Rice versus USC-- worth the fin aid difference? 3, 2, 1, DEBATE!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Rice University
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<p>Rejected from all my top schools; it's basically down to these two or Scripps College. Basically, Rice gave me 30k a year and USC gave me 22k (combo of grants / merit scholarships at both)-- which, when you account for the difference in the schools' net prices, makes USC about 15k more a year than Rice (unless I succesfully appeal USC for more fin aid, which is unlikely). So that should seal the deal, right? 60k a year is a ton, I know, and Rice is ranked higher on every rank list-- including the one for happiest students! </p>

<p>But.</p>

<p>From extensive stalking of CC and personal experiences from people who know there-- well, I don't know if I'd fit in at Rice, really. Not gonna lie, I'm pretty conventional. I wear makeup and clothes from Forever 21 and Urban Outfitters; I'm not what you would consider a quirky person. From what I've heard, lots of people at Rice are. And-- to be even more shallow, don't judge me here-- I have yet to hear one good thing about the presence of attractive guys at Rice. Are there any? I've visited USC and let's just say I'm sure Rice can't compare on that front, but hopefully there are SOME... lol I know it's a stupid consideration but it's part of the college experience, you know? If all the guys are unattractive (or not even that, but socially awkward/quirky, neither of which I am) it would definitely be a downside to Rice.</p>

<p>Also-- Rice is small. Really small. Too small? I know there's been a lot of debate on this topic but I have one thing to ask: it says on collegeboard that there are a couple of thousand grad students at Rice. Are they intermixed on campus with the undergrads, or is their grad school/housing somewhere else? Just curious-- I know at USC it makes a huge difference that although there's only 15,00 undergrads, the schools seems enormous because of the huge grad population roaming around as well and bringing the total up to around 40,000.</p>

<p>Annnd lastly-- back to the social thing. I'm going to study hard in college of course, but I want to play hard, too. I'm getting the vibe, from the posts I've read here, that while there IS partying at Rice, as it's a wet campus, people are really awkward about it, lol. As in, parties are small and cramped and full of socially awk people just trying to get drunk enough to hook up... is that true? Or is there any really fun partying. Because, once again, that too is part of college, and USC definitely one-ups Rice there.</p>

<p>I know this is the Rice forum and you all are going to yell at me for being concerned with the wrong things and misinformed and Rice is amazing and so on. Go for it-- assuage my misgivings and assure me that Rice is a good choice for someone like me. Because right now, I can't convince myself of it.</p>

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<p>your thinking too hard, rice</p>

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<p>If you have an extra 60k to go to USC, there are plenty of attractive male models who are willing to date you for a fee in Houston.</p>

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<p>My D in a very similar situation. Rice and USC are top two choices. Rejected by the tree and Ivies. 17 K rice & 1/2 tuition+1K, at USC so not a big price differential. On the plus side for USC, on of those USC guys is her brother. </p>

<p>She will make campus visits, and then decide. Rice looks like a great campus and has good academics, I do worry it may be a little small limiting options. The brothher loves USC, him and the school are bursting with school spirit, also, tons of activities, he has taken up Wu Shu, film making and Rock Climbing.</p>

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<p>Are you planning on attending Owl Days? I’ve heard of tons of people who were unsure about attending Rice, but after staying at Owl Days, were totally convinced that Rice was for them. Seeing the campus firsthand would probably be the best way to decide whether or not it’s right for you. :)</p>

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<p>pundad - what does your D want to study? For certain areas, Rice is really great and most of the departments are quite small which means the students can get a lot of attention. People compare their residential college system to Yale. </p>

<p>The sports certainly don’t compare except for baseball where Rice has been a perennial contender. School spirit on the other hand…</p>

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<p>I think I will attend Owl days.</p>

<p>Yep that’s another thing, I like USC’s school spirit… anyone else whose familiar with both schools care to chime in? Any insight is greatly appreciated :)</p>

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<p>My D will be studying Biomedical Engineering. She has not decided yet. We also have not have not recieved a decision on the Rice/Baylor medical program which might tip the scale towards Rice.</p>

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<p>No offense, but I can tell from this post that you clearly don’t know much about what Rice is actually like. You are believing stereotypes that don’t hold true at all.</p>

<p>You wear clothes! Just like everyone else here. I know some people who are very casual in their dress and like to stick to shorts and a t-shirt. However, I also know people who wear so-called “conventional” clothing like Forever 21. Some of my best friends are known for always dressing incredibly classy. In fact, there’s an Urban Outfitters in the Village. There isn’t one type of person here.</p>

<p>As far as being a “quirky” person goes, I guarantee you that you will find a quirk of yours. Everyone is quirky because everyone is unique. At Rice, people are just more open and friendly about it. Seriously, no matter what type of person you are, everyone here accepts you. There are people who are truly the “quirky” type, as the stereotype would have, but you will find that everywhere. Bottom line: if you are an open and friendly person, you will love the people here. You will find people like you, definitely. You will also find people not like you, and you will probably expand your horizons and hang out with them too.</p>

