UMich vs CMU vs Rice

[Anonymous]

There is an area within walking distance of Rice called Rice Village. It reminds me a lot of Bethesda, a lot of the same stores, restaurants, ice cream shops, and also some local ones. Rice also runs a shuttle to Target and other shopping. Rice's residential college system is really different from the living arrangements at CMU and Michigan. There are no fraternities or sororities. Students are assigned to a college (dorm), and unless they request to switch, they are affiliated with that college for all four years. Typically students move off campus for one year (sophomore or junior year, depending on the college) and then move back for senior year. Each college has its own traditions, annual parties, and spirit. Rice's engineering faculty has a lot more women than the departments at most other schools. That was important to my DD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is an area within walking distance of Rice called Rice Village. It reminds me a lot of Bethesda, a lot of the same stores, restaurants, ice cream shops, and also some local ones. Rice also runs a shuttle to Target and other shopping. Rice's residential college system is really different from the living arrangements at CMU and Michigan. There are no fraternities or sororities. Students are assigned to a college (dorm), and unless they request to switch, they are affiliated with that college for all four years. Typically students move off campus for one year (sophomore or junior year, depending on the college) and then move back for senior year. Each college has its own traditions, annual parties, and spirit. Rice's engineering faculty has a lot more women than the departments at most other schools. That was important to my DD.

That sounds amazing.
CMU's female averages (faculty and students) in STEM fields is around 50%, national averages tend to be closer to 20% in engineering. Rice takes a similar approach. UMich is overwhelmingly male.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

How is Rice urban. Yea it’s in Houston, but a small little suburb-like area. Penn and Temple are urban. Boston University and Columbia are urban. Not seeing this with Rice. It is very separate from urban life except for the medical center across the street. It’s sort of like saying SMU is urban, when it’s in a beautiful, wealthy enclave.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

How is Rice urban. Yea it’s in Houston, but a small little suburb-like area. Penn and Temple are urban. Boston University and Columbia are urban. Not seeing this with Rice. It is very separate from urban life except for the medical center across the street. It’s sort of like saying SMU is urban, when it’s in a beautiful, wealthy enclave.

Depends on your definition of urban. There are sidewalks, you can walk to restaurants and shopping, there are grocery stores (HEB, Randalls, Whole Foods) within 5-10 minute drives. You can walk to over 5 museums from one side of Rice or drive in 5-8 minutes. Houston does not have great public transportation (there are buses running along Rice) so it will never be urban by that definition. But it is definitely urban by most standards. Emory is located in a suburban area, so is Tufts (to some extent). Rice is urban.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC is having hard time deciding which school majoring in engineering (bioengineering) - may be going medicine later. Is any of these schools are cut-throat, grade deflation, belt curve grade? We know they are completely different and will be visiting the open admitted students soon. We want to know what to ask or look for when we get there.

My personal opinion (my son is at Michigan Engineering and doing great), especially if you are targeting grad school - Go for Rice.

All three schools should cost you about the same. CMU is a bit cut-throat and nerdy according to some kids that go there. Michigan is a great school but you likely will get more personal attention at Rice. Besides, both schools are ranked about the same.

[Anonymous]

My DC chose Rice over Michigan for bioengineering. Both are strong programs, obviously, but Rice focuses on undergrads to a much greater degree. DC loved pretty much everything about Rice; got into a great grad program and has a tight group of supportive Rice friends. It's really a terrific school.

[Anonymous]

We will be visiting the colleges next week. Here are the questions that we came up with. Is there any things else we should ask?

1. what is the study aboard opportunities and how it works
2. what is % of female in engineering
3. How easy to switch from one engineering major to another engineering major or to outside of College of engineering (in case DC changes her mind)
4. How many students per academic advisor? How does it work? Is it assigned to one throughout the college or just make appoint to anyone? Can DC reach out to academic advisor prior to commit to the school?
5. Can DC repeat the AP classes that took in high school so DC will have stronger foundation.
6. Is there any placement test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC chose Rice over Michigan for bioengineering. Both are strong programs, obviously, but Rice focuses on undergrads to a much greater degree. DC loved pretty much everything about Rice; got into a great grad program and has a tight group of supportive Rice friends. It's really a terrific school.

DD is considering Rice and Michigan now so thank you for posting. Rice is the frontrunner at this point because of its ranking/stature and because Michigan is too big. However, she has some reservations about the social climate. She very social and wants to make sure there is enough spirit and fun at Rice. She doesn't expect the big sport spirit of Michigan but wants to make sure she has a vibrant college experience in and out of the classroom. I would appreciate any insights.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CMU will likely have the hardest CS component of the engineering degree. For med school, Michigan will be the easiest to get a higher GPA. CMU will mean the most degree specialized classes, UMich and less so Rice will have more bumper classes for GPA.

Michigan engineering is not going to be the easiest to get a high GPA, it is cutthroat but less so than CMU.

Engineering is generally not a good idea for Pre-med.

In terms of grade deflation, probably CMU, followed by Michigan Engineering, Rice, then Michigan LSA.

But the science GPA is what matters for medical school applications, in which case Michigan LSA may be more cutthroat than Rice as well since it'll be a lot of students gunning for medical school.

[Anonymous]

In engineering Michigan is superior to Rice. Its stature is easily comparable to Rice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

How is Rice urban. Yea it’s in Houston, but a small little suburb-like area. Penn and Temple are urban. Boston University and Columbia are urban. Not seeing this with Rice. It is very separate from urban life except for the medical center across the street. It’s sort of like saying SMU is urban, when it’s in a beautiful, wealthy enclave.

