School Location:

HOUSTON, TX

School Type:

PRIVATE RESEARCH UNIVERSITY

How difficult is it to get into Rice?

Of the 31,059 students who applied to join Rice’s Class of 2027, 2,447, or just 7.9% were accepted. The school had a slightly higher acceptance rate for Early Decision students, at 16.5%, while the Regular Decision admissions rate was 7.0%. The 25th-75th percentile range of SAT scores was 1500-1560, and 34-36 for the ACT. Students who intend to apply to Rice should therefore aim to earn top grades and test scores.

What is the campus like at Rice?

Rice is located on a 300-acre campus in the heart of Houston, Texas, the fourth most populous city in America. Houston is an incredibly diverse city, with residents that speak at least 145 different languages. Rice is connected to the rest of Houston via metro, but students don’t have to venture far to briefly escape campus; Rice Village is a nearby shopping district where students can shop, eat, or people watch. Another way students connect with the surrounding area is through Passport to Houston, which gives students unlimited free access to zoos and museums.

Rice offers over 300 student organizations and 14 varsity sports teams where you can find your community within the greater Rice community. Students are randomly sorted into one of the 11 residential colleges. These colleges are more than just dorms—they are small communities where students live and eat together, guided by a faculty mentor. Though students join their college as freshmen, they remain affiliated all four years of their undergraduate study.

Overall, Rice offers strong academic support from staff and peer academic advisors through the Office of Academic Advising. The university also provides specialized advising programs for student-athletes, students interested in health professions, pre-law, and more!

What is Rice known for?

Rice is primarily known for its world-class academics and cutting-edge research output. As a research university, Rice offers numerous opportunities (50+ research centers, institutes, and consortiums) for undergraduates to conduct research, including the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, the Sustaining Excellence in Research Scholars Program, and the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program, among others. By the time of their graduation, 71% of Rice students participate in research. Even outside of the lab, students become familiar with world-class professors, as Rice has a 6:1 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio. Other noteworthy opportunities include the study abroad programs Rice offers in 60+ countries (including the continent of Antarctica!), as well as the Rice Baylor Medical Program. This highly competitive program allows incoming freshmen to pursue a four-year bachelor’s degree at Rice, followed by guaranteed admission to Baylor College of Medicine.

How diverse is Rice?

Rice’s Class of 2027 is composed of exactly 50% female and 50% male students. Thirteen percent of students come from out of the country, 52% from a state other than Texas, and 35% from Texas. Thirty-four percent of enrolled domestic students are Asian American, 27% are caucasian, 21% Hispanic or Latino, 9% Black or African American, 7% multiracial and 2% of an unknown race or ethnicity.