Rice University Admission
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The Facts

Rice University is a fairly small, private school located in the city of Houston, Texas. The university is home to just over 2,750 undergraduate students and approximately 2,000 graduate and part-time students. Despite its somewhat diminutive size, Rice is actually a leading research institution, and offers its highly motivated students plenty of hands-on opportunities, research fellowships, and internships. Rice is comprised of six smaller undergraduate colleges, including schools of social sciences, natural sciences, music, humanities, engineering, and architecture. Some of the most popular majors include economics, biosciences, electrical engineering, computer science, psychology, and English. As you can see, there is definitely a preprofessional scientific emphasis at Rice, although its liberal arts programs are quite good as well.

Admission to Rice is fiercely competitive, and the administration is constantly raising the bar for admissions standards. Last year, over 8,000 students applied for admission, and about 1,700 were accepted; of those, about 700 matriculated. The admitted students had an average combined SAT score ranging from 1320 to an impressive 1520, and an average comprehensive ACT score ranging from 28 to 33. Over 83% of those admitted were ranked in the top 10% of their high school graduating class, with an average high school GPA of 3.9.

Rice has an incredible student to faculty ratio of a mere 5:1, and it is rare to find any classes held in large lecture format. Most of the classes at Rice are in small, hands-on laboratory settings so students can reap the full benefits of the school’s fantastic research facilities. The liberal arts classes are usually held in the form of small discussion groups so all the students get a chance to voice their opinions and findings.

The Social Scene

The city of Houston offers students a huge number of things to do; it is home to world-class visual and performing arts, museums, shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and clubs. Students at Rice say if you are bored, it’s your own fault. Most students have cars, as Houston doesn’t really have a very good public transportation system. Parking is pretty sparse, but students seem to manage.

There are no fraternities or sororities as Rice, and students say they don’t really mind. Students love to head out to one of Houston’s many bars and clubs, or throw some rowdy bashes in their tiny dorm rooms. Many students actually spend the weekends holed up in one of Rice’s libraries, studying for upcoming tests or drafting papers. The dating scene at Rice is quite vibrant; expect dashing guys in ten-gallon hats with true Southern charm.

What's Good

“The academics here are amazing; people take them really seriously, and don’t goof off.”

“Houston is a great city, and the people here are super friendly, especially to students.”

“The teachers really care about the students, and you feel really taken care of.”

What's Bad

“Houston is a really conservative city in general. If you are a die-hard liberal, this probably isn’t the place for you.”

“The competition can get way to intense sometimes. People need to take a chill pill.”

“The campus is kind of ghetto. The buildings need a lot of help.”

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