I’m not sure about grad school. Definitely not medical. Maybe MBA…have no clue right now. Also, what @jym626 is true. It’s actually easier to get into med school as a Rice grad…much easier actually from what I’ve heard.
Over on SDN everyone is always talking about how students who go to ivies/ other top 20’s for undergrad face more competition as premed studens and overall may have lower GPA due to the higher rigor levels in these schools than lower ranked ones. Overall, going to an Ivy/ top doesn’t really help and may even harm you in medical school admissions. It’s better to stand out in a small pond
@inn0v8r Exactly. It should be a great thing that they are offering all this financial aid/scholarships…however, I was set on UT. Now, I will have to re-visit Rice. What if I still don’t like it as much as UT? This is going to be a very difficult decision. 
You can check with the FA office, but the Trustee scholarship, IIRC, is fixed for all 4 years (or possibly goes up with any increase in tuition-- I can’t recall offhand), but if your UT award is based on the FAFSA, then when your brother graduates, that will be cut in half (the family’s EFC is then for one student, not split across 2). It would stink if suddenly in your senior year your EFC was significantly higher because your family had only 1 in college,and you couldn’t afford it/
@rasofia my personal opinion is that Rice is a lower risk option for you in many ways. I realize a lot of your friends are going to UT, and that is a good support network, (and you have relatives closer) but the smaller size and residential system means a lot of built-in support on the Rice campus. At larger schools it is much easier to fall through the cracks.
On the financial side, it is much less risky per what jym626 is saying as well. And loans are of course inherently risky.
My opinion is, unless you know you will HATE Rice, give it a shot. It is a far more compelling offer on paper. Worst case, you transfer back to UT, no? With your incredible work ethic I know you will get great grades. And I will bet you 10 internets you will like it there in the end.
Maybe you will go to grad school at UT. 
@jym626 Well…now I REALLY have to re-consider. But this sucks…I was so excited about UT just yesterday! Now…I have to re-think. I guess I’ll just visit Rice again. I just can’t stand the thought of being totally alone. None of my friends are going to Rice and my family will be farther away.
I was already making plans of all the organizations I’d join at UT and how I would apply for study abroad my freshman year and do internships the other two summers.
Thank you for your replies though. I’ve asked the opinions of all my family and all they respond with is “Just think about it, just relax.” Not much help.
Thank you!!
You were “set” on UT? Only 3 days ago you were pining over some rejections. Now that’s yesterday’s news! Your reasons for UT are largely security/comfort/familiarity (friends, proximity to home, etc). Yes Austin is more fun that to Houston, but Rice village is charming, and you probably won’t be spending that much time in city -based activities. Rice is not cross the country. It’s a little further away. Its not like you won’t be able to go home for Thanksgiving!
Rice’s O week (freshman orientation) is fabulous and you will quickly have a fast circle of friends. And the residential college system, with its resident masters, is like a surrogate family. Consider broadening your horizons, and step a bit outside your comfort zone.
By the way, is it actually a “thing” to send your financial aid packets from other schools to your desired school to see if they will offer you more? Should I try that out by sending UT Rice’s aid?
@inn0v8r Thank you!!
This is kind of irrelevant, but I also would feel guilty about declining Rice because after the Trustee scholarship and my invitation to the Vision program and all the grants I received, it feels like a personal rejection.
For instance, I feel like if, say, I were to go to UT for undergrad and then apply to Rice for grad, they’d take this previous rejection into account (not that any of this would actually happen, but just as an explanation of what I mean). I feel bad about declining them when they are offering me so much. It feels like they value me more as a student than does UT, if that makes any sense? So, it makes it worse rejecting Rice.
Anyway, that’s not the point…the point is I was set on UT, now I have to re-consider Rice.
@jym626 I also visited UT 3 days ago and attended a bunch of Engineering sessions and heard what all the current students/faculty had to say (plus all the opportunities they offered). Actually, before the whole rejection thing, I was already planning on going to UT over Rice (after the ‘negative’ experience I had at Rice). I also attended an Engineering session at Rice when I did stay over night and it was …different. I enjoyed UT’s better…the students & faculty seemed more…I can’t think of the word, but more appealing to me.
I was valedictorian at a top high school in Texas and was thrilled to go to UT! I got my bachelor’s in Architectural Engineering with High Honors, then received a full fellowship from UT to get my master’s degree in engineering. Kids from all over the country were thrilled to get into UT’s grad school. A UT engineering degree is well-regarded all over the world.
The bottom line is what you can afford, since you said your parents can’t really contribute anything. It’s clear you are arguing for UT (I happen to disagree, but it’s your choice) but you are turning down an unbelievable offer and honor. And yes, your COA is going to jump at UT your senior year, when your brother graduates. Be prepared.
@MaineLonghorn Yes, I know that, plus the fact that UT’s Engineering program is ranked higher than Rice’s.
It’s funny because I was secretly praying that Rice wouldn’t give me enough financial aid, so that I would feel reassured in my UT over Rice decision. But, no. The Universe decided to throw a curve ball at me today. Now, Rice is cheaper financially than UT is.
No one is denying that UT is a great school. But the offer from Rice is really hard to beat, especially to a financially needy family.
@jym626 Exactly, it’s an unbelievable offer! Now I have to definitely re-consider, which is making me sick to my stomach right now. Maybe I should just go to sleep and think about it tomorrow.
@rasofia you would have nothing to feel guilty about in not taking Rice’s scholarship, nor would they hold it against you if you applied there for grad school if you had declined (unless hypothetically if you were really rude in how you declined it I suppose?). It is not really UT valuing you less than Rice, they just have more students to take care of relative to their budget.
But 2 things: (1) there is a strong recency effect. You are more likely to prefer the school you just saw, and (2) the Vision program is probably not representative of how the undergrad experience is going to be.
It is tough to change your mind when you were so set on UT. But this is some very consequential new information that came in.
In all seriousness, I think a Rice Undergrad and a UT Masters would be a very powerful combo.
I think you probably got rejected because you had no intention of actually going to those schools. College admissions officers are experienced, and they can tell when a student is just applying for bragging rights. It probably has nothing to do with qualifications or lack thereof, they just want to accept the people they think will want to go. Don’t get discouraged, University of Texas is a great school and you stated you’d be happier close to home anyway:)
If it makes you feel better, many of the top students at my school went to state universities(the unis in my state are far less competitive than UT) and literally nobody cared. They are all happy there and are doing well.
@rasofia You have written several times that UT’s engineering program is ranked higher than Rice’s. That is probably true, in general terms, but if you are interested specifically in biomedical or materials science/nanotechnology, imho you would be better off at Rice. Rice has invested heavily in these two areas over the past decade.
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/top-institutions-in-materials-science/410831.article