Depends on your definition of urban. There are sidewalks, you can walk to restaurants and shopping, there are grocery stores (HEB, Randalls, Whole Foods) within 5-10 minute drives. You can walk to over 5 museums from one side of Rice or drive in 5-8 minutes. Houston does not have great public transportation (there are buses running along Rice) so it will never be urban by that definition. But it is definitely urban by most standards. Emory is located in a suburban area, so is Tufts (to some extent). Rice is urban.

Agree it depends on your definition of “urban.” Rice is 4 miles from downtown Houston and about 5.5 miles from the Galleria area. In comparison to DC, it’s more like going to a college on the Cathedral close (vs. a college like Pitt, which is more like GW). I would consider that “urban” but some would not. If your definition of “suburban” is “an area with single family homes,” then I guess it is suburban. In the end, it’s just a question of atmosphere — it is surrounded by the fourth most populous city in the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

How is Rice urban. Yea it’s in Houston, but a small little suburb-like area. Penn and Temple are urban. Boston University and Columbia are urban. Not seeing this with Rice. It is very separate from urban life except for the medical center across the street. It’s sort of like saying SMU is urban, when it’s in a beautiful, wealthy enclave.

Depends on your definition of urban. There are sidewalks, you can walk to restaurants and shopping, there are grocery stores (HEB, Randalls, Whole Foods) within 5-10 minute drives. You can walk to over 5 museums from one side of Rice or drive in 5-8 minutes. Houston does not have great public transportation (there are buses running along Rice) so it will never be urban by that definition. But it is definitely urban by most standards. Emory is located in a suburban area, so is Tufts (to some extent). Rice is urban.

Agree it depends on your definition of “urban.” Rice is 4 miles from downtown Houston and about 5.5 miles from the Galleria area. In comparison to DC, it’s more like going to a college on the Cathedral close (vs. a college like Pitt, which is more like GW). I would consider that “urban” but some would not. If your definition of “suburban” is “an area with single family homes,” then I guess it is suburban. In the end, it’s just a question of atmosphere — it is surrounded by the fourth most populous city in the US.

I meant to add — Personally, I think schools like Rice, SMU, and CMU (which are the three I can think of that are like this) are the best of both worlds — close to/surrounded by a big city, but have traditional campuses in an attractive, safe neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC chose Rice over Michigan for bioengineering. Both are strong programs, obviously, but Rice focuses on undergrads to a much greater degree. DC loved pretty much everything about Rice; got into a great grad program and has a tight group of supportive Rice friends. It's really a terrific school.

DD is considering Rice and Michigan now so thank you for posting. Rice is the frontrunner at this point because of its ranking/stature and because Michigan is too big. However, she has some reservations about the social climate. She very social and wants to make sure there is enough spirit and fun at Rice. She doesn't expect the big sport spirit of Michigan but wants to make sure she has a vibrant college experience in and out of the classroom. I would appreciate any insights.

Careful. You may find that Rice took a page from Columbia's book and gamed the rankings. Don't make your decision based on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have visited all three over the past couple of years. Here is my take

UMichigan=big school. Great medical school and Michigan Medicine is a top medical center. School has a work hard/play hard vibe. Big sports crowd. Big sprawling campus and Michigan weather. About 30 minutes from Detroit airport, and lots of little places near campus to eat. A little worn down though.

CMU= smaller school. Located in the city next to Pitt. A more serious intellectual vibe at the school, but location wise, its the more urban of the three. The urban vibe is good and pretty safe. Very new and nice architecture in spots and lots more building going on. Not far from Target, Whole Foods, hospitals, the conservatory and museums. Lots to do here. Pitt downtown offers a lot to do as well.

Rice=probably the smallest of the three. Very cute campus. Reminds me of Stanford's campus architecture. But located outside/outskirts of Houston in a smallish, spanish styled neighborhood. Large trees that overhand, a jogging path around campus. The medical center across the street is enormous and hence lots of opportunities there. Definitely an intellectual vibe but fun vibe also. You would need to drive more into the city of Houston to have access to more stuff like restaurants, etc. MLB Baseball stadium is about 10 minutes away (via car). A bit isolated but very cute campus for those who like smaller campuses. I think I read that about 30-40% of students there are from in-state.

Rice is in the heart of Houston..

Which can be a plus or a minus. I toured there with my mother (long, long ago) after I got in, and when my mother asked about safety, the tour guide hemmed and hawed. We learned from another student that the previous semester, 3 students had been marched off campus at gunpoint and raped. That shut down my prospects of going there very quickly. But it is possible that Houston has gotten safer.

Rice is located near West U which was voted the BEST neighborhood in the U.S. in 2019. It is safe---there are kids biking around in the loop at 10pm. Of course it is an urban school---you have to have your safety radar up after 11pm. But it feels safe.

How is Rice urban. Yea it’s in Houston, but a small little suburb-like area. Penn and Temple are urban. Boston University and Columbia are urban. Not seeing this with Rice. It is very separate from urban life except for the medical center across the street. It’s sort of like saying SMU is urban, when it’s in a beautiful, wealthy enclave.

Rice isn’t suburban at all. I live in West U (mentioned earlier). Rice is next to the Med Center and the Museum District. It is walkable to many museums, the zoo, Rice Village, bars, restaurants. You can hop on the light rail and get downtown in 10-15 min. It is inside the Loop, which is the oldest part of Houston. Houston is gigantic. Rice is very centrally located.