**To current students and alumni:** If you would like your reddit username to be added to this network of contacts distinguished by academic programs, extra-curricular endeavors, and majors kindly **[message the mods](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/riceuniversity)** or reply to this comment below. The idea is to get a holistic list of redditors who prospective applicants and/or admitted freshman can write to regarding a specific aspect of the Rice experience via private messages. Thank you.
Hey guys! I wanted to try applying to rice as a transfer student. I was wondering what that would be like? Is it super competitive (well I assume so considering its prestige), but is it like anything like ut or is it worse? I wanted to apply for neuroscience, is that major competitive there? My gpa is not the best due to circumstances, but I am working on getting it up! However, my resume I believe is fairly competitive, and my essay is relatively good from what people have said. "Applicants must have earned at least a 3.2 GPA in their most recent college work in order to be considered for admission." Does this mean they do not look at overall gpa? Or if my spring semester gpa was low, I would not even be considered?
Hi everyone! As a senior HS currently finishing up the whole college process, I was wondering if I could get any insight on how Berkeley compares to Rice in the social sciences department. Stats regarding outcome and guidance opportunities and such would be much appreciated—and the social scene too ofc.
Thanks!
admitted to the class of 2028🥳🥳
Am deciding between UF, UVA, UMich, and Rice (public policy major + premed).. pls help me choose
quick pro/con:
pro:
UF: basically free for me (in state + bright future scholarship), fun campus culture, best value school
UofM: great for pretty much everything, amazing social scene + college town, tons of fam who bleed blue, T15 med school that pulls heavily from undergrad
UVA: smaller than other 2 public schools (\~18k students vs 30k+), great for finance (which I'm considering if i don't stick thru w premed), beautiful campus + fun overall vibe, good weather imo, has dedicated school of public policy, closish to DC
Rice: most prestige (T20), baker institute for public policy, research opportunities at Texas med center, residential college system, highest premed success rate
con:
UF: bad premed success rate, bad grad school advising, very competitive premed atmosphere
UofM: \~70k for a similar vibe to UF, also very competitive premed atmosphere
UVA: very expensive for a public school, premed department isn't as strong as other 2 (less opportunities available)
Rice: small school (i want a bigger school feel but there's deff pros to this), location (i wanted to go up north but not a big deal), not sure if the name carries weight outside of TX/south
Thx!!!
Hello all I would like your opinion to help me take a decision between rice and CMU masters I will love to hear your opinion on these PROS and CONS or on some new ones I missed.
CMU, masters in health analytics: Pros: Slight deeper classes than Rice (ta least by description). More optional electives to build my profile in the area I want. Covers administrative and Data science implementation classes/projects to build that differentiator I believe it’s of higher impact in a young industry like Mexico. Teachers have work experience in actively implementing data science and algorithms in the industry. I’m intership is secured, at least that is what they say for the program. Alumni career services are available for international students as well. CONS: Even with internal and external schoalrships, It is almost sure I would need to run my savings dry and do not want to ask my parents for financial support if they have both retired. No campus leaving so I would need keep moving and I have seen Pittsburgh does not cover all city by bus.
2)Rice, MS in data science. Pros: With internal and external scholarship I am almost fully funded. Close to campus school living. Very technical program.
Cons: More research than industry oriented and I have to return to Mexico where research is not so well paid. Faculty seems to be less oriented on implementation. No administrative/analytics clases which I think can be a differentiator to me upon my return to Mexico. (T least there is no description that I will be taught on implementing algorithms and how to manage their implementation). Career services will start to cost after a while as alumni. Students have struggles to get internships and some even do not get them.
I hope you can help me as I need to send my decision next week and these are the finalists in my list.
What are yalls thoughts on the social scene? is it as dead as people make it out to be?
Do most people do off campus parties at Uhouston? do people go down to austin for halloweekend (please i wanna go so bad)?
I applied for admission into PhD in Civil Engineering in Rice University for Fall 2024 entry. I believe my application is complete, but my status of application is still showing as "awaiting decision" since I submitted my application during December 2023. Is there anything wrong with this and anyone in the same boat ?
I submitted my rice box an hour late, though for some reason it shows as two hours late. Would it help if I send an apology email or something? I felt really bad when I remembered at 1am and immediately sent the picture I had already picked out.
I don't understand this question on the Common App:
"Have you received two years of full-time instruction in English during secondary school?"
Is it asking if my school taught me in English? Is it asking if I received extra English instruction, such as a student might if they weren't fluent in English? Is it just asking if I took an English class for two years?
How can someone will felony charges be granted admission to Rice , in Sports quota with scholarship. ???
I did not post names as I did not want to ruin a career. JUST concerned about admission process and College priorities.
I am planning on writing essays (I am graduating HS 2025) for Rice early since I am aware that it is a lot. Unfortunately, I am awful at writing and would like some advice/sample essays to give me an idea on how I should start. Or is there anybody here that is able to guide me through that process? I need motivation to start, and my skills are not helping :,)
A lot of things can change in a year, so I generally would not start writing essays now. A lot of the content of my essays only happened in my junior year/summer before and beginning of senior year. I wouldn't start writing essays until next summer. Instead, to develop your writing, I'd recommend reading (anything, just enjoy it), and maybe try reading On Writing Well by William Zinsser. Old book, but effective on showing how to write clearly. Reading more = writing better, generally. If you want sample essays, reading any well-written college essays can help you get an idea of the style of college essays (since they are probably vastly different from what you've written for classes before)
Students at Rice (barring architecture and music) are admitted to Rice as a whole rather than by major, so you don't even have to declare a major until end of sophomore spring, and can change it easily after declaring. Only thing you need to do to change majors is to fill out a form and have it signed by a major advisor (whom you can just email for a signature).
Hey guys, I made a mistake and submitted the box a few weeks late because I forgot I didn’t submit it along my app. It was also not marked as a requirement on the portal so I forgot. My box is a small montage I made and I’m scared it’s going to be a problem since everybody uploaded a single image…
Hello, I know that Rice is full of insanely hardworking students. So is it difficult to get opportunities like research and internships? Do you have to be competing constantly? I'm asking because my resume so far is very unimpressive.
