VOLUME 104, ISSUE NO. 1 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2019
THE 8.7%
Rice welcomes most selective class (again)
Tina LIU / THRESHER
SAMMI JOHNSON SENIOR WRITER
Following the announcement of the Rice Investment financial aid plan, the university’s admission rate dipped below 10 percent for the first time in the school’s history. With an acceptance rate of 8.7 percent, the undergraduate class of 2023 is
the most selective class to matriculate into Rice to date. According to Vice President for Enrollment Yvonne Romero da Silva, the Office of Admission received a total of 27,087 applications for the class of 2023, an increase from the 20,923 applications for the class of 2022. “Prior to the announcement of the Rice
Investment last semester, we had already seen an increasing interest in Rice,” Romero da Silva said. “Following the announcement, the interest in Rice increased even more. This response to the Rice Investment was far greater than we could have ever imagined.” Romero da Silva said the university accepted 2,361 applicants for the class of 2023. Out of the accepted applicants, 967
students enrolled for the fall 2019 semester as of Aug. 16. The yield rate of applicants who chose to matriculate was 41 percent, which is consistent with the yield rate for the class of 2022. “Obviously, our surge in applications significantly increased our selectivity,” President David Leebron said. SEE NEW STUDENTS PAGE 2
Faculty Senate to decide changes to Pass/Fail policy RISHAB RAMAPRIYAN NEWS EDITOR
At the April 17 meeting, the Faculty Senate formed a new Pass/Fail working group to examine the purpose of allowing students to take courses pass/fail. “The working group was formed after a few senators questioned whether the current pass/fail policies really encourage students to use pass/fail for its primary intended purpose — to explore courses outside their major areas without having to worry too much about taking on work in an area the student may not feel as comfortable with,” Christopher Johns-Krull, Faculty Senate speaker said. According to the Faculty Senate minutes, the working group will investigate how pass/fail policies affect the student learning environment and recommend modifications to policies in order to better implement the pass/fail option.
Johns-Krull, a professor of physics and astronomy, said that the working group is currently in the informationgathering portion of their work. Working group chair Scott Solomon emailed an online survey to all faculty members who teach undergraduate courses on Aug. 23 to gather input regarding their experiences and opinions with the pass/fail option. Questions on the survey covered issues such as whether professors would allow students to take classes pass/fail if they could choose, whether faculty should be informed when students take classes pass/fail and whether students should be allowed to take major/minor requirements pass/fail. Sanat Mehta, who is the Student Association representative on the working group, said his role is to advocate for the student body with respect to the pass/fail option. However, Mehta said he is unsure about how the
working group will solicit student feedback. “My personal view is that [pass/fail is] a good policy overall because it not only makes students feel safer about taking courses outside their comfort zone, but also reduces academic stress for students generally, which is important because Rice is an academically challenging environment,” Mehta, a McMurtry College junior, said. Johns-Krull said that the pass/fail option will not go away as a result of the working group, as the goal is to only update the policy based on the working group recommendations. “Whatever the working group recommends though, the entire senate will have to vote to approve it or not, so it is always possible nothing will change,” Johns-Krull said. According to Johns-Krull, the working group has no specific deadline but he hopes they will finish their work and deliver a report to the Faculty Senate this Fall.