1.) Would you mind posting your portfolio? 

2.) Which of those schools conducted interviews?

3.) How do you like the small size of Rice? 

Hi Skdeish, I actually don't have my portfolio posted anywhere. If you send me a personal message, I can share my old coroflot page and some of my classmates' portfolios with you.

Pratt had a written exchange with me and there was a brief interview for Cornell. 

I actually really like the size of Rice. It is great to get to know everyone on a personal level, and people get to know you. Your design language is definitely more recognized by others due to the small size of the school. You are always encouraged to discuss your work with others and others will discuss their work with you. It is a great environment to experiment and grow as a designer. Because the size is very small (my program this year is only 7 people!) you get to know your classmates pretty well - therefore people are more understanding in the studio  during stressful times like finals/ reviews etc. Also the professors and Dean Whiting are accessible to you. Studio doors and office doors are always open in Anderson Hall. 

Hope this is helpful. 

Looks like you don't have pm enabled, I can't message you. Would definitely be interested in seeing classmates portfolios too. Are you in M.Arch I? I appreciate your description of the program, but 7 people is actually even significantly smaller than I had anticipated. 

Hi Skdeish, 

Just enabled the PM. You should be able to contact me now!

Hi midfish! Would you mind explaining why you chose Rice over all these other great schools that you were admitted to? I think it's one of the more traditional schools (maybe also Cornell) in your list. Are you happy with your decision? I am applying this year to Cornell, GSAPP, MIT, and a couple of other ivies for MArch I. I will also pm you for portfolios as this insanely long wait is killing me. Thanks!!

Hi ArchInspired, 

I love Rice so far. Although admittedly, it was definitely not my top choice in the school list. I was debating between Columbia and Cornell, Columbia being my top choice. 

I am not quite sure what it means to call a school traditional, but if you mean "theory heavy", yes, I would call Rice traditional. There is not much weight on computer aided design in the core curriculum(parametric design, CAM etc) but you are more than welcome to use those in your studio projects. Parametric design is mostly done in elective courses at Rice, which are also challenging and production heavy, if you are interested in building your portfolio with that. 

Rice was very generous with money and offered me a full ride and stipend, which is definitely one of the reasons why I chose Rice. Rice also has a lot of grants and travel opportunities every year, and every student gets to take advantage of them at least once in their time at Rice.  

I was really intrigued by the small size/ family feel of Rice. Rice is a very transparent place. Everybody knows everyone and how things work in the school. You don't feel excluded, and if you want to take part in anything (literally anything), you can. Because it is a very small school, people care about each other. When I got into Rice, I was sent numerous emails from students to make sure that I could get answers to my questions, and they were very helpful and made me feel welcome. 

After I got into grad school, I was really torn between some of the schools on my list. I talked to many professors from my undergrad and from the profession, and (it was surprising to me then) literally every single person I talked to told me to go to Rice. Just another thing that helped me with my decision.

Overall, I just had a good feeling about Rice. Good schools are always good but I think what makes them great is your experience.

Hope this is helpful.   

midfish, thank you for those insights!!