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Summary
Rice University is a private institution that was founded in 1912. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 3,755, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 285 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Rice University's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 17. Its tuition and fees are $37,292 (2012-13).
Rice University, located in the heart of Houston’s Museum District, offers a dynamic student life in the nation’s fourth-largest city. The Rice Coffeehouse, Valhalla Pub, and Willy’s Pub are all student-run institutions offering on-campus food and drink. Before stepping foot on campus, all students are assigned to one of 11 residential colleges, of which they remain members even if they decide to move off campus. The residential colleges provide housing, dining, and academic and social events. The Rice Owls boast 14 varsity NCAA Division I athletic teams and are well known for their strong baseball program. Students receive free tickets to all varsity athletic events.
Rice is comprised of eight schools, including the School of Social Sciences, School of Humanities, and Wiess School of Natural Sciences. Its graduate schools include the highly ranked Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business and George R. Brown School of Engineering. Rice also has a well-regarded School of Architecture and the Shepherd School of Music. Rice is home to the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, a nonpartisan think tank, which offers coursework, internships, and lectures. When a private detective found Rice’s stolen owl mascot at rival school Texas A&M in 1917, he sent a coded message back to Rice students letting them know that "Sammy" was OK, thus bestowing a name on the school’s mascot.
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Undergraduate education has remained at the center of Rice University's mission since its founding nearly 100 years ago. Our students have unparalleled opportunities to learn from distinguished faculty through classroom interaction and research collaboration. Rice combines the advantages of a liberal arts college, including small class sizes and a low faculty to student ratio, with the resources and facilities of a premier research university. The distinctive residential college system enhances the Rice experience by allowing students to flourish as individuals in a community of their peers. Rice's comparative advantages lie in our relatively small size, our emphasis on undergraduate education, our focused areas of strength, the relative ease by which we can foster interdisciplinary study, and our possibilities for teaching and research excellence across the range of human knowledge and endeavor. Rice boasts a just a 6:1 student-faculty ratio, a median class size of 13, an endowment of $4.45 billion, numerous opportunities for undergraduates to conduct primary research, and a strong sense of community fostered by our residential college system. Rice practices need-blind admission, meets 100 percent of students' demonstrated need, and is consistently heralded as one of the best values in higher education. |
General Information
| School type | private, coed college |
| Year founded | 1912 |
| Religious affiliation | N/A |
| Academic calendar | semester |
| Setting | urban |
| 2011 Endowment | $4,498,951,000 |
Applying
When applying to Rice University, it's important to note the application deadline is January 1, and the early decision deadline is November 1. Scores for either the ACT or SAT test are due December 31. The application fee at Rice University is $75. It is most selective, with an acceptance rate of 18.8 percent.
For more information about the tests, essays, interviews, and admissions process, visit the Applying to College knowledge center.
| Selectivity | most selective |
| Fall 2011 acceptance rate | 18.8% |
| Application deadline | January 1 |
| SAT/ACT scores must be received by | December 31 |
Academic Life
The student-faculty ratio at Rice University is 6:1, and the school has 69.6 percent of its classes with fewer than 20 students. The most popular majors at Rice University include: Economics, General; Biochemistry; Mechanical Engineering; Psychology, General; and Kinesiology and Exercise Science. The average freshman retention rate, an indicator of student satisfaction, is 96.5 percent.
Student Life
Rice University has a total undergraduate enrollment of 3,755, with a gender distribution of 51.9 percent male students and 48.1 percent female students. At this school, 75.0 percent of the students live in college-owned, -operated, or -affiliated housing and 25.0 percent of students live off campus. Rice University is part of the NCAA I athletic conference.
See what students are saying about life at Rice University.
| Total enrollment | 6,224 |
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| Collegiate athletic association | NCAA I |
Campus Info & Services
Rice University offers a number of student services including nonremedial tutoring, women's center, placement service, day care, health service, and health insurance. Rice University also offers campus safety and security services like 24-hour foot and vehicle patrols, late night transport/escort service, 24-hour emergency telephones, lighted pathways/sidewalks, and controlled dormitory access (key, security card, etc). Of the students at Rice University, 42 percent have cars on campus. Alcohol is permitted for students of legal age at Rice University.
| Students who have cars on campus | 42% |
| Health insurance offered | Yes |
| Students required to own/lease a computer | No |
More About Campus Info & Services
Paying for School
At Rice University, 43.1 percent of full-time undergraduates receive some kind of need-based financial aid and the average need-based scholarship or grant award is $31,252.
Paying for college doesn't have to be difficult or devastating. Go to the Paying for College knowledge center to get advice on raising cash and reducing costs.
| Tuition and fees | $37,292 (2012-13) |
| Room and board | $12,600 (2012-13) |
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* Overview details based on 2011 data
