<p>Two of the best in the south, if not the whole country. liked both when visited, how does one decide?</p>
<p>both are good. either way you will get an amazing education. it should be the things outside of academics that influence your decision.</p>
<p>rice is cheaper, smaller, and more diverse. it ranks #1 for students with the best quality of life and #1 university for diversity. it is also ranked the #4 best value in the country. </p>
<p>go rice! best decision you'll ever make!</p>
<p>PM me with any questions you have about Rice. I'll be more than happy to answer!</p>
<p>Which school is better for YOU?</p>
<p>I'm horribly biased against Duke and towards Rice, so I won't write any comparison, or else it would look something like this:</p>
<p>"Do you consider yourself
a) A smart person who is generally easy-going
OR
b) A stuck-up, preppy [donkey] who has multiple generations of Southern aristocracy in their family?"</p>
<p>So of course my comparison shouldn't be taken as gospel truth.</p>
<p>I would go with Duke on this one. It would be more difficult for me to choose between Rice and Vandy, or maybe Emory.</p>
<p>How do you decide? You list all the things that are important to you. You make a matrix and compare all the factors. If both are still even you flip a coin.</p>
<p>texas > north carolina</p>
<p>Interestingly enough, Rice ranks slightly higher than Duke on the revealed preference rankings, so of people who get into both, a little over half choose to come to Rice over Duke.
The choice is all based on fit! Go where you feel right.</p>
<p>What's your planned major? Maybe that can help. We visited Duke fully expecting to be impressed and were definitely not. West campus is certainly pretty - but we didn't like the spread of the place. Also, the tour guides seemed to only want to impress you with the "wireless connections in Krzyzewskiville" (this was a few years ago...) There was virtually no mention of engineering in either the info session or the tour, so that was a turn-off for us. It may not matter to you.</p>
<p>Hey - if you pick Duke the biggest bonus is that you'll be only 8 miles from "Blue Heaven." (Spoken from a loyal UNC alum...)</p>
<p>Being a Houstonian (with a daughter at UNC-CH!), I'm especially partial to Rice and wholeheartedly second ricemom's 'Blue Heaven' comment....lol! But I would like point out to NYSkins that there are quite a few northerners at Duke. I believe Duke has some sort of 'nickname' with the word 'NJ' in it that references that large northern faction in the student body. ;)</p>
<p>That's one great thing about Houston...we aren't the South... or the North. We truly have multi-cultural global thing going on in our city. Rice is in the very best, most interesting, part of Houston flanked by the Texas Medical Center, museum district, West U, Rice Village. And Houstonians love their Rice students so much, we try to arrange for them to see as much of the city as possible for as 'free', or close to, as possible. With respect to the Rice campus, I am always amazed that there is so much beautiful space dedicated to such a small and select group of outstanding students. Lucky, lucky kids who get to go to Rice!</p>
<p>Idmom06: I am not quite clear , do you like Rice?</p>
<p>^lol...ya think olddad? ;)</p>
<p>(My 8th grader tells me he's either gonna be an Owl or a Tar Heel....and there are no other options. He's young - he'll learn about backup plans later...lol!)</p>
<p>i was just wondering if i could get some feedback on whether to choose rice with the century and trustee scholarships or duke without any scholarships</p>
<p>hmm rice is already cheaper and you're gettin money or duke is more expensive and you're getting no scholarships. This is a no-brainer.</p>
<p>ldmom - I love my Owl daughter, but I'm hoping my 9th grade S will be a Tar Heel too! There's no finer place to be than Kenan stadium on a fall afternoon. And with all this talk about money you can't beat in-state tuition at UNC! Plus I might get to see him more than just Christmas break.</p>
<p>Four members of my family went to Duke, one to Rice. The difference is this: Duke students love being at Duke. Rice students love Rice.</p>
<p>But I would like point out to NYSkins that there are quite a few northerners at Duke. I believe Duke has some sort of 'nickname' with the word 'NJ' in it that references that large northern faction in the student body.</p>
<p>Oh, I'm completely aware. I'm just horrendously biased for some very personal reasons (no, I did not apply and not get in; Rice was my first choice).</p>
<p>DUKE/RICE vs IVIES, accepted at all and can't decide</p>
<p>Rice and Duke are very comparable at the undergrad level. However, Duke's graduate programs are generally perceived as stronger. While Rice is outstanding at the undergrad level, it doesn't even have the top ranked graduate programs in Texas. Undergrad is clearly Rice's focus, but Duke does deserve credit in this regard.</p>
<p>^^This is a website for undergrads.</p>