Is Rice worth $48k/yr?

Dad2ILD
Tue, 29 Mar 2011 08:43:36 +0000

We are in a similar position. My D applied to 10 schools and was accepted to all of them (including Rice) except WUSTL (waitlisted). She applied to some amazing schools including Rice, Vandy, William & Mary, Tulane, WashU, and Univ of Denver in her smaller to mid-size school choices. As a NMF, she also applied to some state flagship colleges with excellent Honors programs as her safeties knowing she’d get in and also receive significant aid offers. We’ve visited 8 of the 10, and as many that have gone through the process can tell you … you really cannot pre-judge or guess what “fit” will come out in the end. After visiting, the 2 Top schools in her list remained only Rice and one of the Top State Flagships, which had already made her a FABULOUS merit offer. She received significant merit offers worth considering from 5 out of the 10 schools she applied to, but Rice remained her sentimental #1. The last few weeks of waiting have been LONG. So, when the Rice letter came back without any award whatsoever, we were honored to have been accepted in such a competitive application year, but will have to turn down Rice’s offer because paying retail at 48K is significantly more than her other award offers. We’ve discussed it and going to an excellent university and graduating with no debt whatsoever far outweighs the benefits of undertaking the expense of Rice (or Vandy, etc.). For graduate school she will be free to choose any school she wishes knowing that she does not have the burden of that undergrad debt waiting for her at the end, so she can choose any institution, including Rice, for the next level. Good luck to all that were fortunate enough to be accepted to Rice, and who have found a way to make it happen financially … what a GREAT school!