Rice University is welcoming visiting students into its classrooms this fall through a new online program. The pilot Rice Online Visiting Owls program allows high school juniors and seniors and visiting undergraduates to enroll in select online courses for credit.
The Visiting Owls program was created in response to high demand for the university's Rice Online Summer Session offerings - classes that were originally scheduled to be delivered in-person but moved online due to COVID-19 - and positive feedback from the non-Rice students who took part.
"The program is built for students who are ready to undertake the rigors of credit-bearing undergraduate online study at Rice," said Caroline Levander, vice president of global and digital strategy at Rice. "The program can help serious-minded students from across the country looking not only to get ahead in their studies but to expand and diversify their learning environment."
Offerings include high-demand courses from the George R. Brown School of Engineering, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences and the School of Social Sciences, such as Organic Chemistry, Single Variable Calculus, Fundamentals of Computer Engineering, General Physics, Introduction to American Politics and Multiracial America.
Courses will have synchronous meeting times and will be recorded for students who are unable to attend live. Most classes are small, facilitating close collaboration between students and instructors.
Applications are due by Aug. 1 and classes start Aug. 24. Students who apply on or before July 24 will receive a 20% early application discount on tuition. Visit visitingstudents.rice.edu/online-courses for more details on application and admission.