<p>As far as members of the opposite sex goes, I don’t like to talk about this because you can find good-looking people anywhere you are. And that is the case here. We are a small school, but I can say for a fact that you will find a lot of attractive people here, just like you would anywhere else. Don’t worry about that factor at all when making your decision. Seriously, it will inhibit you from making the right choice.</p>

<p>Rice is small, but for me (as well as many others) it’s a perfect size. It’s an intimate, personal environment where you will see people you know everywhere you go and get to know your residential college, professors, and other staff/faculty/students well. However, you’ll also be meeting new people everywhere.</p>

<p>If you want to play hard, Rice is the school for you. I have friends who come down from Dallas and UH all the time and they all always comment on how great our parties are. We definitely know how to have fun, and that goes for parties as well as other traditions and events, and it also goes for both drinkers and non-drinkers. I can send you a PM if you would like detailing this more.</p>

<p>From this post I can tell you that you definitely need to visit for Owl Days. Maybe it will prove your worries right and you won’t want to come here. That’s okay. USC is a great school and I’m sure you’ll love it there. But I would definitely say you need to give us a shot and not look at the stereotypes as truth. Good luck making your choice, and just know that you can’t go wrong either way.</p>

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<p>pundad - I believe Rice/Baylor emails have been sent out Monday and Tuesday unless they are holding some for backup. Check the spam folder.</p>

<p>Bio engineering program is quite prestigious with some professors who serve on presidential advisory committees etc. If you ignore the ranking, they do cutting edge work at the undergrad level. They have access to two medical schools within walking distance and interact very closely with medical faculty and bid on research grants together.</p>

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<p>Sorry to revive this thread, but now that Owl Days has passed, what did you think about Rice overall? Has your impression changed at all icesk8girl? Good luck with your decision! :)</p>

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<p>Overall, I liked Rice more than I thought I would… but that’s about it. Honestly, I was desperately hoping to fall in love with it because it’s so much cheaper than my other options, and I talked to many people who weren’t sure about Rice until they went to Owl Days and fell in love. However that didn’t really happen for me. I realize this is the Rice forum but… I still like USC a lot better. I have trouble seeing myself at Rice :P</p>

<p>However, I will probably end up at Rice due to financial reasons.</p>

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<p>Wow, I wish we could switch financial aid packages, because USC is gave me 30k a year while Rice gave me NOTHING - and I want to go to Rice, not USC. It’s really tragic that we’ll probably end up at each other’s top choices for financial reasons.</p>

<p>I agree with the other poster that the “quirkiness” thing shouldn’t be much of an issue. I like Forever 21 and Urban Outfitters, and I’m plenty quirky. I’m surprised you brought it up because when I hear “quirky”, I think it refers to unique facets of personality or interest rather than superficial appearance.</p>

<p>About intermixing between grad and undergrad students - I’m sure it depends on the major, but for Architecture at least, undergrads take some of the same classes as graduate students. For me, Rice being small is actually a huge plus. I just personally don’t like crowded places. It also means that there are only about 25 incoming students in my major, so I would individually get much more attention than if I went to USC, where there are about 100 incoming students in my major.</p>

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<p>Ahhh Hassohappa are you serious? I would switch fin aid packages with you in a HEARTBEAT. USC calculated my family’s EFC to be ridiculously high because we have a lot of home equity and my dad has a lot of money in his retirement fund-- like we’re supposed to touch that to fund my education?! It’s ridiculous. Is the money USC gave you need-based? Yet Rice gave you nothing? That’s so strange.</p>

<p>Yeah, I guess I might’ve overstated the quirkiness thing. I did like Rice and most of the people there, after all.</p>

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<p>All of the money USC gave me was merit based, and I guess Rice didn’t think I was good enough, so they gave me nothing. I didn’t qualify for need-based fin aid, either – I’m pretty much in the same boat as you with the retirement fund thing. I actually went to Rice’s financial aid office to try and negotiate, but they seemed to think I should be fine with using the retirement money, so yeah…</p>

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<p>icesk8girl, based on your initial post, it seems to me you may fit in better at a school like USC. I think it is a huge mistake to simply assume Rice is the best for everyone, even though it is a great school. I had friends at Rice who definitely lacked the school spirit, college sports atmosphere, and I guess more ordinary or conventional college life. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, and if you know already that’s what you want, good for you! </p>

<p>On the other hand, the money factor is quite huge. You should feel very fortunate you were able to receive the aid packages you did from both schools, and especially from such a high quality school that values undergraduate education as Rice. So, with the aid factored in, I guess it’s a tough choice. But if you are already mentioning things like parties and so on it seems to me USC would be a better fit. Good luck!</p>

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<p>I agree with boethian. From your posts, it sounds as though you will fit in better at USC. Its not at all what my kids wanted–none of them would apply there–but from your description of yourself, you would definitely fit in. I live in LA, and I know whereof I speak. </p>

<p>However, you should know that my son, an Owl, is very social, not at all awkward, very good-looking, and a sharp dresser.</p>

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<p>I love when parents describe how good-looking and stylish their children are. It’s not that I doubt your word, Ricemom08, but I do have to wonder if you’re the most objective judge, haha.</p>

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<p>You’re right, Dorian, I’m not objective. I do think my son is cute as can be, but it was a bit of a joke . . .</p>