Rice University which is officially known as William Marsh Rice University, is a private research university located in Houston, Texas. The university was opened in 1912 as Rice Institute just after the murder of William Marsh Rice. The university focuses on undergraduate education and research studies.
Rice University is a proud member of the Association of American Univesity, joining in 1985 and classified under R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity” sitting as one of the biggest research universities in Texas, with a campus adjacent to the Houston Museum District and opposite the Texas Medical Center.
The great Rice University has an urban setting that sits at the heart of Hoston, in a tree-lined 300 acres campus. It uses a semester-based academic calendar for its academic schedule. The University was ranked 15th in the 2022-2023 edition of the Best National University by USNews. As one of the prestigious research Institutes in the United States, Rice University is organized into 11 residential colleges and 8 school of academic studies offering more than 50 majors and about 24 minors.
Rice University pairs its large research resources with a small liberal college for maximum benefit. At Rice University, staffs and faculties are easily accessible, with a small class size scale. It has an undergraduate enrollment of 4,247 (as of Fall 2021) making an average class size of 14, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 6:1.
Admission into the University secures automatic qualification into any of its colleges with no further screening process. The 50+ majors of Rice University are dispersed between George R Brown School of Engineering, Weiss School of Natural Sciences, Sheperd School of Music, the School of Social Sciences, the School of Architecture, the School of Humanities, Susanne M Glasscock School of Continuing Studies and Jesse H Jones Graduate School of Business.
Rice University Ranking
As one of the stand out universities, Rice Univesity continued to rank excellently among other institutions, ranking as one of the very best in Houston, Texas and the nation at large.
In a recent publication, Rice University was listed among the nation’s top universities in the new release rankings by USNews & World Report and the Princeton Review. In the category of U.S News Best Colleges 2022 Edition, Rice ranked number 15 among the nation’s top universities list, and number 16 among most innovative schools.
In the World, Rice also ranked #100in the QS World Global Rankings 2023. Other rankings include:
- Rice University ranked #3 in the 2022-2023 Best Undergraduate Teaching University
- Rice University ranked #6 in the 2022-2023 Best Value School
- Rice University ranked #303 in the 2022-2023 Top Performers on Social Mobility
- Rice University ranked #16 in the 2022-2023 Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs
- Rice University ranked #32 in the 2022-2023 Best Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects
Rice University Acceptance Rate
Getting into Rice University is very competitive, having a high prestige and an alumni network that good it just has to be. They have very high GPA, SAT and ACT standards you would have to meet to gain admission.
The recent acceptance rate for Rice University is 9.5%. Showing just how competitive and selective the prestigious Rice University is.
In order to increase your chances at the school you should aim for as high as the 75 percentile, with a 4.0 GPA with an SAT score of 1500 and 34 on the ACT. One of the best ways to increase your chances is to apply early because about 80 per cent of freshmen get admitted through their early decision process which normally closes in early November.
ACT Score Requirement
Available data shows that Rice University usually accepts students with ACT scores between 34-35, meaning that successful students usually land in the top 5 per cent in the country. Although rare, the university may in some rare cases accept students falling below this score, where students with 32-34 scores would be in the lower half of the applicants and those with 35 and above in the upper half of the applicants.
SAT Score Requirement
Rice University would typically prefer its applicants to be in the top 5 per cent of SAT takers. The school likes to keep its SAT score range flexible but not fall below the standard. Recently, the score ranges from 1490 and 1570 out of 1600.
Rice University Location
Located in the very heart of Houston, Texas across 300 acres of heavily wooded tract land. The school’s campus known as High Land is just in the museum district of Houston, not far from the city of West University Place.
There are over 50 buildings spread between the main entrance and the school’s easternmost corner, with a parking lot and the Rice Stadium at the west end. The Lynn R Lowrey Arboretum consists of over 4000 trees and shrubs spread across the campus which is where the famous legend that Rice has a tree for each and every student was coined.
Rice University Notable Alumni
The records as of 2011 show that Rice University has graduated 98 classes of students, among which are noblemen and women who have excelled in various fields ranging from science to politics, academics, Agriculture and even entertainment. Among its alumni includes 5 Nobel laureates, 2 Pulitzer prize winners and a Turing award winner amongst many.
Some of the notable alumni of this prestigious school include:
- Howard Hughes
- Fred C Koch
- Brian Armstrong
- Burt McMurty
- Elizabeth Avellan.
You can check this out to see more notable alumni of Rice University.
Rice University Undergraduate Tuition and Fees
Schooling at Rice University is one of the best experiences anyone could wish for. With a minimalist cost of living within and outside the campus, the school boast of one of the best College life in Texas.
Below is the recent cost for attendance for an undergraduate student schooling full-time at Rice University.
Category | Freshman Resident | Continuing Resident |
---|---|---|
Tuition & Fees | $54,960 | $54,960 |
Room | $10,200 | $11,430 |
Board | $4,800 | $4,800 |
Books | $1,350 | $1,350 |
Transportation | Variable | Variable |
Miscellaneous | $2,800 | $2,800 |
TOTAL | $74,110 | $75,340 |
Rice University Scholarships
In line with a mission to provide the best education for home and abroad students, Rice University understands and listens to the voices of the students in order to help improve its service and create a standard educational system. This can sometimes exceed the financial limits of an average applicant who really wants the best education which the University offers.
This is why the university has provided some educational grants, Scholarships and loans. These grants differ based on qualifications and applications, like the merit-based scholarship which needs no application as the screening automatically picks out the best students that qualify for it. Some of the scholarships the school offers include:
With this there is no doubt that Rice University is one of the very best the country has to offer, providing the best form of education in an equally educative environment ideal for students to succeed.