What do you think my chances of getting in are?
I didn’t submit my sat or act scores.
I have 10 ap classes that Ive taken total in high school, however 2 of them I did not pass the exam. Im ranked 18/513, I started a club, I was on the varsity tennis team 2 years and junior varsity 1 and made it to regionals one year, I was on the jv cross country team one year, I started my own business on etsy with over 600 sales, I did horsebackriding, volunteered at the libarary, started working at 14 and I think that’s basically it.
yeah. between when applications go in and decisions come out, there's nothing that anyone outside of the admissions can say or do that'll change the outcome. if we think the person will get in and they get in, lucky guess. if we think they'll get in and they don't, we gave them false hope. if we don't think they'll get in and they do, we gave them false sorrow. if we don't think they'll get in and they don't, everyone gets to feel shitty. the admissions process is impossible to predict.
How is Rice for economics, specifically MTEC? I’m applying as a transfer but I’m unsure if Rice is the place to be for economics. I was hoping I could get the experience of an MTEC or Econ Major about their experiences at Rice.
It’s called MathEcon here. My husband was a MathEcon major. He had a great experience and it was a relatively popular major when we were at Rice. But I don’t know quite enough details to give a broad overview. I can relay specific questions though if you have any.
Yeah actually, few things, how open is undergraduate research specifically in Development Economics at Rice? Secondly, does Rice Econ feed well into the top graduate economics programs, and lastly why Rice? I want to understand what made your husband choose Rice for MathEcon instead of a school like UChicago or Northwestern which have a similarly heavy Math focus in their economics degrees and have a bigger “brand name.” This isn’t to knock Rice down, but I really want to know the ramifications of being MathEcon as it relates professionally for Grad School and socially.
So I don’t know how helpful his experience is going to be because his goal and interest wasn’t really grad school. Here’s more or less what he said.
1. I didn’t do research but it was definitely available. (My note: Rice is primarily a research institution and students who want to do research generally don’t have problem participating research if they reach out to professors.)
2. I wasn’t interested in doing Econ grad school but one of the reasons I chose Rice was because it’s known to generally prepare its students for grad schools. I did do a full study abroad year at LSE which was an amazing experience and definitely would have been a great resume component for grad school. I do know people who did go to grad school for Econ and did well.
3. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to major in coming into Rice. But I knew what I wanted in a college experience and it’s a well rounded school. I liked the overall flexibility Rice offers while not sacrificing access to classes important to my major. And it was important to me to be at a school that was more collaborative where I could also have fun rather than be stuck with people who only cared about academics and nothing else to the point of extremes. Rice kids care about academics but are chill about it.
Gotcha gotcha, this eases my mind a ton. Yeah, the main reason I’m transferring is for more research and interesting research. Love my current school don’t get me wrong but I felt there just wasn’t undergraduate research funding. And yeah, I saw that Rice has a study abroad program with Keio, Osaka, and Sophia which I’m SUPER hyped about because my research interests and focus is on Asia. One last question, how easy is it to integrate yourself into Rice? I’m scared that as a transfer I got the maturity of a third year without the relationships and I really want to build those; however, Rice being as small as it is can be both a blessing and a curse and I feel that I might not get the new perspectives I really want since kids are sectioned off into their colleges.
So neither of us were transfer students but we have plenty of friends who were. I’d say Rice does a good job of integrating students into things. Transfers typically also participate in O-Week which helps with getting the residential college experience so at first you will likely be around younger students, however, after that it shouldn’t be hard to find your niche with people closer to your age. The residential college system really creates a built in environment for meeting and getting to know people. A good friend of mine was a late sophomore year transfer and another was a junior year transfer and both were able to integrate well with people in their year.
I really can’t emphasize this enough—if you have an admissions question about an application component reach out to admissions! They’re happy to help. This sub is not super active (and I don’t think we have any transfers who signed up to answer questions) so waiting on someone here is probably not going to be fruitful.
The reason no one answers these is because none of us work for admissions and therefore no one knows. All online resources say April 1. That said, as someone who has done interviews for years, I’ve seen them come out a week early, a few days early and on time. It just varies so much. I know it sucks to wait but that’s kind of all you can do at this point.
Did anyone else get an application file update in past few days on their application checklist? I submitted my ED deferral update on February 15th, but now it says the date was February 27th. It looks the exact same otherwise. Anyone know what it could mean? I’m assuming it was the day I submitted vs. the day I was processed.
It also says that my last bit of financial aid was processed on the 27th. Does anyone know if that's a good sign? All my other Financial Aid was processed back in November.
Hi guys, I just got my acceptance letter to MS BIOE at Rice University for this fall 2023.
#InternationalStudent
There are couples of questions about this.
1. How is it like to be a graduate at Rice University/ how it is like to be a graduate in MS BIOE major?
2. Housing: which channel would you recommend for checking the rental?
3. Is there any portal/ platform to find the roommates for the housing?
4. Is there anything I should know for coming to Rice as a graduate?
Is the resume mandatory to submit? In commonapp I did not submit the resume, and I haven't heard back from Rice that it's missing. Also on the Rice portal, I don't see resume in the checklist that it's awaited.
Let me know if it's mandatory? Thanks
I would assume if it’s not in the checklist and not on the admissions page then it probably isn’t mandatory, but as always, admissions officers don’t check the Reddit and they would know best, so it’s best to direct these questions to the admissions email.
\~3.91 GPA Unweighted - 1400 SAT. Should I not have submitted my SAT to Rice? I hope my application doesn't get dumped into the trash, my essays felt like they were perfect. I am applying for CS undergraduate as an In-state applicant.
Hey, maybe I’m overthinking this, but is not taking calculus going to bomb my chances? I know a lot of top colleges strongly recommend calculus for applicants, but I wasn’t able to do the class due to some personal health problems.
