This month we turn our spotlight on Rice University. With over 4,000 universities and colleges in the US, Vela Education is dedicated to highlighting excellent schools so you have more information to help choose the best fit for you.  Rice is a highly selective mid-sized university in Houston, Texas. Located in Houston’s museum district, students have access to both Rice’s lovely campus but also world renowned museums like the Rothko Chapel and the Menil Collection. With just over 4,000 undergraduates and just under 4,000 graduate students, students at Rice are able to use the excellent resources and benefit from a 6:1 student-faculty ratio. 

Admission to Rice is very competitive. Half the applicants admitted to Rice have an SAT score between 1460 and 1570 or an ACT score of 34 to 36. Overall, Rice accepts 11% of applicants though their ED 1 acceptance rate is 20%. Though Rice may have a higher acceptance rate than half of the Ivy League, Duke, and Stanford, it’s commitment to undergraduate education and research makes it enviable and self-selecting. Also, Rice’s admissions committee is eager to accept ambitious, disciplined, and research-oriented students. Thus, some students may be surprised to be admitted to an Ivy League school but not secure an offer at Rice. This is one reason to consider applying Early Decision. 

Though Rice has strong departments across all disciplines, it does attract STEM oriented students. The most popular majors at Rice University include: Computer and Information Sciences (10%), Biochemistry (6%); Economics (5%), Psychology (4%). Rice also has a fantastic undergraduate engineering school! However, overall student satisfaction is high and 97% of students enrolled stay at Rice for all four years. At Rice, at least 50% of students engage in research/creative projects. These are all facilities that are supported by their centres and institutes.

Rice students do exceptionally well after graduation. The top five employers include: Microsoft, Accenture, Facebook, Deloitte, and Teach for America. Students are also accepted to the graduate schools and professional programmes of their choice!

If you have any questions about Rice, or any US University, please reach out to us.