<p>I'm a big fan of Rice and I'm bored so I thought I'd ask some questions.</p>
<p>From other threads, I've got the impression that there are 4 clear top southern schools: duke, rice, Emory, and Vanderbilt (in some order). I'm just curious about what you guys think makes Rice better than the other 3, if anything.</p>
<p>And for those who go to school at Rice (or anyone who knows a lot about Rice) what would you change about the school if you could. Is there anything you're unhappy with?</p>
<p>Thanks, any answer is appreciated.</p>
<p>Rice has fewer students than those other schools. Rice is even smaller than my high school. You really can know just about everyone in your class and certainly your college.</p>
<p>One thing I would change about Rice is to get out of Division I athletics. The school is too small to support the commitment needed to play in D1. This isn’t the 1950s anymore.</p>
<p>Disagree. D1 athletics make up such a small part of our annual operating budget, they bring us exposure, and many students are attracted to Rice because it is a small school with D1 sports.</p>
<p>Being small is indeed a great attraction of Rice in my eyes. Student/Faculty ratio 5:1 is hardly found elsewhere. hmm. And great research opportunities too! :D</p>
<p>(almost forget the most significant point) inexpensive!</p>
<p>I am sure some students might be attracted to Rice because of D1 sports. Has there ever been a poll to really find out? For example, a straight up:</p>
<p>Would you still attend Rice if it did not have D1 athletics, but instead had D3 athletics like its peers?</p>
<p>My opinion is that the Administration would not mind such a poll, but maybe the Athletic Director and some important alumni would.</p>
<p>@dawncoming, “inexpensive” is relative. It is pretty clear that Leebron thinks costs should be comparable to Ivy, so watch for expenses to go up.</p>
<p>Rice has a D-1 National Championship baseball team and a perennial contender for that title. The football team won 9 games in 2008. Sure, they’re not UT but neither is Cornell and they’re in the sweet 16 of the NCAA basketball tournament. </p>
<p>I’m guessing that athletics bring in money that helps fund arts and sciences, which is a further reason to like Rice.</p>
<p>I would abolish the residential college system.</p>
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Maybe, but I do not think so. It would be very interesting to see the data. Rice baseball is great, no doubt about it.</p>
<p>Riceward, what is wrong with the residential college system?</p>
<p>Well. I don’t think the student body is large enough to make the system worthwhile. I think it socializes people in a way that’s ultimately deleterious. Most Rice students weren’t, well, terribly popular in high school. The ethos of the residential college system is immediate and unconditional acceptance. Many students, because of this, graduate with withered interpersonal skills. It’s probably also the cause of a lot of sexual misery. And that you can’t live on-campus with friends who happen not to be in your college is simply ridiculous.</p>
<p>^Oh, I don’t know. There’s nothing to prevent your significant other from sleeping with you even if s/he is a member of a different college.</p>
<p>AnOlderMom, my son was definitely attracted to Rice because of its Division 1 status. I don’t think he would have applied, otherwise. The school flew him down for an overnight visit so that he could meet the coach and team. It may turn out that he’s not fast enough to run on the team, but he is still interested in the school.</p>
<p>There was a huge analysis study done of the athletic situation right before Leebron came to Rice (maybe in 2003?). If I remember correctly, the students were not all that interested in being D1, alumni were all for staying D1, and the program was hemorrhaging ten million or so a year (this is my faulty memory speaking… not sure if those details are correct.) I thought then, and do now, that Rice should go Division 3.</p>
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<p>Most sports consume high amounts of money from school budgets. Men’s football and basketball are usually the only sports that are profitable. I don’t know how financially sound Rice baseball is, but nationally baseball is one of the least profitable NCAA sports. I’d bet that the sports at Rice aren’t profitable.</p>
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<p>in that way Rice shall be one of my last choices. 
TX is not good for me! cannot stand the weather…</p>