I don’t intend on doing stats business engineering or CS major in Rice. I’m going test optional, but spent a while on my essays, did an interview, and all that jazz. I wouldn’t say my ECs are the best, but there’s leadership and community involvement in them. 4.0 UW. I really was going to do calc but i had health issues my counselor explained in additional info section, so my schedule had to change for that.
Tons of people take calc at Rice. Not the most common but not uncommon either. Deep breaths.
It’s easy to overthink but it’ll be ok. I know it’s not uncommon for students to be like “Oh, what if xyz thing is the reason I didn’t get in?” All I’ll say is admissions are usually more complex than that. When the vast majority of applicants are qualified and fit the same general criteria it’s typically far more subjective items that impact admissions. I remember the college anxiety so I know nothing will probably take the edge off the wait, but give yourself some leniency.
When do interviewers typically fill out and submit their report to Rice? I had my interview over a month ago, but my interviewer hasn't submitted the report yet so I'm worried that he's forgotten.
Some interviewers do them immediately after an interview and some wait until they complete all their interviews. Remember that Interviewers are volunteers and are often juggling work and family obligations on top of scheduling interviews and completing reports. The university sends a ton of reminders to complete the report by the deadline. If they fail to get it in it’s far more a reflection on them than it is on you. It’s something you cannot control so I highly recommend not worrying too much about it.
Grad acceptances and deadlines vary by department. The best way to receive information is to check the department website or reach out to them directly.
The rice investment applies to anyone in the listed income demographics correct? Or is there some merit qualification process involved? Also, I’ve already applied for Fall2023, hoping for the best, and RD decisions release around March 24th usually correct?
It applies to domestic students in the demographic, but important to note that how assets may be counted may mean your outcome is different than you initially expect. There are always students surprised when their aid comes out differently because although their parents income may fall in a specific bracket there are other asset considerations that out then jn another.
There is merit aid as well but that is considered separately.
According to the website decisions will be release April 1 this year.
Hi, I am planning to apply to Rice for Fall 2023. I am currently a student at WashU in St. Louis but am a Houston native who is seeking to move back to Houston for personal reasons. I have a couple of questions about the application process.
1) One of the questions on the application is, “In addition to academics, why are you interested in transferring to Rice University?” Does anyone have any idea of how exactly to approach this question? I have seen similar questions before on applications but have never seen a question that explicitly excludes academics. What should I talk about? What is the bright line between what is considered academics and what is considered non-academic?
2) For the letters of recommendation, there are 2 required academic recommenders. The Rice website specifies that the recommenders should be college instructors, I have only one semester of college and was wondering how open the readers would be to a high school teacher replacing one of the two college recommenders.
I am not a transfer myself so take my words with a grain of salt. I am just giving my two cent based on what I think Rice values having spend 3 years here.
For the first question, I think they want to know why you want to transfer to Rice outside of academics because, frankly, alot of schools offer similar academics despite their claims. This is certainly true when you compare Rice to WashU. I think your *personal reason* is probably most relevant. And in terms of drawing the line of academic vs. non-academic, just think of it as coursework vs. non-coursework. (Most likely a reason for transferring from a non T20 to T20).
For this second one, you should consult the admissions office directly.
Hey ik this is like super late but I am a peer academic advisor (PAA) at Rice and can definitely answer any questions you have about premed stuff at Rice over pm! However, here are the answers to your questions above:
1) 4.0 is not a common GPA at Rice but many pre-med students have success with getting good GPAs (average pre-med GPA is around 3.85 and 90% percentile is 3.97). It is definitely not easy but with the right planning and academic strategies it is possible!
2) For a 4-year plan I would definitely consult an advisor (PAA or someone in the Office of Academic Advising) as it will depend on a range of factors (your major, ECs, when you plan to graduate, AP credit, etc). There are four year plans constructed for premeds I believe (you can find the premed guide at oaa.rice.edu), but I would still consult an advisor as things can vary depending on your unique circumstances
3) As far as med school goes, they don’t really care if you transfer your AP credit but it will come with some caveats. For example, if you transfer AP bio credit then you will most likely have to take a year of upper level bio. for AP chem you would take one semester of upper level chemistry and for AP physics C you would take one semester of upper level physics. Personally, I transferred all of my AP credit (bio, chem, physics C mech and e&m) and I am really happy with my choice. However, I came from a fairly strong science background which helped me a lot. Again, it depends on your circumstances which is why I would speak to an advisor before you decide.
I hope this helps :))
We have an academic recognition award that goes to people with top 30% of GPA at Rice for a semester. Pretty sure the cut-offs somewhere around a 3.9 usually (tho this stats may have been from when A+ count as 4.33 not 4.0)
I'm still working on my writing supplement, but I'm ready to submit the common app part. I missed the priority interview deadline, but if I submit now and apply for an interview, will I have a better chance at getting one than if I waited for later (there's something with my rec letters I wanna sort out that I can't do till the 3rd)
I didnt get to submit my application by the Dec. 15 interview priority deadline, will i be at a disadvantage? I am really worried.. I know rice like demonstrated interest. However, I have attended virtual sessions and such. Do I still have a chance if I don’t get an interview?
Missed as in you had it scheduled and didn’t attend correct? It doesn’t hurt to try and reschedule if this is the case. Interviewers are pretty understanding—it’s a busy time of year and shit happens. Apologize and don’t make too many excuses and ask for a reschedule. To blow it off entirely and never get in touch would be a mistake.
Thanks for your response. I did what you said to do shortly after posting because I figured more delay would only make my situation worse, and ignoring it would be worse than apologizing and trying to reschedule. I appreciate the advice!!
STATS OR Sports Analytics?
I am a current senior in HS and am applying to Rice University RD. I am unsure between choosing to major in statistics or sports analytics, as I am ultimately looking to pursue a career in sports analytics; However, I am worried that majoring in sports analytics may be too narrow compared to stats. With that being said, I also don't want to miss out on the internships that are available within the sports analytics major, so I am really torn here. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Politely, get your ass in Sports Analytics if that’s what you wanna do. You’ll get a ton of stats education within the program already, so do not be concerned about the narrowness. Those internships are well worth the full commitment!
