My son got into Rice, Georgia Tech and South Carolina Honors. We loved everything about SC Honors and he also loved Rice, even though they are very different schools. Our question is whether attending a top 15 school such as Rice would really benefit him in the long run. He’s looking to major in Econ and math. We will not qualify for any aid and the difference is about $50,000 a year between the two schools. Anyone with experience in these two schools? Thanks!
Congratulations on 3 great acceptances.
And WOW, Rice at $200K more than SC Honors would make most people pause.
Is Rice affordable, meaning requiring no loans beyond the $27K max undergrad student loans? Would paying an additional $200K have an impact on lifestyle, retirement plans, education options for younger siblings, etc?
What’s GT’s price/is it off the table?
I don’t know anything about the outcomes of Rice and SC honors beyond what’s on the website, hopefully some other posters will weigh in.
What does he want to do with his degree?
Can you afford the difference without parental loans?
Had you discussed costs?
Off the bat, I’d say no, it’s not worth 200K, but if you told him he could go if he got in, or if he wants to do a PHD in Math, or if it requires parental loans… the answer changes.
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Thanks. He’s not sure what he wants to do at this point but he knows grad school is in his future. We told him he could choose and we’d pay (we’d feel it for sure but we can do it), but we can’t help with grad school if he chooses Rice. I’m just trying to understand whether the degree from Rice is worth the extra cost. To me, the honors college sounds amazing because they get to take advantage of big school offerings and classes in a smaller community (the honors college itself has 600 courses and then they have access to everything the university itself offers). And they get advanced registration every semester so he’s just about guaranteed to never get closed out of a class. My son is top of his class in HS and is drawn to the name. He also liked Georgia Tech and that cost is in the middle of the other two. He said to me that he could see himself at any of those schools and be happy so I’m trying to understand if the extra cost is truly worth it.
What kind of grad school?
- Math PhD study: should be fully funded. Undergraduate math department quality and rigor as seen by PhD program departments is often important.
- Economics PhD study: should be fully funded. Upper level math and statistics course work is important. Economics courses with higher math intensity are desirable.
- Other? Professional degree (MBA, MFE, etc.) study can be very expensive.
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He’s not sure. He just turned 18 and loves math and is interested in Econ but not sure yet how he wants to parlay that into a career. He has no interest in law or medicine or even getting an MBA, so it would probably be a PhD as you mention.
Go to Georgia Tech. Major in Math. Minor in Econ. Can go to grad school for economics or other disciplines. Very employable. Could do the same at Carolina. Carolina honors is well regarded.
The extra $200k for Rice undergrad doesn’t really make sense unless money isn’t an issue.
S20 had very nice offers from our in-state flagships including honors. When he got into GT I basically said give me a good reason not to send in the deposit today. It was one school we were willing to go a little over budget. He’ll graduate in 6 semesters (knock on wood). He’s had an internship and a co-op that have paid well.
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For a Math PHD, Rice will make a difference.
For a PHD in Economics, for both, look at the choices and math content at the upper level, email each department to ask what upper level courses are on the annual rotation, what as offered this year, what Econ graduates did (PHD programs or jobs).
Someone who majors in Math or Applied Math or Statistics and/or Economics would have no problem finding a job provided they use the career center and their adviser.
You can try to differentiate in terms of professional outcome.
You could also look at total experience (ie., residential system, etc) to weigh whether Rice would “fit” him better.
Keeping in mind USC Honors is one of the top Honors Colleges in the nation, has a nice campus, good weather…
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Rice is a great name - and as you said a different environment. An Honors college can help make the campus small - but it’s not the bulk of life and it’s still a huge school.
That said, $200K is a lot of $$ - and while Rice is a fantastic name, you have to decide, is that really worth it to you?
To me, no way.
Good luck.
