The School of Social Sciences

Our School

People. The School of Social Sciences focuses on how people think and act as individuals and in society. Just as scientists seek to uncover facts about the natural and physical worlds, social scientists seek to uncover facts about the social world. Across the school, you will find that our prestigious faculty and students engage in research that affect everyone in their everyday lives and generate solutions that make lives better.

Our Students

The School of Social Sciences serves the largest number of undergraduates, with over a third of Rice undergraduates choosing a major in the social sciences. One of the goals of the school is to give undergraduate students opportunities to have real life experiences so they are able to make informed decisions about what they would like to do after they graduate. To accomplish this goal, the school has created the Gateway program. Gateway allows students to participate in internships, research, and international experiences. At the graduate level, five of our seven departments have vibrant PhD programs. Each of these programs achieves excellence by concentrating on selected areas for education and research. 

Our Faculty

One of the reasons many students choose Rice is because of faculty who really take an interest in students and enjoy teaching. Nowhere on campus is that more evident than the School of Social Sciences, where our faculty consistently exhibit their student commitment by winning teaching awards and creating such a fascinating learning environment that students frequently change their majors to one of the social sciences.

Departments and Programs