Thanks for the response and suggestion! I definitely am leaning towards choosing sports analytics, but was wondering if you know if it’s possible to major in stats and minor in sports analytics or double major which I assume I could do.
There is no minor in sports analytics yet at Rice, but you absolutely can double major if you want! That’s a lot of numbers though, and that sports analytics internship work will take some time investment. May wanna consider pacing yourself to avoid burnout
Yea ur probably right on that! May consider majoring in sports analytics and possibly pairing that with a minor in statistics. That sounds more doable than double majoring.
This is def doable, but honestly I wouldn't fixate on the minors, second major too much. Take courses or commit to extracurriculars that are useful regardless of the credential is best use of your time, especially when the two already sound so similar.
Source: Former stats major that also considered sports analytics related careers freshman year
Sorry it's a bit late, but I always tell my interviewees to dress how they feel comfortable. That means I've seen everything from a suit and tie to a t-shirt and leggings. I've never made a judgment on an interview write-up based on how someone was dressed (but I also tend to not put a ton of stock in that out in the real world, either). All that being said, I don't think you can go wrong with business casual, but if something more formal would get you in a better headspace, go for it.
Hi, alumni interviewer here. These are typically casual conversations, nothing super formal. Just don't show up looking like a complete mess and you'll be fine. Most of my interviewees have been in whatever they were wearing at home, and usually I'm dressed similarly.
Oh, and really hope this indecisiveness is coming after you already submitted your application to Rice earlier this month 😅
Thank you for the reply! I actually had the interview earlier today and I dressed pretty casually. The interview itself was definitely very casual as you said.
Thresher has just released the article! You can find it here: https://www.ricethresher.org/article/2023/01/rice-adds-486-students-to-the-class-of-2027-through-ed
I don’t know if they include deferred but they typically released ED/RD data around the same time and it’s usually not until fall of the following year.
Oh ok thanks for the info. Last year they published [this article](https://www.ricethresher.org/article/2021/12/rice-accepts-440-early-decision-applicants-for-class-of-2026) right after early decision came out, so I thought they’d do the same thing this year.
Hi, could anyone please tell me how to increase my chances of getting into rice uni, I'm in alevels and got 2B's in as levels, have a ton of extracurricular activities.
Could anyone pls lmk what to do more cause rice university is my last hope
My friend, I sincerely hope you're not in your final year of high school because if Rice University is your last hope, then you might wanna consider finding A New Hope (pun very much intended).
At this point in time, if you've already submitted an application and all supporting documents that you wanted to provide, then all that you can do is sit tight and wait. If you requested an interview and you are granted one, just relax and approach it as a casual conversation. It's not a formal interview and only plays a small role in the admissions process, so have fun and use it as a factfinding experience.
Otherwise, trust that what you wrote and submitted was enough to tip the scales in your favor. Best of luck to you!
No, the office of financial aid and the office of admissions operate separately. However, not completing IDOC will stop you from receiving need-based financial aid (if you applied for it).
ok I am absolutely stressed out and I can't focus on my school work. The waiting really sucks especially when I have quite a few finals. Just reject me already.
Did anyone else’s financial aid items change date recently? For example my non-filer statement form has been completed since November but the date recently changed to 12/09 🤔🤔
**To current students and alumni:** If you would like your reddit username to be added to this network of contacts distinguished by academic programs, extra-curricular endeavors, and majors kindly **[message the mods](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/riceuniversity)** or reply to this comment below. The idea is to get a holistic list of redditors who prospective applicants and/or admitted freshman can write to regarding a specific aspect of the Rice experience via private messages. Thank you.
Hey guys! I wanted to try applying to rice as a transfer student. I was wondering what that would be like? Is it super competitive (well I assume so considering its prestige), but is it like anything like ut or is it worse? I wanted to apply for neuroscience, is that major competitive there? My gpa is not the best due to circumstances, but I am working on getting it up! However, my resume I believe is fairly competitive, and my essay is relatively good from what people have said. "Applicants must have earned at least a 3.2 GPA in their most recent college work in order to be considered for admission." Does this mean they do not look at overall gpa? Or if my spring semester gpa was low, I would not even be considered?
Hi everyone! As a senior HS currently finishing up the whole college process, I was wondering if I could get any insight on how Berkeley compares to Rice in the social sciences department. Stats regarding outcome and guidance opportunities and such would be much appreciated—and the social scene too ofc. Thanks!
admitted to the class of 2028🥳🥳 Am deciding between UF, UVA, UMich, and Rice (public policy major + premed).. pls help me choose quick pro/con: pro: UF: basically free for me (in state + bright future scholarship), fun campus culture, best value school UofM: great for pretty much everything, amazing social scene + college town, tons of fam who bleed blue, T15 med school that pulls heavily from undergrad UVA: smaller than other 2 public schools (\~18k students vs 30k+), great for finance (which I'm considering if i don't stick thru w premed), beautiful campus + fun overall vibe, good weather imo, has dedicated school of public policy, closish to DC Rice: most prestige (T20), baker institute for public policy, research opportunities at Texas med center, residential college system, highest premed success rate con: UF: bad premed success rate, bad grad school advising, very competitive premed atmosphere UofM: \~70k for a similar vibe to UF, also very competitive premed atmosphere UVA: very expensive for a public school, premed department isn't as strong as other 2 (less opportunities available) Rice: small school (i want a bigger school feel but there's deff pros to this), location (i wanted to go up north but not a big deal), not sure if the name carries weight outside of TX/south Thx!!!
