p>If Duke is the Harvard of the south and Rice is the Yale of the south, what’s the Princeton of the south?</p>

36

<p>I just noticed the comments to my lament. Thanks to all.</p>

<p>My d doesn’t have much in the way of ECs either. Just band,a few clubs but no leadership, and as a junior, when an acquaintance invited her along to interview, she did beat out 60 others for one of the, apparently, coveted 40 spots as a student ambassador at her high school. The lack of ECs is because she goes ‘whole hog’ into something. In the past it was reading, just fantasy. She hasn’t noticed what is going on, she doesn’t put herself ‘out there’.
For the last year, she has been writing. She dreams up plots constantly. In the car, everywhere. Her writing has improved obviously, 80 point gain on the SAT in 4 months, to 750. Her stuff is fun to read, actually. Not deep, or brilliant, but enjoyable. She has fun in her life, but that isn’t going to make her too competitive in the college admissions arena.</p>

<p>She will apply, but I’m not holding my breath. Rice is a FANTASTIC college, and it’s annoying to hear people dismiss it a bit.</p>

37

<p>I’m not a big fan of these simple-minded “Harvard of the South” or “Yale of the South” descriptions because they do a disservice to these top southern colleges that definitely can stand on their own. Maybe it helps some less informed readers understand the quality of what’s available in the Sunbelt, but the undergraduate experience that nearly all of the top southern colleges (Duke, Rice, Vanderbilt, Emory, U Virginia, U North Carolina) provide is unique and differentiated from what is available at ANY of the Ivies.</p>

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<p>^I was joking, hawkette.</p>

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<p>I’m not. </p>

<p>I believe that Duke, Rice, Vanderbilt, U Virginia and U North Carolina deliver a differentiated experience than that available at the Ivies.</p>

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<p>I don’t disagree with you.</p>