More than the sum of its parts...

Introduction
As others have stated, Rice is a place for people who expect to work in college. Do not come here unless you are prepared to work for your grade. Also, do not come here expecting to be the big fish you were in high school. College isn't about being the best anyways; it's about being your best.

I chose Rice because it was the best school that I got into. I knew I would be getting a good education (and a great diploma) and also I knew that it would push me beyond my comfort zone. The campus environment is very friendly and everyone is here to help. When I stepped onto campus, it felt like home.

Campus Life and Social Life
The best part about campus life is the residential college system. Basically, instead of having fraternities or sororities, we have 9 "residential colleges." When a student enrolls at Rice, he or she is automatically sorted into one of these colleges, which serve as a sort of large, co-ed greek system. Each college has its own dorm, servery (some colleges share serveries), a student government, and most importantly, parties.

Rice is a wet campus with a sort of "don't ask don't tell don't be stupid" alcohol policy. Basically, they don't endorse anything illegal, but they won't search your rooms or hunt you down or anything.

The amount of partying you do at Rice is really up to you. If you are so inclined, you can find a party or a pub night or college night or some kind of activity just about every night. Colleges usually spread their parties out so that there's at least one going on every weekend except maybe just at midterms or finals (but boy does the alcohol flow once the tests are over). Advertisement
Academics
Do not expect to get an A for effort. In most classes, a C is considered to be a well earned average; it is very difficult to get an A, but most professors will not let you fail.

Academs (humanities) have a reputation as having the easiest major, usually leaving them with lots of free time. They still have their share of tough work, it's just not as gut-wrenchingly soul-devouring as others.

S/E's have a difficult but worthwhile major. lots of problem sets and labs, but if you're good at your lab, you can become a labbie the next semester and get paid. If you love what you're studying it's worth it.

Rice has a top-rated but very selective architecture school. Archis have a very design-intensive, time-consuming major, but again, if you love what you're studying, it's worth it. Architecture is a 6-year program; four years undergrad, one year of perceptorship (basically a paid internship to gain work experience), and one year of graduate study.

Lastly, Rice has a great music program, also pretty selective. Musis always finish their semester early and they take classes like "The Alexander Technique" where they basically just learn how to breathe better.

Student Body
Rice's student body is about half Texan and half non-Texan. Your typical student is the kid who was quiet and studious in high school, who wanted to go to college somewhere that would give him a prestigious degree and still allow him to go insane on the weekends. The kids here are into all kind of different things. There's pretty much a club or group or class for anything you're interested in.

In Closing...
I would highly recommend coming to Rice. Houston is not a pretty city; I won't lie, but Rice is like a beautiful oasis. It's one of the prettiest campuses I've ever been on, and you just can't beat being able to wear shorts in January.