rice rises again

Rice University named one of the greatest schools in U.S. in prestigious new report

Places-Unique-Rice University-main building-exterior-1

Rice has been heralded again by Princeton Review.

Photo courtesy of Rice University

Just mere weeks after being named the No. 7 university in the nation, a local hall of higher learning has just landed on yet another prestigious list.
Rice University has scored high marks in the Princeton Review’s annual survey on the nation’s best colleges. The new report as part of “The Best 387 Colleges,” its 30th annual snapshot of academic excellence at colleges and universities.

The new report analyzes three decades of reviews on America’s institutions of higher education and is based upon reviews submitted by more than 150,000 students nationwide, per a release. The survey lists the top-ranking schools measured in dozens of different categories.

For its 2022 anniversary edition, Princeton Review analyzed which colleges and universities have “the most impressive history of appearances” since 1992.

Notably, per a press release, only four institutions were named to 11 of what the review calls its “Great Lists” — and one of those schools is Rice.

To generate this report, Princeton Review analyzed three criteria: the number of times a college appeared on lists since 1992, its numerical rank on those lists, and the overall consistency of feedback from the college’s students over the three decades.

Specifically, Rice ranked on the “Great Lists” in the following categories:

great race/class interaction
great financial aid
great health services
great-run colleges
most loved colleges
great college newspapers
great college dorms
great quality of life
great town-gown relations
LGBTQ-friendly
happy students

Rice students praised the university’s faculty and described a “high quality of life” and are among “the happiest students in the United States,” according to a press release.

“I wanted my college years to be both happy and successful,” one student wrote in the survey. “And I found no other schools that were as prestigious, but also dedicated to ensuring the happiness of the student body.”

As CultureMap previously reported, Niche ranked Rice No. 7 in its latest ratings of the best colleges in the U.S. and No. 1 in Texas.

Rice also ranked No. 136 internationally in The Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2022.

lists reports bests colleges

double down

Apple doubles Houston factory's footprint to make Mac mini computers

Apple Houston Advanced Manufacturing Center

Courtesy of Apple

Apple will double the footprint of its Houston manufacturing site.

Tech giant Apple announced that it will double the size of its Houston manufacturing footprint as it brings production of its Mac mini to the U.S. for the first time.

The company plans to begin production of its compact desktop computer at a new factory at Apple’s Houston manufacturing site later this year. The move is expected to create thousands of jobs in the Houston area, according to Apple.

Last year, the Cupertino, California-based company announced it would open a 250,000-square-foot factory to produce servers for its data centers in the Houston area. The facility was originally slated to open in 2026, but Apple reports it began production ahead of schedule in 2025.

Apple Mac mini Apple will make the Mac mini in Houston.Courtesy of Apple

The addition of the Mac mini operations at the site will bring the footprint to about 500,000 square feet, the Houston Chronicle reports. The New York Times previously reported that Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn would be involved in the Houston factory.

Apple also announced plans to open a 20,000-square-foot Advanced Manufacturing Center in Houston later this year. The project is currently under construction and will "provide hands-on training in advanced manufacturing techniques to students, supplier employees, and American businesses of all sizes," according to the announcement. Apple opened a similar Apple Manufacturing Academy in Detroit last year.

“Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’re proud to significantly expand our footprint in Houston with the production of Mac mini starting later this year,” Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said in the news release. “We began shipping advanced AI servers from Houston ahead of schedule, and we’re excited to accelerate that work even further.”

Apple's Houston expansion is part of a $600 billion commitment the company made to the U.S. in 2025.

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This story was originally published on our sister site, InnovationMap.

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