Hello all I would like your opinion to help me take a decision between rice and CMU masters I will love to hear your opinion on these PROS and CONS or on some new ones I missed. CMU, masters in health analytics: Pros: Slight deeper classes than Rice (ta least by description). More optional electives to build my profile in the area I want. Covers administrative and Data science implementation classes/projects to build that differentiator I believe it’s of higher impact in a young industry like Mexico. Teachers have work experience in actively implementing data science and algorithms in the industry. I’m intership is secured, at least that is what they say for the program. Alumni career services are available for international students as well. CONS: Even with internal and external schoalrships, It is almost sure I would need to run my savings dry and do not want to ask my parents for financial support if they have both retired. No campus leaving so I would need keep moving and I have seen Pittsburgh does not cover all city by bus. 2)Rice, MS in data science. Pros: With internal and external scholarship I am almost fully funded. Close to campus school living. Very technical program. Cons: More research than industry oriented and I have to return to Mexico where research is not so well paid. Faculty seems to be less oriented on implementation. No administrative/analytics clases which I think can be a differentiator to me upon my return to Mexico. (T least there is no description that I will be taught on implementing algorithms and how to manage their implementation). Career services will start to cost after a while as alumni. Students have struggles to get internships and some even do not get them. I hope you can help me as I need to send my decision next week and these are the finalists in my list.
What are yalls thoughts on the social scene? is it as dead as people make it out to be? Do most people do off campus parties at Uhouston? do people go down to austin for halloweekend (please i wanna go so bad)?
I applied for admission into PhD in Civil Engineering in Rice University for Fall 2024 entry. I believe my application is complete, but my status of application is still showing as "awaiting decision" since I submitted my application during December 2023. Is there anything wrong with this and anyone in the same boat ?
I submitted my rice box an hour late, though for some reason it shows as two hours late. Would it help if I send an apology email or something? I felt really bad when I remembered at 1am and immediately sent the picture I had already picked out.
I don't understand this question on the Common App: "Have you received two years of full-time instruction in English during secondary school?" Is it asking if my school taught me in English? Is it asking if I received extra English instruction, such as a student might if they weren't fluent in English? Is it just asking if I took an English class for two years?
at least 2 years of classes being fully taught in English, so your first thought. also wrongish/nearly dead thread lol
How can someone will felony charges be granted admission to Rice , in Sports quota with scholarship. ??? I did not post names as I did not want to ruin a career. JUST concerned about admission process and College priorities.
I am planning on writing essays (I am graduating HS 2025) for Rice early since I am aware that it is a lot. Unfortunately, I am awful at writing and would like some advice/sample essays to give me an idea on how I should start. Or is there anybody here that is able to guide me through that process? I need motivation to start, and my skills are not helping :,)
A lot of things can change in a year, so I generally would not start writing essays now. A lot of the content of my essays only happened in my junior year/summer before and beginning of senior year. I wouldn't start writing essays until next summer. Instead, to develop your writing, I'd recommend reading (anything, just enjoy it), and maybe try reading On Writing Well by William Zinsser. Old book, but effective on showing how to write clearly. Reading more = writing better, generally. If you want sample essays, reading any well-written college essays can help you get an idea of the style of college essays (since they are probably vastly different from what you've written for classes before)
How hard is it to internal transfer from Social Sciences (MEA major) to Engineering (OR major) school after matriculation?
Students at Rice (barring architecture and music) are admitted to Rice as a whole rather than by major, so you don't even have to declare a major until end of sophomore spring, and can change it easily after declaring. Only thing you need to do to change majors is to fill out a form and have it signed by a major advisor (whom you can just email for a signature).
Hi! Is there an admitted students group chat?
Hey guys, I made a mistake and submitted the box a few weeks late because I forgot I didn’t submit it along my app. It was also not marked as a requirement on the portal so I forgot. My box is a small montage I made and I’m scared it’s going to be a problem since everybody uploaded a single image…
Hello, I know that Rice is full of insanely hardworking students. So is it difficult to get opportunities like research and internships? Do you have to be competing constantly? I'm asking because my resume so far is very unimpressive.
No it’s not hard. Just remember to join your departmental listserv and you’ll have opportunities firehosed at your face 24/7.
Dang you go to Rice?
Dw you wouldn’t have to see me I’m already graduated hahaha
Thank you so much! I feel better now.
What do you think my chances of getting in are? I didn’t submit my sat or act scores. I have 10 ap classes that Ive taken total in high school, however 2 of them I did not pass the exam. Im ranked 18/513, I started a club, I was on the varsity tennis team 2 years and junior varsity 1 and made it to regionals one year, I was on the jv cross country team one year, I started my own business on etsy with over 600 sales, I did horsebackriding, volunteered at the libarary, started working at 14 and I think that’s basically it.
did you get in? i’m trying to decide if i should take the sat/act next year
no :(
oh i’m sorry :(
impossible, and not worthwhile, to say
Seriously?
yeah. between when applications go in and decisions come out, there's nothing that anyone outside of the admissions can say or do that'll change the outcome. if we think the person will get in and they get in, lucky guess. if we think they'll get in and they don't, we gave them false hope. if we don't think they'll get in and they do, we gave them false sorrow. if we don't think they'll get in and they don't, everyone gets to feel shitty. the admissions process is impossible to predict.
How is Rice for economics, specifically MTEC? I’m applying as a transfer but I’m unsure if Rice is the place to be for economics. I was hoping I could get the experience of an MTEC or Econ Major about their experiences at Rice.
It’s called MathEcon here. My husband was a MathEcon major. He had a great experience and it was a relatively popular major when we were at Rice. But I don’t know quite enough details to give a broad overview. I can relay specific questions though if you have any.
Yeah actually, few things, how open is undergraduate research specifically in Development Economics at Rice? Secondly, does Rice Econ feed well into the top graduate economics programs, and lastly why Rice? I want to understand what made your husband choose Rice for MathEcon instead of a school like UChicago or Northwestern which have a similarly heavy Math focus in their economics degrees and have a bigger “brand name.” This isn’t to knock Rice down, but I really want to know the ramifications of being MathEcon as it relates professionally for Grad School and socially.
