Lifestyle

Texas Schools Make List of Best Colleges and Universities in America

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With college applications sent and acceptance letters beginning to trickle in for high school seniors, it’s an exciting time to be embarking on a collegiate journey. However, the price of college tuition and fees have risen three times faster than inflation over the course of a decade, making choosing a college or university a huge financial decision. The personal-finance website WalletHub recently released its 2018’s Best College & University Rankings, and there are Texas colleges and universities on their lists.

How To Choose Between College and University

Colleges and Universities

Photo: Unsplash/Rochelle Nicole

When deciding where to pursue higher education, the choice between attending a university versus a college can be tough.  But according to WalletHub, those who prefer widely diverse academic and social opportunities, university is the answer. Universities boast many advantages over colleges. Besides having big enrollment numbers that promise a dynamic campus life, universities offer both undergraduate- and graduate-level programs that lead to bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. Students with an appetite for different subjects can even pursue multiple degree tracks at once.

But, university students also give up certain privileges afforded to their peers at smaller colleges. For instance, university students in lower-level courses often receive classroom instruction from teaching assistants instead of professors who may spend more time researching than teaching. Large, crowded lecture halls can also make learning more of a challenge. But for those who prefer widely diverse academic and social opportunities, university is the answer.

Rice University Ranked #10 on Top 500 List

Rice University

Photo: Facebook/RiceUniversity

Rice University was ranked #10 on WalletHub’s list of top 500 list of Best Colleges and Universities. The criteria for this list was best-performing schools at the lowest possible costs to undergraduates. Rice University is a private research university located on a 295-acre campus in Houston. The university is situated near the Houston Museum District and is adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is generally considered the top university and the most selective institution of higher education in the state of Texas.

The university has produced numerous prominent alumni, including more than two dozen Marshall Scholars and a dozen Rhodes Scholars. Given the university’s close links to NASA, it has produced a disproportionate number of astronauts and space scientists. In business, Rice graduates have become CEOs and founders of Fortune 500 companies; in politics, alumni have won positions as congressmen, cabinet secretaries, judges, and mayors. Two alumni have won the Nobel Prize, and numerous others are leading researchers in science, technology, and engineering.

Other WalletHub College and University Rankings

UTPB

Photo: Facebook/GoUTPB

Additionally, several Texas schools also made the list for WalletHub’s other rankings. For instance, Paul Quinn College, located in Dallas and University of Texas of the Permian Basin located in Odessa, both ranked in the top 5 for Lowest Student Loan Debt. You may view all of WalletHub’s rankings and findings HERE.