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$200,000 more for Rice is absolutely not worth it. Rice is kind of a funny place to me. It’s a great school but a lot of people don’t know it’s a great school. I have two close family members that went there and loved it but it doesn’t have much of a reputation outside of Texas, except maybe on these boards. South Carolina Honors College is amazing but similar situation. I think people in the know realize it’s the top honors college in the country but the rest of the people wonder why you went to South Carolina. I think Georgia Tech carries the most weight from a degree standpoint.
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(To add detail: both Econ and Math are “snobbish” PHD programs, where sheer institution name matters regardless of personal accomplishment. Young Econ scholars are trying to change that, especially in growing fields involving climate or inequality. In Math, nope. So far, they’re fine with their “snobbish” system. That’s why if his goal is a PHD in Math then Rice would matter and why looking at what USC does, both at the undergrad and grad levels, is important for Econ. Honors College students will be allowed to take grad courses BTW. So, emailing both depts will be useful. Also, this doesn’t necessarily mean Applied Math, which is a different animal.)
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Odd man out here. We made the decisions about college applications before they were sent. Our family agreed that any school applied to was on the table IF the student got accepted. @Alexa_Lauren did you do that with your student?
Our kid got a very large and surprise scholarship to University of South Carolina…a school she liked quite a lot (or she wouldn’t have applied at all). It would have cost us $10,000 a year all in to send her there. But she also had three other acceptances, and at that point, the decision was hers.
She did not choose South Carolina…but it wasn’t because of the academics. She chose another college that cost us 4 times the cost. But we had already agreed we could afford that BEFORE applications were sent.
We let out kids make the decisions about where to matriculate…because we never told them they had to go to the least net cost school…and because we all agreed on the applications at the beginning.
If finances are an issue, you need to have a serious discussion with your student. If not…well…it’s your family decision whether to pay the cost for a more expensive college. We did, and we don’t regret it one bit.
Some people chase the lowest or lower net cost for college and some don’t.
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Thanks for that insight. We had a conversation with him before he applied and we told him then, and it holds true now, that he could choose where he goes to college and we would pay. I even reiterated that this week and told him it’s his life and his choice. Here’s where I’m struggling… my kid has top grades with 10 AP’s and 5’s on all he’s taken so far (he’s #2/500 in his class and the number one took an additional AP class which bumped up his weighted GPA slightly), near perfect SAT’s, great EC’s etc. but we live in the suburbs right outside NYC where his stats are unfortunately, a dime a dozen. His first choice was MIT and his 2nd was Chicago, and he didn’t get in to either. If he had gotten in, there would be no discussion as he would have gone to one of those. We visited Rice last year and he liked it, but it wasn’t top of his list. In fact, we are waiting on a few more schools and last night he even said to me he hopes he gets into one more so he has another option. That tells me that he’s not completely gung ho for Rice. If he doesn’t get into any more schools, and he’s in different between the two, then in my mind, money should factor into the decision unless he can justify, even to himself, why he loves Rice far beyond South Carolina or Georgia Tech, or what advantages it will provide to him in the future. For example, if his dream was to work at NASA, then Rice for sure. But I posted here because I’m hoping there will be insight that will justify why Rice is worth the additional $200,000 beyond the name of the school if he’s indifferent to both and he’s planning on getting a grad degree in the future.
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If NASA is a dream then consider Georgia Tech. Their Aerospace engineering program is very highly rated. I just looked and it’s #4.
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I agree Rice doesnt have a national reputation vs some other elite schools. However, I think part of the reason is it’s so small, which is why I think they’re tryng to increase their student population.
When we moved to the Northeast, my wife got her job because of her degree at Rice. The company’s HR person recognized the school and recommended they interview her.
Many top companies know and recognize Rice - but maybe not the average person.
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IMO, I wouldnt pay an extra $200k if my kids didnt love the school.
Rice’s student body has a reputation of being somewhat quirky, eclectic and extremely collaborative.
As my wife says, they really try hard to find smart, nice kids who can be themselves and dont want a cut throat culture. Because of this, Rice is at the top of the list for my 2024 D, even though we’re full pay.
However, you cant go wrong with any of your choices.
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