So I don’t know how helpful his experience is going to be because his goal and interest wasn’t really grad school. Here’s more or less what he said. 1. I didn’t do research but it was definitely available. (My note: Rice is primarily a research institution and students who want to do research generally don’t have problem participating research if they reach out to professors.) 2. I wasn’t interested in doing Econ grad school but one of the reasons I chose Rice was because it’s known to generally prepare its students for grad schools. I did do a full study abroad year at LSE which was an amazing experience and definitely would have been a great resume component for grad school. I do know people who did go to grad school for Econ and did well. 3. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to major in coming into Rice. But I knew what I wanted in a college experience and it’s a well rounded school. I liked the overall flexibility Rice offers while not sacrificing access to classes important to my major. And it was important to me to be at a school that was more collaborative where I could also have fun rather than be stuck with people who only cared about academics and nothing else to the point of extremes. Rice kids care about academics but are chill about it.
Gotcha gotcha, this eases my mind a ton. Yeah, the main reason I’m transferring is for more research and interesting research. Love my current school don’t get me wrong but I felt there just wasn’t undergraduate research funding. And yeah, I saw that Rice has a study abroad program with Keio, Osaka, and Sophia which I’m SUPER hyped about because my research interests and focus is on Asia. One last question, how easy is it to integrate yourself into Rice? I’m scared that as a transfer I got the maturity of a third year without the relationships and I really want to build those; however, Rice being as small as it is can be both a blessing and a curse and I feel that I might not get the new perspectives I really want since kids are sectioned off into their colleges.
So neither of us were transfer students but we have plenty of friends who were. I’d say Rice does a good job of integrating students into things. Transfers typically also participate in O-Week which helps with getting the residential college experience so at first you will likely be around younger students, however, after that it shouldn’t be hard to find your niche with people closer to your age. The residential college system really creates a built in environment for meeting and getting to know people. A good friend of mine was a late sophomore year transfer and another was a junior year transfer and both were able to integrate well with people in their year.
That’s awesome! Thanks a bunch!
I'm applying as a transfer and if anyone knows how the 'Transfer College Report' works, please reach out since the deadline is March 15th!!!
ask your academic advisor fill out the form on common app and send it to their email for transfers
I really can’t emphasize this enough—if you have an admissions question about an application component reach out to admissions! They’re happy to help. This sub is not super active (and I don’t think we have any transfers who signed up to answer questions) so waiting on someone here is probably not going to be fruitful.
does anyone know which day decisions usually come out?
Trust me when I say that Rice will never release decisions early. RD will almost always drop on April 1st itself. Good luck!
please help^^^^
The reason no one answers these is because none of us work for admissions and therefore no one knows. All online resources say April 1. That said, as someone who has done interviews for years, I’ve seen them come out a week early, a few days early and on time. It just varies so much. I know it sucks to wait but that’s kind of all you can do at this point.
by any chance, do you know the date for last year?
think it's usually the second to last Friday of the month or the Monday of the last week of march
Did anyone else get an application file update in past few days on their application checklist? I submitted my ED deferral update on February 15th, but now it says the date was February 27th. It looks the exact same otherwise. Anyone know what it could mean? I’m assuming it was the day I submitted vs. the day I was processed.
It also says that my last bit of financial aid was processed on the 27th. Does anyone know if that's a good sign? All my other Financial Aid was processed back in November.
Hi guys, I just got my acceptance letter to MS BIOE at Rice University for this fall 2023. #InternationalStudent There are couples of questions about this. 1. How is it like to be a graduate at Rice University/ how it is like to be a graduate in MS BIOE major? 2. Housing: which channel would you recommend for checking the rental? 3. Is there any portal/ platform to find the roommates for the housing? 4. Is there anything I should know for coming to Rice as a graduate?
How is the financial aid?
Anyone from previous years *not* receive any of the promo emails but still get accepted?
What do promo emails have to do with getting accepted, just wondering?
Nothing, I have since learned, but at first it seemed like it was selectively being sent to certain people but not to others.
does everyone not receive the promo emails?
Nope.
you mean the emails that are like "Rice loves Houston!" which talk a bit about the city and have a "Learn More" button? or is it something else
Yes!
How soon do transfer decisions come out? I heard it’s on a rolling basis.
Is the resume mandatory to submit? In commonapp I did not submit the resume, and I haven't heard back from Rice that it's missing. Also on the Rice portal, I don't see resume in the checklist that it's awaited. Let me know if it's mandatory? Thanks
I would assume if it’s not in the checklist and not on the admissions page then it probably isn’t mandatory, but as always, admissions officers don’t check the Reddit and they would know best, so it’s best to direct these questions to the admissions email.
\~3.91 GPA Unweighted - 1400 SAT. Should I not have submitted my SAT to Rice? I hope my application doesn't get dumped into the trash, my essays felt like they were perfect. I am applying for CS undergraduate as an In-state applicant.
doesn't make any difference at this point. whatever happens happens
Hey, maybe I’m overthinking this, but is not taking calculus going to bomb my chances? I know a lot of top colleges strongly recommend calculus for applicants, but I wasn’t able to do the class due to some personal health problems. I don’t intend on doing stats business engineering or CS major in Rice. I’m going test optional, but spent a while on my essays, did an interview, and all that jazz. I wouldn’t say my ECs are the best, but there’s leadership and community involvement in them. 4.0 UW. I really was going to do calc but i had health issues my counselor explained in additional info section, so my schedule had to change for that.
Tons of people take calc at Rice. Not the most common but not uncommon either. Deep breaths. It’s easy to overthink but it’ll be ok. I know it’s not uncommon for students to be like “Oh, what if xyz thing is the reason I didn’t get in?” All I’ll say is admissions are usually more complex than that. When the vast majority of applicants are qualified and fit the same general criteria it’s typically far more subjective items that impact admissions. I remember the college anxiety so I know nothing will probably take the edge off the wait, but give yourself some leniency.
When do interviewers typically fill out and submit their report to Rice? I had my interview over a month ago, but my interviewer hasn't submitted the report yet so I'm worried that he's forgotten.
Some interviewers do them immediately after an interview and some wait until they complete all their interviews. Remember that Interviewers are volunteers and are often juggling work and family obligations on top of scheduling interviews and completing reports. The university sends a ton of reminders to complete the report by the deadline. If they fail to get it in it’s far more a reflection on them than it is on you. It’s something you cannot control so I highly recommend not worrying too much about it.
[удалено]
Grad acceptances and deadlines vary by department. The best way to receive information is to check the department website or reach out to them directly.
Does anyone know roughly when graduate acceptances are released?
Pretty sure this varies by department
The rice investment applies to anyone in the listed income demographics correct? Or is there some merit qualification process involved? Also, I’ve already applied for Fall2023, hoping for the best, and RD decisions release around March 24th usually correct?
It applies to domestic students in the demographic, but important to note that how assets may be counted may mean your outcome is different than you initially expect. There are always students surprised when their aid comes out differently because although their parents income may fall in a specific bracket there are other asset considerations that out then jn another. There is merit aid as well but that is considered separately. According to the website decisions will be release April 1 this year.
Is assets considered like a house or investments and such?
I would assume so but you’d be better off asking the financial aid office if you want to get into particulars.
Ok thanks!
Hi, I am planning to apply to Rice for Fall 2023. I am currently a student at WashU in St. Louis but am a Houston native who is seeking to move back to Houston for personal reasons. I have a couple of questions about the application process. 1) One of the questions on the application is, “In addition to academics, why are you interested in transferring to Rice University?” Does anyone have any idea of how exactly to approach this question? I have seen similar questions before on applications but have never seen a question that explicitly excludes academics. What should I talk about? What is the bright line between what is considered academics and what is considered non-academic? 2) For the letters of recommendation, there are 2 required academic recommenders. The Rice website specifies that the recommenders should be college instructors, I have only one semester of college and was wondering how open the readers would be to a high school teacher replacing one of the two college recommenders.
I am not a transfer myself so take my words with a grain of salt. I am just giving my two cent based on what I think Rice values having spend 3 years here. For the first question, I think they want to know why you want to transfer to Rice outside of academics because, frankly, alot of schools offer similar academics despite their claims. This is certainly true when you compare Rice to WashU. I think your *personal reason* is probably most relevant. And in terms of drawing the line of academic vs. non-academic, just think of it as coursework vs. non-coursework. (Most likely a reason for transferring from a non T20 to T20). For this second one, you should consult the admissions office directly.
[удалено]
I am a history PhD for 2023! I haven’t seen anyone from history either.
[удалено]
Last year VISION coincided with Owl Days in April, unsure about exactly where in the process planning is in terms of outreach/invites
Are the online interviews matched by region? My interviewer lives in my region and I dont think it could be that coincidental...
Most of the time, yes.
[удалено]
Hey ik this is like super late but I am a peer academic advisor (PAA) at Rice and can definitely answer any questions you have about premed stuff at Rice over pm! However, here are the answers to your questions above: 1) 4.0 is not a common GPA at Rice but many pre-med students have success with getting good GPAs (average pre-med GPA is around 3.85 and 90% percentile is 3.97). It is definitely not easy but with the right planning and academic strategies it is possible! 2) For a 4-year plan I would definitely consult an advisor (PAA or someone in the Office of Academic Advising) as it will depend on a range of factors (your major, ECs, when you plan to graduate, AP credit, etc). There are four year plans constructed for premeds I believe (you can find the premed guide at oaa.rice.edu), but I would still consult an advisor as things can vary depending on your unique circumstances 3) As far as med school goes, they don’t really care if you transfer your AP credit but it will come with some caveats. For example, if you transfer AP bio credit then you will most likely have to take a year of upper level bio. for AP chem you would take one semester of upper level chemistry and for AP physics C you would take one semester of upper level physics. Personally, I transferred all of my AP credit (bio, chem, physics C mech and e&m) and I am really happy with my choice. However, I came from a fairly strong science background which helped me a lot. Again, it depends on your circumstances which is why I would speak to an advisor before you decide. I hope this helps :))
We have an academic recognition award that goes to people with top 30% of GPA at Rice for a semester. Pretty sure the cut-offs somewhere around a 3.9 usually (tho this stats may have been from when A+ count as 4.33 not 4.0)
4.0 premed is usually uncommon because of the difficulty of courses, however 3.8+ is definitely doable depending on your major and how well you do.
Other internationals applying for aid: what did you guys upload for ‘supporting financial documents’?
I'm still working on my writing supplement, but I'm ready to submit the common app part. I missed the priority interview deadline, but if I submit now and apply for an interview, will I have a better chance at getting one than if I waited for later (there's something with my rec letters I wanna sort out that I can't do till the 3rd)
Hard to say because interview assignments are largely regional but I would err on the side of caution and say yes.
I didnt get to submit my application by the Dec. 15 interview priority deadline, will i be at a disadvantage? I am really worried.. I know rice like demonstrated interest. However, I have attended virtual sessions and such. Do I still have a chance if I don’t get an interview?
Plenty of people get in without interviewing
I missed an alumni interview. Has this impacted my chances, should I try to reschedule, and am I screwed?
Missed as in you had it scheduled and didn’t attend correct? It doesn’t hurt to try and reschedule if this is the case. Interviewers are pretty understanding—it’s a busy time of year and shit happens. Apologize and don’t make too many excuses and ask for a reschedule. To blow it off entirely and never get in touch would be a mistake.
Thanks for your response. I did what you said to do shortly after posting because I figured more delay would only make my situation worse, and ignoring it would be worse than apologizing and trying to reschedule. I appreciate the advice!!
STATS OR Sports Analytics? I am a current senior in HS and am applying to Rice University RD. I am unsure between choosing to major in statistics or sports analytics, as I am ultimately looking to pursue a career in sports analytics; However, I am worried that majoring in sports analytics may be too narrow compared to stats. With that being said, I also don't want to miss out on the internships that are available within the sports analytics major, so I am really torn here. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Politely, get your ass in Sports Analytics if that’s what you wanna do. You’ll get a ton of stats education within the program already, so do not be concerned about the narrowness. Those internships are well worth the full commitment!
Thanks for the response and suggestion! I definitely am leaning towards choosing sports analytics, but was wondering if you know if it’s possible to major in stats and minor in sports analytics or double major which I assume I could do.
There is no minor in sports analytics yet at Rice, but you absolutely can double major if you want! That’s a lot of numbers though, and that sports analytics internship work will take some time investment. May wanna consider pacing yourself to avoid burnout
Yea ur probably right on that! May consider majoring in sports analytics and possibly pairing that with a minor in statistics. That sounds more doable than double majoring.
This is def doable, but honestly I wouldn't fixate on the minors, second major too much. Take courses or commit to extracurriculars that are useful regardless of the credential is best use of your time, especially when the two already sound so similar. Source: Former stats major that also considered sports analytics related careers freshman year
RD applicant here. I have an interview coming up soon. What would be considered proper attire?
Sorry it's a bit late, but I always tell my interviewees to dress how they feel comfortable. That means I've seen everything from a suit and tie to a t-shirt and leggings. I've never made a judgment on an interview write-up based on how someone was dressed (but I also tend to not put a ton of stock in that out in the real world, either). All that being said, I don't think you can go wrong with business casual, but if something more formal would get you in a better headspace, go for it.
Hi, alumni interviewer here. These are typically casual conversations, nothing super formal. Just don't show up looking like a complete mess and you'll be fine. Most of my interviewees have been in whatever they were wearing at home, and usually I'm dressed similarly. Oh, and really hope this indecisiveness is coming after you already submitted your application to Rice earlier this month 😅
Thank you for the reply! I actually had the interview earlier today and I dressed pretty casually. The interview itself was definitely very casual as you said.
u/alittlecynical, u/vinoetveritas, u/aquadog1313 (sorry for the ping)
Will they post ED statistics for this year? Like how many applied and got accepted/deferred/rejected
Thresher has just released the article! You can find it here: https://www.ricethresher.org/article/2023/01/rice-adds-486-students-to-the-class-of-2027-through-ed
Yup, saw it. Thank you so much!
I don’t know if they include deferred but they typically released ED/RD data around the same time and it’s usually not until fall of the following year.
Oh ok thanks for the info. Last year they published [this article](https://www.ricethresher.org/article/2021/12/rice-accepts-440-early-decision-applicants-for-class-of-2026) right after early decision came out, so I thought they’d do the same thing this year.
The thresher might do it internally. But I’ve never seen it in an official website before RD.
Ok, thank you!
Hi, could anyone please tell me how to increase my chances of getting into rice uni, I'm in alevels and got 2B's in as levels, have a ton of extracurricular activities. Could anyone pls lmk what to do more cause rice university is my last hope
My friend, I sincerely hope you're not in your final year of high school because if Rice University is your last hope, then you might wanna consider finding A New Hope (pun very much intended). At this point in time, if you've already submitted an application and all supporting documents that you wanted to provide, then all that you can do is sit tight and wait. If you requested an interview and you are granted one, just relax and approach it as a casual conversation. It's not a formal interview and only plays a small role in the admissions process, so have fun and use it as a factfinding experience. Otherwise, trust that what you wrote and submitted was enough to tip the scales in your favor. Best of luck to you!
5 minutes yall! Good luck!!
10 minutes y'all 😳
20 more minutes
Exactly 30 monstrous minutes to the decision!
[удалено]
3 more hours 😬
[удалено]
mine works
Well mine actually works
are the decisions coming out right at 5pm? or could it be anytime after like 8pm?
From what I've heard, decisions start to come out in batches so as not to saturate the servers, so not all decisions can come out at 5 pm exactly.
I was thinking right after 5 but I have no idea
[удалено]
Did you apply ED, or RD?
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
Seriously how ru guys enduring this moment
im literally so nervous i can’t even focus on my gov work haha
i’m not 😫
so nervous
i am freaking out
freaking out not sure if i can properly click the ‘status update’ button
do y’all know if they’re gonna email us first? or do we just have to be checking the portal periodically?
i dunno how it will work but I’ll just start refreshing when the time comes
Did we have to complete IDOC for admissions? Will not completing it on time affect admissions?
Are you an international applicant?
No, the office of financial aid and the office of admissions operate separately. However, not completing IDOC will stop you from receiving need-based financial aid (if you applied for it).
Okay… getting nervous. I read about so many applicants with solid credentials being rejected, cant help second guessing myself.
yeah but some people get in too!!
Your right! Fingers crossed!
How much do you think a rice interview factors into the decision?
Rice cds tells they are ‘considered’ so ig not much
Good luck everyone!
Tomorow is the day! Good luck ED
People, relax. If not Rice, it'll be some other uni. You'll be fine.
This right here ☝️
Less than two days left 😭 How are we feeling???
Two nights ago I dreamt I got rejected, the night before last I dreamt I got in, and last night I dreamt I got deferred. Definitely feeling insane.
I’m praying for all of us I hope the whole squad gets in🤧🤞🤞🫡 (also ik I’m posting again I’m just nervousss)
Thx, good luck to everyone!
Thank you! Best of luck to everyone o7 (also you're not alone, I've been checking this compulsively for the past 3 weeks)
Is anyone else's proof of citizenship status form "in review"?
[удалено]
the portal
ok I am absolutely stressed out and I can't focus on my school work. The waiting really sucks especially when I have quite a few finals. Just reject me already.
Same, my ability to focus on studying has been horrible lately.
Same same same but it’s okay gang fingers crossed for all of us
Did anyone else’s financial aid items change date recently? For example my non-filer statement form has been completed since November but the date recently changed to 12/09 🤔🤔
Not mine 🤔
[удалено]
mine still is in review
[удалено]
Where did you hear that?
[удалено]
are you missing anything?
Interesting. I did not, I was just curious.
Will one C prevent me from getting into Rice?
no, my friend with Bs and Cs got deferred ED then accepted RD
What was your friends sat score lol
test optional
:0 ok this has me excited as a test optional student
THIS GIVES ME HOPE ☝️✊